Making a Round-To-It version of Meghan Markle's dog treats
Even without all the ingredients, my first time baking dog treats was a win
Writer’s note on May 2, 2025: I ran out of all-purpose flour and have had a bag of chickpea flour in my cabinet for over two months. I’d never tasted chickpea flour and was worried it would mess up my homemade bread. I finally gave in, primarily because I wanted to bake fresh bread and I got tired of Junee sitting next to my fridge with a “That’s it?” look on her face if I just gave her a peanut-butter wrapped carrot. These treats are clearly her “thing” now. Scroll below to see a chickpea flour alternative.
Writer’s note on April 6, 2025: Go easy on allowing your dog to eat too many of these. My dog was in the 28-29 lb range for seven straight weeks. Exactly one week after giving her two of these per day, she gained 2 lbs. Thirty pounds was the goal weight, but I suggest one homemade dog treat per day. Because my dog is obsessed with baby carrots, it’s an easy alternative — even though she now runs into the kitchen every single time she sees me turn on the oven.
ORIGINAL POST: March 26, 2025
When my grandfather would get ready to clean his refrigerator, not contributing to food waste was a priority. He’d call me up and tell me he was making a “Round-To-It” meal. It was always a bunch of grocery items he never got “around to” baking, frying, cooking or BBQing. So, he’d figure out a way to use all of them at once, usually in some kind of cookie, cake or a stew. He’d just mix or stir all of it up. Voila! Dinner.
And out of all of his Round-To-It meals, I think the only one I couldn’t get on board with was homemade zucchini bread. His doctor told him he was prediabetic and he was protesting sugar. For whatever reason, he assumed all vegetarians love zucchini. I did not. (I later learned to enjoy olive-oil-fried zucchini in tortilla rolls.) Still, I loved the idea of Round-To-It recipes, so I copied him.
Every three months when I unplug my refrigerator and clean it out (leaving it plugged with the door open is an energy waste), I examine everything inside to see if it should make it to a Round-To-It meal. If not, I donate it at the nearest food box. After I’m done with the fridge, I wipe down my cabinets. I don’t keep a lot of canned goods, mainly because they’re loaded with sodium far too often. However, I’d been hanging on to unsweetened applesauce cans forever.
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Even though I have bags of flaxseed and arrowroot starch, which are also common vegan substitutes for eggs, I have been holding onto that unsweetened applesauce — just waiting on a Round-To-It recipe. Today, I finally found one: homemade dog biscuits.
Dilemma with making Meghan Markle's homemade dog treats
While watching Netflix’s “With Love, Meghan,” I saw an episode with her and her model friend Delfina Blaquier making six-ingredient Focaccia bread. Before her friend arrived, she’d already baked homemade dog biscuits for her own dogs and Blaquier’s pet. I was intrigued — and hesistant.
I finally got my dog down to the weight her vet wanted her to be (34 pounds before, 28 pounds now). I figured out dog treats were the problem. She’d been eating store-bought dog treats for a couple of years, but I was blaming her food. I switched dog brands three times and started taking her on longer walks. She was still gaining weight.
Recommended Read: “Why the Whitley Gilberts and Meghan Markles are threatening to racists ~ Yes, you are about 99% likely to be racist if you hate 'With Love, Meghan”
Then, I finally ran out of this massive box of dog treats she’d been eating, along with a gift box of dog bones. Within a couple of weeks, I watched my round-bellied dog start to grow square-ish and then a dip showed in her waistline. Not quite Betty Boop, but she definitely had curves. I thought she was sick at first and grew concerned. But she was still devouring her latest kibble, baby carrots and a spoonful of tuna. It was those treats that were 100% responsible for the weight gain.
Recommended Read: “After eating Meghan Markle's popcorn corn on the cob, use remaining cobs for plants ~ Don't throw away corn on the cob if you have a garden”
After reading the ingredients for Meghan Markle’s dog treats, most of the stuff was ingredients I’d give my dog separately and it seemed safe. So, I gave it a shot with a Round-To-It spin on the dog treat ingredients I didn’t have handy.
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Original Meghan Markle Dog Bone Ingredients
Leftover chopped bacon
3/4 cup of oat flour (or whole wheat flour)
1/4 cup of all-purpose flour
1 egg
1/4 cup of distilled water
1 tablespoon of honey
1/2 cup natural peanut butter (no artificial sweeteners like xylitol)
Bone-shaped cookie cutter
Round-To-It Homemade Dog Treat Ingredients
1 cup of whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon of arrowroot starch
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
3/4 cup of water
1 tablespoon of unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup of Algood creamy peanut butter
4 baby carrots (already shredded, or shred in food processor)
Second Round-To-It Homemade Dog Treats: The Chickpea Flour Alternative
In addition to chickpeas being no stranger to some dog food brands, protein-rich garbanzo beans can be a replacement snack for dogs who don’t digest meat too well. Although I’m a vegetarian, I never intended for my dog to live a vegan or vegetarian life. However, after seeing her have an upset stomach from eating beef and pork dog treats, I tapped out and stick to Rachel Ray’s chicken brand only and a spoonful of tuna. She loves tuna. And if she catches me slipping in the kitchen, she’ll grab a fallen garbanzo bean while I make vegan tuna salad sandwiches or chickpea lentil sausages.
1-1/2 cups of chickpea flour
1 tablespoon of canola oil
3/4 cup of water
2 tablespoons of unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup of Algood creamy peanut butter
4 baby carrots (already shredded, or shred in food processor)
* Note: No arrowroot starch was used in this chickpea flour version. Applesauce was used to bind the treats like an egg would. I also did not roll these into balls. I just poured small spoonfuls on the baking sheet, which is why they’re not the same ball shapes as the first Round-To-It recipe (pictured below).
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Mix arrowroot starch, half of the vegetable oil and 1/4 cup of water to create an egg substitute in a cereal bowl.
Mix flour, peanut butter, applesauce, shredded carrots and remaining water in a large bowl.
Add the egg substitute to the flour mixture.
Stir around until the mixture is in a loose dough.
Pinch about 1 inch of the mixture off of the dough, and roll it into small balls.
Continue rolling until all dog treat dough is rolled into balls.
Bake for 30 minutes.
Taste and realize they’re insanely bland, and you definitely will not be stealing these peanut butter dog treats from your dog.
Let cool. Grin at your dog pacing and sniffing peanut butter in the air. Serve.
I’ve used this air-tight container for Junee’s store-bought treats. It only cost me $1.25 from a dollar-value store and has lasted for several years. (Photo credit: Shamontiel L. Vaughn)
These homemade dog treats can be safely stored in an airtight container on your counter for up to one week. If you’ve made too many, consider refrigerating or freezing them. If you refrigerate them, heat one in the microwave for no more than 15 seconds. Although your dog may try to gobble it immediately, let it cool — or your (greedy) dog will end up dropping and licking at the homemade dog treat to cool. If you choose to freeze them, homemade frozen dog treats should last for four weeks. Defrost a couple in the morning for your dog to enjoy throughout the day. Microwave at up to 15 seconds, or let them naturally thaw on their own.
Shamontiel is a dog lover to her core: 631 completed walks with 101 dogs, eight dog-housesittings and six dog boardings at the time of this publication.
Did you enjoy this post? You’re also welcome to check out my Substack columns “Black Girl In a Doggone World,” “BlackTechLogy,” “Homegrown Tales,” “I Do See Color,” “One Black Woman’s Vote” and “Window Shopping” too. Subscribe to this newsletter for the weekly posts every Wednesday. Thanks for reading!