Just wanted to share my favorite play dough recipe that I’ve used over the years. The recipe was given to me by a colleague years ago, and I love knowing exactly what’s in the play dough and being able to easily make more. If you’re careful with the temperature, you can get the kids to help make it!
Looking at the recipe now, if I thought my kid was going to eat it (because let’s face it, LOTS of kids do), I would experiment with using a better oil (like extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil) and natural food colorings (here’s a post about how to make your own).
One side note: fine motor activities such as play dough can be great activities for children to do to help them to be still long enough for them to fall asleep. There is always the potential that the dough could be messy. But like I say, the great thing about a homemade recipe is that you know exactly what’s in it, and it’s relatively easy to make more.
Homemade Play Dough Recipe
Materials
1 cup water
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Half a cup of salt
1 tablespoon cream of tartar
Sauce pan
1 cup flour
Directions
1. Combine water, oil, salt, cream of tartar, and food coloring in a sauce pan and heat until warm.
2. Remove from heat and add flour.
3. Stir, Then knead until smooth. The cream of tartar makes this dough last six months or longer, so resist the temptation to omit this ingredient if you don't have it on hand.
4. Store this dough in an airtight container or a Ziploc freezer bag.
