Westley’s Double Decker Birthday Cake – Banana Peanut Butter and Tuna Apple

Categories : Recipes, Westley @en

A two-layer birthday cake for Westley’s second birthday! The first layer is banana and peanut butter flavour and the second is tuna fish and apple. Complete with cream cheese and peanut butter frosting and cucumber noodles to decorate.

So yes. I hosted a birthday party for Westley. If you’d told me ten years ago that I would be a food blogger who held parties and made cakes for dogs I would have laughed you out the door. But this is me now. And it’s fun.

Let me explain about the “party”. One of the great things about working with Eirini from The Dog Company on Westley’s training (apart from her being the best ever) is the attention she paid to the development of his communication skills as a puppy. It’s important that a dog grows up knowing how to interact with other dogs, and it’s even more important that we as dog-parents, know whether our dog is indeed communicating well and having fun in the presence of other fur babies. There are so many people here in Greece (and judging by all the stupid “funny” videos on youtube, in other parts of the world too) who haven’t a clue about what their pups are trying to tell them. So part of our training (Westley and I were both trained, that’s how it works) was going to organised play dates for dogs. And when I say organised I mean just that. Not leaving a pack of dogs to get on with it while enjoying a cold frappuccino and a gossip. I mean thought out and well planned scenarios, with combinations of doggy friends that work well and with attention to the comfort of those doggies so they don’t get stressed. The fur balls run around enjoying every second of off-leash dog-play, and the pet-parents get a lesson in canine communication, closely watch what is happening, receive a treasure of information on why it’s happening, and tips on how to deal with it if necessary. I’ve said it before (too many times, to anyone who will listen) this is the most important thing to learn when you have a dog. Especially in a country with lots of strays and lots of owners who ignore leash laws.

So anyway, our party was basically an organised doggy play-date but with cake. Lots of it. Dog cake and of course human cake. It was brilliant, Westley had a blast as always, got loads of presents, ran around like a mad thing for a couple of hours, and slept for the rest of the day giving me some peace and quiet. Which I needed after baking all that cake.

Many many thanks to Eirini #besteverdogtrainer for making sure all fur babies went home happy and content, many thanks to the Mister for being the event photographer and getting a great shot of Westley eating his cucumber noodles, and many thanks to Pet Society kennels for having us at their premises.

And now for the cake. Rice flour and corn meal of course (no wheat for us – at least if I can help it – stolen biscuits and bits of cheese pie from the street don’t count) and two different flavours which I decided to combine by sticking one on top of the other. Peanut butter – banana, and tuna fish – apple. And since you can’t have a birthday cake without frosting, cream cheese and peanut butter did the trick (I even licked the bowl when done). The cucumber noodles are optional but fun.

Ingredients

For the banana-peanut butter cake (bottom layer):
170gr (1 cup) rice flour
150gr (1 cup) corn meal
3/4 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
130gr (1/2 cup) mashed banana (ripe)
135gr (1/2 cup) peanut butter (100% natural – see Show me)
65gr (4 Tbs) applesauce (see Show me)
50gr (3 Tbs) sheep’s yogurt
1 Tbs olive oil
4 Tbs water

For the tuna fish-apple cake (top layer):
1 egg
130gr applesauce (see Show me)
1 tin (160gr) tuna fish packed in olive oil, drained but not completely dry
2 Tbs sheep’s yogurt, runny (use some of the watery liquid from the tub)
170gr (1 cup) rice flour

For the frosting:
200gr cream cheese, low fat (the lower the better)
2-3 Tbs peanut butter (100% natural)
Cucumber, spiralized, to garnish

Show me more ideas and suggestions

I give Westley 100% natural peanut butter as it’s better for him. I don’t recommend using regular here because there is quite a difference in texture, and I can’t guarantee the result will be the same. Make sure you mix it up well before use, as the oil separates naturally.

Step 1

Preheat your oven to 160C fan assisted (180C conventional).

Step 2

For the banana-peanut butter cake: Put the flours and cinnamon in a large bowl, and whisk till incorporated. In another bowl mix the eggs, banana, peanut butter, applesauce, sheep’s yogurt, olive oil and water. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix till you can’t see any flour. It will be quite a thick batter. Pour it into a 25cm greased cake tin lined with baking paper. Bake for about 25 minutes or until firm to the touch and a toothpick comes out clean from the centre of the cake. Let cool completely.

Step 3

For the tuna fish-apple cake: Same method. Mix the wet ingredients (egg, applesauce, tuna and yogurt) in a bowl and then add the flour. Mix till you can’t see flour. Pour into a small (17cm) greased cake tin lined with baking paper and bake for about 25 minutes or until firm and a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely.

Step 4

For the frosting: Mix the cream cheese and peanut butter together. I must confess here, I forgot to measure out the pb so I don’t remember exactly how much I used. But nevermind, just add as much as you want, so long as the consistency of the frosting stays quite thick and spreadable. Spread half the mixture over the larger cake, pop the small one on top and spread the rest on that, making sure you get down the sides. Garnish with cucumber noodles.

Note: Only give your dog a small piece, not a whole slice! If your pooch has any tummy issues make sure you check with your vet before giving him/her cake. Leftovers can be cut into small squares, frozen, and given as frozen treats directly from the freezer.