Edible crafts for kids

Kids go through phases: Sometimes, they vacuum up every morsel of food they can find. Other times, they turn up their noses at broccoli and fish sticks, but slobber all over their toys as if they were candy. Edible crafts offer them the best of both worlds — playing and eating. This recipe for peanut butter playdough will keep your little ones busy for hours.

Peanut butter playdough

Peanuts are a common food allergen, so make sure children are not allergic before you try this craft.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups peanut butter
• 1 cup honey
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• Food coloring (optional)

Directions:

1. Dump all ingredients into a bowl.
2. Let your children mix the ingredients with their hands.
3. The peanut butter playdough is finished when the dough is smooth and pliable, with a consistency similar to real Play-Doh. It should not be sticky.
4. If the dough does feel a little sticky, add tablespoons of powdered sugar until the consistency feels right.
5. Use the playdough to sculpt anything you and the kids can imagine!
6. When they’re finished playing with the playdough, store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Playdough activities

• Bring out some mirrors and have your children “paint” self portraits.
• Use cookie cutters to make fun shapes and then decorate with candy, pretzels, dried fruits, coconut shavings, chocolate chips or other snacks.
• Try to craft the letters of the entire alphabet.
• Make blocks out of the playdough and see who can build the tallest tower.
• Play learning games:
  • Spell words with the playdough and ask your beginning reader to sound them out.
  • Make lots of small balls and play addition or subtraction games.
  • Make a variety of shapes and ask your children to match them up (putting circles with circles, triangles with triangles, squares with squares, etc.).
• If your children are a bit older, play Playdough Pictionary: Write words on little sheets of paper and put them in a hat. Kids draw a word and try to mold it with their playdough while everyone in the family guesses what it is.

Homemade peanut butter

Sick of processed, mass-produced peanut butter? Follow this easy recipe, and kiss the generic store-bought stuff goodbye.

More ways to get kids in the kitchen

Kid-friendly recipes from A to Z
8 Recipes you can make with the kids
5 Food crafts for kids