I have some great memories of sitting at my grandma's kitchen table with my cousins and several colorful blobs of homemade playdough.
We loved those blobs... the colors, the smell, and yes... occasionally even the taste!
Gross? A little. But not really... Compared to commercial play-doh full of chemicals and who-knows-what, the homemade stuff is harmless!
Flour, salt, oil, water... nothing there you wouldn't eat in a more tasty form on a regular basis.
I rarely let my kids play with commercial Play-doh because I just can't get past how gross it seems. I mean, you know it's gonna be tasted at some point, right?! And I would rather know exactly what's going into my toddler's mouth, if at all possible!
I must admit though... In my opinion, even better than avoiding all the junk is the cost. You just can't beat throwing together something cheap out of stuff you already have in your pantry.
Cheap homemade playdough = happy kids & happy mommies!!
(and yes, when you're a 2 year old boy, it is vitally important to mix the two pretty colors into a swirly-brownish blob before commencing playtime!) :o)
Homemade Playdough Recipe
Ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 cups warm tap water
1 cup salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon cream of tarter (optional)
up to 1 tube food coloring
Directions:
Stir together in a medium pot over medium-low heat. Continue to cook, and stir, until the mixture forms a ball and is no longer sticky (like Play-doh!). If it's still sticky, you just need to cook it longer!
Let the playdough cool to room temperature before playing with it... and store it in tupperware between uses!
