Ahhh playdough. If you're a parent, teacher or caregiver and ever peeled this sticky substance off the carpet or leapt with olympic speed to remove it from a curious toddlers mouth then you might be reading this blog with a vague sense of prickly doom & the thought bubble of "why the hell would I want to make more of it?". Well for starters, having a non-toxic recipe up your sleeve is brilliant for the more culinary adventurous toddler (so you can relax on that front knowing that if it's digested they will live to drain your soul another day) and secondly it's a brilliant activity for a whole range of ages and stages as a rainy day/restaurant/holiday play activity that helps enhance fine motor skills, leans into sensory development, helps improve concentration & focus & helps kids to develop their creativity and imagination.
As with all things in the land of Little Pig, this tip is a direct reflection of where our directors are in life (keeping a herd of small people alive) & the credit for the base playdough recipe comes from the newsletter of the brilliant Nicole Pates, aka a renowned Paediatric Physio & founder of Western Kids Health. You can get more info on her business of integrated, evidence based child health professionals here & follow her on instagram here for delightfully realistic parenting, kids physio tips & some great recommendations.
You'll Need:
- 2 cups plain flour
- 1 cup salt (we used pink salt for natural colouring)
- 2 tbsp cream of tartar
- 2 cups of boiling water
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
Optional but very good additions include:
- Cinnamon - adds a lovely Christmas spice vibe, we used 2 tbsp
- Vanilla Essence - adds a beautiful smell, we used 2 tbsp
- Food colouring/turmeric/beetroot - add if you're feeling reckless and don't mind small children with coloured hands that likely won't wash off for several days...
Instructions:
- Mix all the dry ingredients first, then add in the wet ingredients.
- Pouring the boiling water in last over any lumpy chunks of the coconut oil will help break it down.
- Stir with a spoon or spatula until well combined then knead until smooth, you can add a dash more flour if you think it kneads it (haha).
- Store in an airtight container.
