With the Holidays fast approaching, many of us will spend copious amounts of time in the kitchen. Baked goodies make for fantastic gifts for both our human friends and family and our equines.
Most horse treat recipes use many of the same ingredients as grain, rolled and whole oats, cracked corn, barley, dried beet pulp, wheat, wheat bran, and so on, with added treats or sweeteners. Apples, carrots, raisins, molasses, brown sugar and peppermint make great flavor enhancers.
As with feeding grain, it is important to carefully check the list of ingredients against your horse’s allergies or food sensitivities. One of the best parts of homemade treats is the ability to customize them based on your horse’s likes, for example, adding a favorite fruit or carrots.
Below are some easy horse treat recipes to get started with, courtesy of thehorse.com.
No-Bake Peppermint Thumbprint Cookies
What You’ll Need:
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1 cup rolled oats
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¼ cup water
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1 to 2 tbsp. molasses
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5 peppermints
What To Do:
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Mix the oats and water until the oats are damp.
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Add molasses by the tablespoon until the mixture is sticky.
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Roll into balls and press a peppermint in the middle of each cookie.
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Put in refrigerator (uncovered) to harden.
Fruity Chew Cookies
What You’ll Need:
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1 1/2 cup oats
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2 tbsp. honey or molasses
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1 cup water
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1/2 apple, finely chopped
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1 carrot, finely chopped
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1 1/2 tbsp. flour
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1 tbsp. brown sugar
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5 crushed peppermints
What To Do:
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Preheat oven to 350°F.
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Mix oats, water and honey or molasses in a bowl.
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Microwave for two minutes.
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Add chopped apple and carrots, brown sugar, crushed peppermints and flour to the mixture.
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Microwave for another two minutes.
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Put mixture in mini muffin pan and bake for about 15 minutes.
Healthy Horse Treats with Raisins
What You’ll Need:
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1 cup flour
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3/4 cup beer
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2 cups molasses
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1 pound grain
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1/2 cup raisins
What To Do:
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Mix the flour, beer and molasses thoroughly. Add grain to mixture slowly and stir well. Finally, mix in the raisins.
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Pour this mixture into an oiled 12-by-15-inch pan and place in a 250°F oven.
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When the mixture starts to firm up (about 25 minutes), remove the pan and cut the contents into bite-sized pieces. Then, return the pan to the oven and bake until the treats are mostly dry and fairly firm (roughly 40 minutes).
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After removing the pan from the oven, let it cool before removing the treats.
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Place the treats on cooling racks overnight.
Trying different recipes can be a fun and creative way to make tasty holiday treats for your horse and gifts for friends at the barn.
