You know those days when it’s just too cold to go outside? Those are the days when I have ideas like these stashed away, with a simple container of spoons and cups that we picked up in the paper aisle for only four bucks. Chocolate play dough is a fun way to create those delicious ice cream sundae playdates, get out the sprinkles and imagine that for a moment, you’re running and ice cream shop.
Chocolate ‘Ice Cream’ Play Dough
1 cup flour
1 1/8 cup water
1/2 cup salt
1/2 cup cocoa
1 tablespoon oil
2 teaspoons cream of tarter
Mix everything together in a bowl. Cook over medium heat until the mixture begins to stick together, stirring constantly with a strong spoon. It will stick to the sides a little, but you will know it’s finished when it begins to form a ball. Take it off of the heat, knead for 2-3 minutes and immediately place in a freezer bag, unless you are going to play with it, right away.
Tip: we found the best, softest results when we let it sit overnight, in a Ziploc bag before playing
Some of the ways you can play include create an ice cream parlour and take turns creating ice cream in cones, scooping it out of the container and paying for the ice cream. Make ice cream sandwiches, with sprinkles, and see how many ‘scoops’ of ice cream you can create with the batch of play dough. Use the spoons to create ‘ice cream sculptures’ and try to identify what they are.
Don’t add sprinkles to the recipe, until play time. The colors will run together in the dough when it’s warm and moist in the bag.
And unless you’re a sucker for punishment, don’t give your kids the control of the entire container of sprinkles. Sure, they’re going to play together for an hour making delicious bake shop worthy concoctions, but oh it’s going to be a mess afterwards.
