Kids Recipes

Here's a whole bunch of stuff to keep you and the kids busy...
 
Silly Putty - a.k.a. GAK & now...Flubber!
Mix 2 parts Elmers Glue with 1 part liquid starch.  Add food coloring if desired.  Mix well in a cup using a craft stick first.  It will be stringy!  Then place the mixture in your hands and play with it. Add a little liquid starch if it continues to stick to your hands. The mixture will eventually be able to be handled without sticking to your hands.  It will be solid and bounce!  Children may color with markers if you did not add food coloring.

Clean Mud - It really is!!
Unroll 6 rolls of white bathroom tissue paper into a very large container.  Generously add water until covered completely.  Grate 2 bars of Ivory soap into mixture, and add 1 1/2 c. of Borax.  Mix up well and PLAY!!  Will last a LONG time!

Playdoh - COOKED
Mix food coloring with 2 cups of water.  Set aside.  In a large bowl, mix 2 c. flour, 1 c. salt, 2 T. oil, and 1 T. cream of tartar.  Add colored water to dry ingredients and mix.  Cook mixture over medium heat until spongy.  Let cool.  Store in an air-tight container.

Goop
Mix 2 parts cornstarch with 1 part water to a sticky but loose consistency.  Notice that the mixture is hard on the bottom, but as lifted, it becomes a liquid again!

Playdoh  - UNCOOKED
Mix food coloring with 1 c. water, set aside.  Mix 2 c. flour, 1 c. salt, 2 T. alum, 2 T. oil in a large bowl.  Add colored water, and mix well. Knead until firm.  Store in an air-tight container.

Playdoh - SMELLY
Mix 2 pkg. of unsweetened Kool-aid with 2 c. hot water until dissolved.  Add 1 T. vegetable oil to kool-aid water.  Set aside.  In a large bowl, combine 2 1/2 c. flour, 1 c. salt,  1 t. cream of tartar.  Add kool-aid water to dry ingredients and mix well.  Add 2 - 3 additional cups of flour as needed.  Store in air-tight container.

Puffy Paint
Mix equal parts of salt, flour, and water in a large bowl.  Place mixture into squeeze bottles. Add paint into bottles and shake well.  Best used on poster board.

Rainbow Stew
In a sauce pan or electric skillet mix 4 c. water, 1 c. cornstarch and 1/3 c. sugar.  Cook over medium heat stirring frequently.  Mixture will be come "jelly" like.  Divide into 3 separate bowls.  Let cool!!  Add red food coloring to one bowl, blue to the other, and yellow in the last.  Place 1 T. of each color into ziplock bags, zip and seal with tape. Then squish the colors to mix the colors of the rainbow!

Finger Paint
In a sauce pan, mix 1/2 c. cornstarch and 3/4 c. water until it becomes a smooth paste. Soak 1 pkg. unflavored gelatin with 1/4 c. water.  Set aside.  Pour 2 c. boiling water slowly over cornstarch mixture and stir.  Cook mixture over medium heat stirring constantly until mixture boils and becomes clear.  Remove from heat.  Stir in gelatin mixture.  Let cool and store in small screw top jars.  Add color as desired. Store in refrigerator.

No-Bake Clay Beads
3/4cup flour
1/2cup cornflour
1/2cup salt
Powder Paint
3/8 cup warm water
Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Add water gradually until mix. can be kneaded into a stiff dough. To reduce stickiness dust with dry flour. Pierce each bead with a tooth pick or large blunt needle and allow to dry for a few days. Holes may need to be repunched before stringing. Paint if desired. Coating beads with clear gloss enamel brings out the color.
 
Clear Gak
Ingredients:
Water, Borax, Glue
1.  Heat 2 cups hot water with 2 tablespoons borax untill borax dissolves.
2.  Add this to a bowl of clear glue. I was just playing around so Im not sure how much glue. Just play around till it feels right.
Lint Modeling Clay (from Maryann@brightring.com)
3 cups drier lint
1 cups cold or warm water
2/3 cups flour
3 drops oil of cloves, optional
old newspapers
saucepan
boxes, bottles, balloons or other objects to mold
Stir lint and water in saucepan, add flour and stir to prevent lumps. Add oil of cloves to keep recipe *fresh*.  Cook over low heat and stir until mixture forms peaks pour out and cool on newspapers.  Shape over boxes, bottles, balloons or press into a mold or use like papier mache
Hints: makes 4 cups; dries in 3 to 5 days; is very hard and durable; dries smooth if pressed into a mold; dries rougher is shaped over an object.

Papier-Mâchè
Ingredients:
Water
white flour (one part flour to one part water)
strips of Newspaper, about 1" wide
acrylic, tempera, or poster paint
brushes
1.  Mix flour and water in a large bowl (2 cups of each is a good amount with which to start) until it makes a smooth paste.
2.  Dip in the newspaper strips, one at a time, remove the excess paste from your fingers and lay the coated newspaper on the form to be papier mâchèd.
3.  Smooth out the wrinkles and continue to place coated newspaper over the surface until completely covered.
4.  When the surface has totally dried, paint your own design using acrylic or poster paint, and decorate with craft supplies

Oil Paint
Mix 1 T. powdered paint with 3 T. vegetable oil.  To use, place water in a pie tin or other container.  Using a spoon, children drop oil paint onto water, which will float. Place a piece of paper (any kind will do, I prefer finger paint paper) on top of water and paint, then lift!  That's it!  Continue to place new paint on top of old, change water as needed.
 
Polyvinyl Alcohol Slime
NOTE - This is for older children - Adult supervision is REQUIRED
1.  Put 2 tablespoons 4% polyvinyl alcohol solution into a paper cup.
2.  Add 2-3 drops of food color and mix.
3.   Pour in 4% borax solution into the cup of polyvinyl alcohol solution.
4.  Stir constantly while the borax solution is being added.
5.  Once the gel has formed, remove it from the cup and knead it in your hands.
6.  Place the Slime in a zipper-type plastic bag to prevent it from drying out.
7.  A few drops of Lysol can be added to the Slime to minimize the formation of mold and extend the lifetime of theSlime.

Lick and Stick
Pour 2 T. cold water into a small bowl and sprinkle 1 pkg. of unflavored gelatin over it.  With a fork, whisk in 3 T. boiling water and stir until dissolved.  Add 1/2 t. corn syrup and a few drops of a flavored extract.  Cut out any picture or paper, and with a paint brush apply a thin layer of the solution onto the back of the picture.  Let dry. When ready, lick and stick! ** Note**  This recipe will gel, to return the mixture to a liquid for reuse, spoon into a jar and place jar in a bowl of hot water.  Special thanks to Kim Hughes for the recipe
 
Lotion Playdough
1 cup flour
1 T vegetable oil
2 T hand lotion
1/2cup salt
2 t. cream of tartar
1 c water
food coloring
Mix all ingredients together and create your dough

Soap Crayons
Mix 2 parts Ivory Snow powder with 1 part water until thick and creamy. Add food coloring or tempera for color.  Pour into ice cube trays, molds, or cookie cutters. Allow to harden, then use as crayons.  Thanks to Nancy for this recipe.
 Rock Playdough aka "Treasure Rocks"  (From Catherine Roach)
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 cup used coffee grounds
1/2 cup salt
1/4 cup sand
3/4 cup water
1.  Mix all dry ingredients together in a medium bowl.
2.  Slowly add water and knead until the mixture is the consistency of bread dough.
3.  Break off a piece of dough and roll it into the size of a baseball.
4.  Make a hole in the center of the ball big enough to hide treasures in.
5.  Fill the hole with treasures and seal with some extra dough.
6.  Let your treasure stone air dry for 2-3 days or until hard or bake in the oven on a cookie sheet at 150 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Charcoal Garden
You will need:  
6 Charcoal briquettes, 1/4 c. bluing (found in laundry area of stores), 1/4 c. salt, 1/4 c. ammonia and food coloring (red, yellow, blue, green)
1. Place 6 briquettes in an aluminum pie tim. Place food coloring drops on briquettes as follows (if you wish); One color on each of four briquettes, (1st Red, 2nd Blue, 3rd, Yellow, 4th Green)  all 4 colors on the 5th briquette, and no colors on the 6th briquettes.
2. Pour the combination of bluing, salt and ammonia over all of the briquettes.
3. In a day or so, colorful sprouts will form and soon you will have a garden!
4. To keep the garden growing, pour a new mixture over the garden every 2 days

Chocolate Playdough
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup salt
1/2 Tablespoon cream of tartar
1 1/2 Tablespoons oil
1 cup boiling water
Mix the dry ingredients. Add the oil and water. Stir quickly and mix well.(I had to add a little extra water)

Salt Ceramic Dough
Mix together :  1 c. salt, 1/2 c. cornstarch, 3/4 c. water, food coloring if desired  Pour into a pan and cook over medium heat.  Stir constantly using a wooden spoon until mixture thickens into a "blob".  Remove from heat.  Place mixture on aluminum foil to cool. When cool, knead it thoroughly.  If you are not planning on using mixture right away, store dough in an airtight container.  You will have to knead again to make soft and pliable.

Also see the Bubble page