Homemade Play Dough for the Win

March brings many things to look forward to! The end of winter is near, spring is just around the corner, and there’s March break fun for the kids. For some, the latter can bring added stress and planning, knowing you’ll have to find activities to keep the kids entertained. If this is you, I’ve got a great activity that can be made easily with common household items and will keep the kids busy all week. 

 

If you were like me as a kid, I could spend HOURS creating with a container of play dough. Save yourself the money and get creative in the kitchen by making your own play dough, in all colours of the rainbow!

 

Here’s what you need:

• ½ cup salt
• 1 cup white flour
• 2 tbsp cream of tartar (I bought a big container off of Amazon instead of the small containers at the store knowing I would be using a lot over the years making play dough) 
• 1 cup water
• 1 tbsp oil
• 3 drops of liquid food colouring or a small amount of gel colouring (about pea size) 

Here’s what to do:

1. In a large bowl, combine flour, salt and cream of tartar and mix well.
2. Mix food coloring with your water first. Then add the vegetable oil and water with food coloring to a large pot. Mix together.
3. Add the dry ingredients to your pot and mix well.
4. Cook over low to medium heat until the dough starts to form and becomes dry.
5. Once it starts to form a ball and looks fully cooked, take off the heat. Let the dough cool before touching.
6. Once cool, knead the dough for 5 minutes to make the dough soft.

Notes:

• If your dough is not soft, continue kneading for another 5 minutes. 
• If you find it is still too dry add a little bit more oil and knead in. 
• I like to use food colouring gel to get really vibrant colours. 
• Store in a container in the fridge and keep for six months. 
• If the dough dries out after being left out, knead with a bit of oil in your hands to revive it. 

Jenn Giurgevich is the founder of Spark Nutrition & Health, a virtual nutrition consulting business.
Visit www.sparknutritionandhealth.ca for more information.

 

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