5 Fall Themed Kong Recipes

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Want your dog to feel thankful during your seasonal Fall celebrations? We’ve got five Autumn recipes perfect for stuffing into a Kong, lick mat, or a slow-feeder bowl. These enriching activities will keep your dog busy for a while, plus it’s a great way to show your pup some extra love this season.

Most of these recipes use common ingredients you’ll have around the house during this season, but if you don’t, you can easily substitute them for other dog-friendly ingredients, such as peanut butter or banana. Once the Kong is stuffed you can freeze it to keep your dog busy even longer.

Pro tip: You can save time by making a double or triple recipe and freezing the extra for a later. I like to have two or three Kongs on hand for the extras.

If you don’t have a Kong, these recipes can also be spread across a slow feeder bowl. When these bowls are frozen, they will provide the same calming sensation and mental stimulation.

In this guide:

• Kongs & Kong alternatives
• Important: Use portion control
• Autumn Harvest Kong Recipes

What is a Kong?

Kongs are chew toys designed to be stuffed with food and treats. They are made of durable rubber and are available in various sizes to suit different chewers. Kongs keep dogs engaged and entertained while offering a rewarding challenge, especially when frozen.

Instead of a Kong, you can also spread these freezable treats across other stuffable chew toys, a slow-feeder bowl, a lick mat, or even a silicone ice cube mold. Just remember to always supervise your dog to make sure they don’t chew apart and swallow anything they’re not supposed to eat.

Use portion control

Overfeeding a dog is easy when it comes to treats, especially if you use calorie-dense ingredients like peanut butter. Snacks should not consist of more than 10% of the dog’s total daily caloric intake, according to VCA Animal Hospitals.

Check your dog’s daily caloric needs, divide by ten, and then portion the recipes below accordingly. For example, if your dog needs 500 calories a day, 10 percent of that is 50 calories. That means I’d divide a 250-calorie recipe into five portions. 

Any unused portion can be frozen in a extra Kongs or kept in the fridge for up to a week and added to your Kong later.

Kongs come in various sizes and it is recommended that you use a kong appropriate for your dog’s size to prevent overfeeding. I’ve included the calorie content for each recipe to help guide you in proper portions. You can use a calorie calculator if you need help determining your dog’s calorie requirements.

Fall-themed Kong recipes

These Autumn Harvest Kong recipes are a fun way to include your dog in the seasonal celebrations. For even more ideas, check out our list of frozen kong recipes.

• Thanksgiving Day Stuffing
• Pumpkin Pup Kong
• Sweet Pawtato Soufflé
• Apple Crisp & Cream
• Harvest Feast Kong

Thanksgiving Day Stuffing

Indulge your dog in a Thanksgiving feast of their own! 

This recipe uses butternut squash, but you can substitute it for sweet potato or pumpkin if that’s what you have on hand.

I strongly recommend you get natural peanut butter for your dog. Many cheaper brands include palm oil and a lot of sugar, neither of which your dog needs. Natural peanut butter doesn’t need to be expensive, though. For example, Trader Joes has a sugar-free option for cheap.

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup of dry turkey dog food or cooked turkey pieces, deskinned and unseasoned
• ½ cup of butternut squash, cubed
• ¼ cup of dried unsweetened cranberries
• 1 Tablespoon peanut butter

Instructions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. Cube your squash and toss with a light drizzle of olive oil or coconut oil. Place on baking sheet.
3. Roast 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown around the edges and tender inside. 
4. Transfer the squash to a mixing bowl and mash.
5. Add in the turkey pieces, cranberries, and peanut butter and mix thoroughly. 
6. Stuff the Kong with an appropriate amount for your dog. Freeze the stuffed Kong for at least 2 hours to make the treat extra engaging for your dog.

Calories:

• ½ cup butternut squash = 45 calories
• ¼ cup white turkey meat = 60 calories
• ¼ cup unsweetened cranberries = 27 calories
• 1 Tablespoon peanut butter = 94 calories
• This snack provides around 226 calories per recipe.

Pumpkin Pup Kong

This recipe is short and sweet and only requires two ingredients. It’s a great way to add a little gut-healthy soluble fiber to your dog’s usual peanut butter Kong.

Ingredients:

• ½ to 1 tablespoons natural peanut butter
• ¼ cup canned 100% pure pumpkin puree—not pumpkin pie mix which contains added spices

Instructions: 

1. Mix peanut butter and pumpkin puree until well blended. 
2. Stuff Kong and freeze.

Calories: 

• ¼ cup pumpkin puree = 42 calories
• 1 Tablespoons of peanut butter = 94 calories
• This snack provides about 136 calories.

Sweet Pawtato Soufflé

This dog-friendly version of the decadent holiday dish is not only rich in flavor but also in calories. Make sure you divide the recipe into several portions to avoid over-feeding your dog.

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup unsweetened, shredded coconut
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 large carrot
• ½ apple
• ½ can low or no sodium kidney beans
• 1 Tbsp melted coconut oil
• ½ tsp turmeric, optional 
• ¼ tsp ginger, optional
• About ¼ cup bone broth or water

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. Spread coconut flakes on a parchment-lined sheet pan and bake until toasty brown, about 5 minutes. 
3. Remove coconut from the pan and place in a small bowl. Increase oven temperature to 425ºF. 
4. While the oven is heating, rinse, peel, and dice the sweet potatoes, carrot, and apple. 
5. Spread the diced vegetables and apple pieces on the same parchment-lined pan. Add a drizzle of olive oil to maintain moisture. Toss to coat. Roast for 30-35 minutes until tender inside.
6. Rinse kidney beans thoroughly and drain. Place the coconut, beans, veggies, and apple into a food processor and pulse to combine. Drizzle in the coconut oil and add the spices and pulse until combined. Add a little bone broth or water at a time until the mixture sticks together and resembles dough.
7. Stuff the Kong(s) and freeze until firm.
   
   *Due to the staining ability of turmeric, this treat is best enjoyed outdoors.

Calories:

• ¼ cup unsweetened, shredded coconut = 140 calories
• 1 sweet potatoes = 160 calories
• 1 large carrots = 30 calories
• ½ apple = 48 calories
• ½ can low-sodium kidney beans = 185 calories
• 1 Tbsp melted coconut oil = 117 calories
• This recipe contains 680 calories.

>> Read more: Homemade Bone Broth for Dogs

Apple Crisp & Cream

Ingredients: 

• ½ an Apple, diced into small pieces
• ½ cup of unsweetened yogurt (I prefer greek yogurt since it’s firmer)
• Optional: Add a few training treats into the mix for an exciting addition!

Instructions:

1. Dice the apple, making sure not to include any of the seeds.
2. Add diced apple to bowl and mix with yogurt together until well blended.
3. Using a spoon, stuff the kong with the mixture and freeze.

Calories: 

• ½ apple = 45 calories
• ½ cup yogurt = 113 calories
• This snack provides 158 calories per recipe.

Harvest Feast Kong

This recipe uses a lot of the same ingredients you may be using for your own feast. Set some aside to make this yummy snack for your dog. 

Preparing this recipe separately from your human meal will ensure your dog doesn’t eat any toxic foods, such as onions or garlic.

Ingredients:

• ½ Sweet potato
• ½  cup of diced green beans
• ½ cup of carrots
• A few tablespoons of bone broth (dog friendly with no onions and limited salt)
• ¼ cup or more of pumpkin pureé, 100% pure and unsweetened

Instructions: 

1. Preheat your oven to 400ºF. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
2. Dice veggies into bite-sized pieces for large Kongs and smaller pieces for small Kongs. Place on the tray.  Add a drizzle of olive oil to maintain moisture. Toss to coat.
3. Roast veggies for about 20 min or until fork tender.
4. Transfer cooked veggies to a mixing bowl and add several tablespoons of pumpkin puree and a tablespoon of bone broth. Mix together. 
5. Add more pumpkin and a little bit more broth, if needed, to make a thick base that holds the veggies. Add broth sparingly; you don’t want it too runny or it will leak out of the Kong.
6. Stuff your Kong and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.

Calories: 

• ½ small sweet potato =  40 calories
• ½ cup carrots = 25 calories
• ½ cup green beans = 16 calories
• 2 tablespoons Bone broth = about 10 calories
• ¼ cup pumpkin puree =  20 calories
• This snack provides around 111 calories per recipe.

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