Play dough is great stuff for kids, but it can get really costly really quick if you need enough for a class of 20. Colors mix and look yucky, small pots and lids get lost, stuff dries out,…

We always make our own, usually a huge batch of just one color. That way we don’t end up with a gray/brown lump once the kids have mixed it all. And everything is kept in a gallon bucket with a lid, so clean-up is easy peasy.

And that homemade stuff smells really nice.

Today was the day of making new play dough. We did a quadruple batch, which is enough to have about 8 kids playing simultaneously. I made it with two of the older kids this morning and we had a lot of impatient customers waiting for the stuff.

They grabbed a seat and tore into it before the play dough was even completely cooled. Always a crowd pleaser 🙂

For 1 batch you need:

• 150g all purpose or cake flour
• 150g fine salt
• 1 pck instant jello (for a pint of water)
• 1 sachet stabilizer for whipping cream (heat modified cornstarch) which equals 2.5 Tbsp instant clear jel
• 200g boiling water
• about 1 tsp powdered food coloring or a few drops of liquid (optional – if you leave it out, the play dough ends up very pale)
• 20g oil
• 1 Tbsp glitter (optional)

Mix all the dry ingredients, then add the oil and boiling water. Mix everything. A danish dough whisk is great for this step if you don’t have a mixer.

Once the play dough has cooled enough to be handled, knead it until it’s completely smooth. If it’s too dry, add a little bit of oil. If it’s too wet, add a little bit of flour.

Then, get playing!

Red raspberry jello + blue food coloring = purple play dough
(we added some silver and blue glitter)

Salami pizza, sausage pinwheels, all kinds of breads and a big log of cookie dough. That kid’s getting ready for the lunch rush…

The play dough keeps in an airtight container for several weeks. Our last batch lasted nearly 3 months.