How to make Play Dough

Making play dough is easy. Kids and grown-ups of all ages will love this fun (and inexpensive) activity. See Image

• 2 cups of plain flour
• 2 cups of water
• 1 cup salt
• 2 tbsp of cooking oil
• Kool-Aid or Food Coloring (optional) but makes fun colors
• 4 tbsp cream or tartar (this stops the dough from cracking and makes it stretchy)

1. Mix the dry ingredients together.
2. Add food coloring or Kool-Aid to the water put in sauce pan.
3. Add dry ingredients slowly to pan of water and put over medium heat.
4. Stir constantly until the dough feels like stiff, smooth, mashed potatoes. At this point, take it off the stove. Once it has cooled . Knead it until it is blended smoothly.
5. Store the dough in an airtight container , like a Ziploc® bag.

• If you can, adding a tablespoon of alum to the mixture will make the dough less palatable to a child, reducing the likelihood that the child will eat it. The alum also works as a preservative to help slow down the growth of bacteria. Alum is used in pickling and is non-toxic, but it could cause severe stomach ache to anyone who eats too much.
• Storing the dough in the refrigerator when not in use will also help keep the growth of mold or bacteria down.
• Consider adding other fun ingredients to change the texture or appearance of the dough (such as desiccated coconut, or cocoa powder). You can also use peppermint or other oils to give the dough a different smell. Be careful that these enticing smells don't tempt the child to eat it though.
• If you have too much water add flour or heat.
• When you play with it, you can cut out shapes with cutters, and make interesting models.

• As with all cooking activities, adult supervision is necessary.
• Play dough is edible but not delicious, so keep kids under 5 away from it.
• Adding colors or aromas to the play dough will make it more likely that the child tries to eat it. Only add edible ingredients to the play dough. Supervise closely.
• Be careful when storing the play-dough for extended periods of time at room temperature or in the fridge because mold will grow on it.
• Sometimes pets can die from eating playdough due to the high salt content, so watch out for your pet!