Remember when you were a little kid and you wished that everyday could be your birthday? Well when you are an adopted shelter dog and you have an owner who a) doesn’t know when your real birthday is, b) loves any excuse to throw a party, and c) is completely ridiculous when it comes to animals – everyday CAN be your birthday!

When I adopted Remus (whose name was originally “Chi Chi” – gross), they had no information regarding his birthday, or even his exact age. Therefore, we can celebrate it as often as we want to, and maybe someday one of our soirees will happen to land on the actual day of his birth.

Today’s form of celebration: a homemade, dog-friendly Peanut Butter Carrot Cake. I got the recipe for it on Napa’s Daily Growl, then put my own spin on it. Now, I’m not all that great in the kitchen, but since I was cooking for someone whom I’ve witnessed eating fecal matter, I didn’t feel all that self-conscious about how it would turn out.

The key to making a cake “dog-friendly” is that it’s not made with sugar. Instead, you get the sweetness from honey. Also, the peanut butter and carrots are both healthy, doggy-safe ingredients.

The ingredients:

 1 cup whole wheat flour

 1 teaspoon baking soda

 ¼ cup natural peanut butter

 ¼ cup vegetable oil

 1/3 cup honey

 1 cup shredded carrots

 1 egg

Directions:

 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8″ round cake pan or an 8×4-inch loaf pan.

 2. Whisk together the flour and baking soda.

 3. Add the rest of the ingredients and, using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix until thoroughly combined.

 4. Pour batter into pan and bake for about 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean.

To serve as “icing,” I coated the finished cake in plain yogurt (cottage cheese works, too!), then put some candles on top to increase the adorable-ness factor. However, the ones I purchased melted all the way down in literally 30 seconds, so if you plan on adding all the “and many more, on channel four” verses to the end of your birthday song, I’d invest in some candles that are a bit heftier.

Remus was a bit wary of his cake at first. In fact, he wouldn’t even touch it until I broke off a piece and hand-fed it to him. His hesitation was not out of a dislike for the cake, but rather a disbelief that something that looked and smelled like human food was entirely for him.

I had hoped to pay homage to the movie Matilda and chant “Bruce! Bruce! Bruce!” as Remus gorged himself on the entire confection, but that didn’t come to fruition. Instead, he licked it a little bit, ate some more pieces from my hand, and then hid under the coffee table. A successful birthday.

Oh and for those who are probably wondering: Yes. I did try the cake. It wasn’t too bad – it kind of tasted like a granola bar.