Pupcakes!
Dog cupcakes, $2.50 at Sprinkles, 780 Lexington Ave.; 212-207-8375
Although Sprinkles keeps the recipe for its doggie cupcake confidential, founder Candace Nelson reveals it features a sugar-free batter topped with yogurt “frosting.” “While developing recipes for the original Sprinkles bakery, Honey, my Norwich terrier, would run around the kitchen licking any crumb which had fallen from the counter,” says Nelson. “It was clear that she would need a special treat made just for her, and, of course, Honey still gets her regular fix!”
Peanut butter bliss!
Chef Huascar Aquino doesn’t have a pet, because he “lives at the bakery” since its opening two months ago. But plenty of pups are stopping by, hoping their humans will buy them a peanut butter dog cupcake, made with 100 percent organic ingredients. “Back home in the Dominican Republic, dogs have their own lives,” said Aquino. “Here, people take care of pets like they’re family.”
Pumpkin Spice!
Milk & Cookies owner Tina Casaceli estimates she bakes 50 dog bones — made of whole wheat flour, pumpkin puree and peanut butter — per week, in addition to her popular baked goods for humans. She’s lucky to have an in-house taste-tester. “My little Yorkshire terrier Tasha loves them,” she says. “I feel guilty that I don’t bring her them as often as I should. But whenever she hears the cellophane bags rustling, she comes running.”
Bacon bites!
Pastry chef Michele Weber was very particular in crafting these treats, choosing some ingredients for taste and others for health benefits. “Rolled oats aid digestion, wheat germ promotes a shiny coat and cream of tartar is a crucial mineral for all living things,” she says. “But the bacon was added mostly because it’s yummy.”