Play Dough

As the holiday season becomes nearer, I thought it fitting to post a homemade gift idea for children...

Who doesn't love play dough?  Some of my most fond childhood memories are sitting at the dinning room table creating with play dough.  For many years now I've been making homemade play dough (just like my mom used to make) for my friends and family with children and every time I give the gift I receive the same response, "how do you make play dough at home?"  For those of you that thought I was slaving over a stove for hours to create the perfect gift for you child, you can simply bi-pass this blog posting and send me an email to whip up another batch for your little one...for the rest of the my readers you will be pleasantly surprised at the simplicity of this recipe and that most of the ingredients are already in your pantry....

OK, I usually have all the ingredients on hand except cream of tartar.  Who uses cream of tartar anyway?  Nonetheless, cream of tartar can be found in your spice isle at your favorite grocery store...or Target...I've found Target has the best price ($3.09) per container!   

In a medium saucepan place:

2 tablespoons of cream of tartar

1 cup of flour

1/2 cup salt

1 tablespoon oil (I use vegetable)

1 cup water

THAT'S IT!

Stir ingredients over medium/medium high heat for about 3-5 minutes until it forms into a thick paste - you may need to pull out your big guns, as it gets pretty hard to stir...that's when you know it's time to turn off the heat.  

Next remove your "dough" from saucepan and place on a wax piece of paper.  Kneed for about 3 minutes or until dough becomes play dough consistency.  

Add your favorite dolup of food coloring and kneed until color is consistent throughout dough.

Time to play!

Max creating with play dough for the first time!

Store in an air tight container or ziplock baggies.  

If ever you're in a pinch or need quick gift idea look no further than your kitchen cupboard! 

The inspiration for this blog posting came from A Ten Month Old's Letter To Santa.  If you haven't read this already, check it out.  

Happy Holidays!!!