Play-doh 101

I started making my own play-doh awhile back when my mother-in-law gave me a recipe. At first I was a little skeptical because it seemed so easy to just buy the play-doh. However, once Mya started eating it, I decided knowing what ingredients were in play-doh would be nice:) Now we're hooked. This play-doh is like the old school kind...you'll know what I'm talking about when you smell it. It lasts FOREVER which is a bonus. (as long as you keep it in a zip lock of some sort) It's something that Mya can actually participate in making because it doesn't contain any eggs, so that is another bonus here. We've started giving it away as gifts to Max and Mya's little friends too! Here's a step by step in case you're interested in giving it a whirl.

You're going to eventually put this on the stove, so I usually do the whole thing in a pan that can go right on the stove. You could mix it up in something else and then transfer, but I hate doing dishes.

(I'm giving you the recipe already doubled)
Step 1: Mix the following together:
2 cups flour
2 cups warm water
1/2 c salt
2 tsp oil
4 tsp cream of tartar
food coloring






Step 2: Put on the stove at medium to medium high heat. Once the play-doh starts to get lumpy, you'll need to stir constantly.



Step 3: Take the play-doh off the stove when you have one big lump of play-doh and all the liquid is gone.



Step 4: As soon as I take it off the stove, I take it out of the pan to prevent it from over cooking. I just set it on the counter or table and let it cool. Then...I immediately go soak the pan in hot water and soap so it's easy to wash.



Step 5: As soon as the play-doh is cool enough to touch, you can start to knead it until it becomes smooth and gets the air bubbles out.



Step 6: Before you put it in zip-lock baggies, you want to make sure it's completely cooled or else it will leave condensation on the baggie and you'll get mold. I usually just let the kids play with it for awhile which takes care of that problem!

Enjoy!