Carrot Treats: Homemade Snacks Your Horse Will Love

Carrot Treats: Homemade Snacks Your Horse Will Love

An Easy Recipe for Delicious Carrot Cookies Your Horse Will Adore

Is your horse giving you sad eyes every time you munch on snacks at the barn? Never fear, you can bake up homemade “carrot cookies” in no time to share with your four-legged friend! With only four simple ingredients—carrots, applesauce, oats, and flour—you likely have everything on hand to whip up a fresh batch of these goodies right now.

These carrot treats take just minutes to throw together and make for a nutritious snack packed with vitamins and minerals from the grated carrots. Your horse will start drooling as soon as he catches a whiff of these tempting morsels coming out of the oven!

Benefits of Homemade Horse Treats

Store-bought treats may be convenient, but homemade wins hands-down for safety and nutrition. When you make DIY treats, you control exactly what goes into them. Most commercial treats contain lots of sugar, preservatives, and artificial flavors—ingredients you won’t find in this simple carrot cookie recipe.

Making your own treats also allows you to easily accommodate each horse's unique nutritional needs. For example, some horses require a low-sugar or high-fiber diet. With a homemade recipe, simply swap out or adjust ingredients to create custom snacks.

Finally, baking treats yourself is just plain fun! Kids especially get a kick out of helping shape dough into fun cookies using holiday-themed cutters. Let their creativity run wild while teaching them skills in the kitchen.

Horse-Safe Ingredients

When exploring homemade treat recipes, ensure all ingredients are 100% horse-safe. While carrots, oats, applesauce and flour make up this recipe, always double-check with your vet before introducing new foods.

Certain human foods can cause digestive upset or toxicity in horses. For example, some artificial sweeteners used in sugar-free snacks could be dangerous. When in doubt, skip out! Stick with simple, whole-food ingredients you recognize for safety and health.

Carrots

Crunchy, naturally sweet carrots serve as a nutritious base for these wholesome cookies. Loaded with vitamin A and beta-carotene, they support immunity and healthy skin and coat. Grate carrots finely so your horse can easily digest them.

Oats

Whole oats provide insoluble fiber to promote healthy digestion. Look for steel-cut varieties over instant or rolled oats which become sticky when baked. Measure oats after preparation rather than before to allow for expansion.

Applesauce

Pure unsweetened applesauce adds moisture for easy mixing and binding. Apples offer antioxidants, vitamin C, and calcium. Though horses can eat whole fresh apples, applesauce makes a safer option for baking as it reduces choking risk from large chunks.

Flour

All-purpose wheat flour helps hold baked goods together for easy handling. Whole wheat flours work too but may create denser or drier cookies. Supervise horses closely when feeding flour-based treats as excess carbs could cause metabolic issues.

Step-By-Step Instructions

Now for the fun part...whipping up these carrot cookies for horses! This is an easy no-fuss recipe using ingredients you likely have on hand. Adjust batch sizes to suit your needs, but maintain equal parts carrots, oats, applesauce, and flour.

You'll need:

• Parchment paper
• Baking sheets
• Mixing bowls
• Measuring cups
• Large spoon for mixing
• Cookie cutters or straw (optional)

Preheat and Prepare

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Cover baking sheets completely with parchment paper—this prevents sticking and makes cleanup a breeze!

Mix and Shape Dough

1. Grate carrot pieces finely using a box grater. Smaller pieces allow for thorough mixing and uniform baking.
2. Measure equal parts grated carrots, oats, applesauce, and flour into a large bowl. For example, use 1/2 cup of each ingredient to make two dozen petite treats.
3. Stir thoroughly until fully combined, with no dry pockets remaining. The dough will be thick and stiff—add an extra spoonful of applesauce if needed so it’s workable but not sticky.
4. Scoop rounded spoonfuls of dough carefully onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between cookies to allow for spreading.
5. Alternatively, for fun shaped treats, press dough evenly into cookie cutters. Use the handle-end of a wooden spoon to lift cutters off, maintaining shape.

Bake and Cool

1. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned along the edges. Smaller cookies may bake faster than larger treats. Reduce temperature if cookies brown too quickly.
2. Allow treats to cool completely on the baking sheet before serving to prevent crumbling. Loosen with a spatula once firm.

Cooling rack with carrot cookies for horses

Store and Serve

1. Seal fully cooled treats in airtight containers, out of humidity. Refrigeration extends shelf life to two weeks; freeze for longer storage.
2. Because these carrot cookie crumble easily, serve directly in a durable feeding bucket versus loose on the stall floor. Supervise horses during treat time to discourage greedy gobbling.
3. Share treats in small handfuls during training sessions for positive reinforcement or as an occasional snack. As with any treat, provide carrots cookies in moderation balanced within a fiber-rich diet.