Are your kids not as impressed with your old trusty “fun” activities? Sometimes you need to really mix things up. Are you ready to up your fun status with your kids? Look no further than edible playdough! Your kids will love making it, playing with it, and even trying a little taste of the sweet dough.
Keep reading to find out all there is to know about edible dough, how to make the easiest edible dough, and ways to get creative with your kids.
What Is Edible Playdough?
If your kids love playing with playdough, they’ll become obsessed with edible playdough. Just like the name suggests, edible playdough is molding dough that you can eat! Edible dough is made with all food-based ingredients so you don’t have to worry whether or not it’s safe to eat. There are many different recipes out there that all have different tastes, so the fun never ends.
Edible playdough can be used in the same ways as regular playdough, but you won’t have to worry when your little one sneaks a bite when you aren’t looking. You wouldn’t want to sit and eat all of the dough, but a couple of bites here and there aren’t harmful. This makes it safe even for your younger kids who want to be involved but don’t always get to participate in the big kid activities.
How Does Playing With Playdough Benefit Kids?
Playdough isn’t only a fun activity to get creative with, it also helps to strengthen fine motor skills. Fine motor skills are the coordination of small movements in the hands. Tasks like tying shoes, fastening a button, drawing, and sculpting are all fine motor skills.
Besides helping the development of your child, playdough is also an awesome activity to use to keep them busy. If you are cooking dinner, finishing up some work, or you just need a few minutes of quiet time to catch up on your latest book, getting your kid set up to have some independent play with playdough will keep them busy for a little while.
Why Is It Important To Let Your Kids Help Make The Edible Playdough?
This is a great time to start getting your little one in the kitchen to help. Kids love lending a hand in the kitchen. Sometimes it’s not always safe to let the kids help, depending on their age, but letting them help in the kitchen teaches them the important life skill of cooking.
While they aren’t technically cooking, they are getting used to different tools like measuring cups and mixing bowls. They are learning to follow directions to create an end product. As your child grows, they will be next to you making sweet potato pie.
How Do You Make The Easiest Edible Dough?
What can be easier than mixing two ingredients together? We can’t think of anything either! To make the easiest edible dough, all you need is a pre-made tub of frosting and powdered sugar. Mix 1 cup of frosting to 2 ¾ cups powdered sugar.
If you have a stand mixer, use the dough hook to incorporate these two ingredients. Once the ingredients are combined, you should be able to take it out of the mixer and start playing! If it seems a little too wet, slowly add more powdered sugar one tablespoon at a time.
You can use any color frosting for this recipe. If your child wants a color that doesn’t come in frosting, you can add a couple of drops of food coloring to make whatever color you want.
What Are Other Ways To Make Edible Dough?
There are many ways to make edible dough. What do you want your edible playdough to taste like? There are so many recipes out there.
You can try a new one each time you make new dough. All of the recipes listed here are on the easy side to make. There are just a few ingredients to mix together to make a super fun dough.
Kool-Aid Dough
Kool-aid dough uses, you guessed it, kool-aid! The packet of this sweet drink gives the dough a delicious taste and a bright color.
Marshmallow Dough
Marshmallow dough is very similar to fondant, the moldable icing used on cakes. If you have a child who’s interested in cake decorating, this is a great edible dough to make to let them practice.
You can cover anything in fondant to practice getting that smooth texture. They can even practice making edible flowers.
Peanut Butter Dough
If your little one loves the taste of peanut butter, this is a great one for them! They’ll think they’re eating candy when they try this dough. Even though there’s a little sugar in this dough, they will also be getting some protein while they play.
Allergy-Free Dough
There are many recipes out there that are safe for children with allergies. These recipes are a safe option if you’re making edible playdough for a playdate. You may not know what everyone’s dietary needs are, so this would be a safe and considerate recipe to start with.
What Are Fun Ways To Play With Edible Playdough?
What’s not to love about edible playdough? You basically get to play with your food or eat your crafts; for kids, either way, it’s a win-win. Playdough is a perfect activity for kids to get in some independent play, but it’s also a great way for you to get in on the fun as well.
Kids always love it when they get to play with grown-ups. We get it; sometimes your creativity dial is just not turned up. You’re in luck. Here are some starting points to help get those creative juices flowing.
Play Restaurant
Take turns being the chef and the customer. One can request what they’d like to eat and the other person uses the edible playdough to make the meal.
The best part is, you can try a little of the dough when you pretend to eat. Just make sure nobody’s eating too much. This dough is fun to try, but eating too much may not be the best decision… there’s quite a bit of sugar.
Create A Garden
If your budding artist is into making flowers, put a garden theme together. A garden theme can be created from all different artistic levels. Older kids can learn how to make more realistic flowers, while little kids can make more simple roses. Don’t forget about the snails, butterflies, and bees!
Make Animals
Kids love animals. What’s more fun than creating their favorite animals out of edible dough? Adding grandma in on the fun! Give Grandma a Caribu video-call and read Leo Goes to the Zoo together. After you have taken a virtual trip to the zoo through the magic of reading, have your little one mold their favorite animal from the story.
Practice Letters
Sometimes practicing letters with boring old paper and pen can be so uninspired. Kids can get frustrated and bored learning the same way every day.
Adding in some fun can really help kids master new skills. You can ask your little one to spell their name out with playdough, practice sight words, or if they are younger, stick to the letters.
If they’re working on their uppercase and lowercase letters, you can play a game where you mold out an uppercase letter, and ask them to mold the lowercase letter. With all this play, they may not even realize they are learning!
Play Guess What I Sculpted
If you’re looking for a game to play, you can guess what the other person has sculpted with their edible dough. You can set this up with a timer and word suggestions for a more structured game.
Or, you can simply come up with your own creations and see if the other person can guess what you’ve made. Want to see if you can stump them? Try making a cape and a mask, and see if they guess the word “superhero”!
Conclusion
Edible dough is moldable playdough that is made with all food-based ingredients to make it safe to eat. While you shouldn’t go eating all the dough you make, a couple of tastes here and there are perfectly safe. Playing with playdough can be great for fine motor skills and letting your kids help make the dough gets them interested in cooking in the kitchen.
Edible playdough can be a fantastic activity for your little one to play alone, or you can join in on the fun! Use some of our creative icebreakers to get the good times started.
Caribu loves playtime! Whether it’s sitting at the table playing with playdough together, or reading a story together from miles away, we love helping families create amazing memories together!
Sources:
Purpose of playing with play dough | MSU Extension