In the fall we do a lot of baking - and a ton of it involves pumpkin (like our Low Sugar Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins). Many of our recipes, muffins included, only call for a cup of pumpkin - and then I have some pumpkin left over - just sitting there. It's not enough to bake another batch of muffins with, and I hate to waste it - so I became determined to make a fun dough out of it! One that looked and smelled like pumpkin pie. Yum!
Once the dough was complete (it takes 2-3 minutes to make!), it was time for the kiddos to test it out. X felt like it was nice and smooshy.
And very fun to smash! He gave it his stamp of approval.
Next up was S. She wanted some cookie cutters and a rolling pin, but this is where we discovered that our dough was much more of a clay. It stuck to the rolling pin and to the cookie cutters. So we decided to sculpt and mold with it instead. We got out some fun Halloween gems that I found at Michaels a few weeks back and she got to work creating. First up she created a cat.
Then an eyeball.
Then a crazy house for the bats and spiders.
She even found a way to incorporate the cookie cutters!
And she discovered that the pumpkin clay was sticky enough to hold the gems - and thus decorated the cookie cutters with them. So cool!
To make your own Pumpkin Pie Play Clay (we did not attempt to air dry this because I'm pretty sure it would mold due to the use of actual pumpkin - so in that sense it is not a true clay - but it feels and behaves like one, thus the name "play clay")
Canned Pumpkin
Cornstarch (Cornflour in the UK)
Pumpkin Pie Spice
Take your pumpkin and stir it until it's smooth. Add enough pumpkin pie spice that it smells delicious. Slowly add cornstarch and stir. Once the dough starts drying out, you'll want to switch to kneading. You want the dough to roll into a ball, but it should not stick to your hands. If it is sticking to your hands add a bit more cornstarch; if it is so dry that it won't form a ball and is crumbling instead, add a small amount of water. The amounts of cornstarch will vary depending on the brand and quantity of canned pumpkin you use (we've tried a few different brands and found they vary wildly with moisture content!).
The dough will keep for 2-3 days sealed in the fridge. Because it is a cornstarch dough, when you go to reuse it after a day or so, you may find that it has dehydrated and needs a very small amount of water added to it. I wet my hands, kneaded the dough a bit, and then actually put it in the microwave for 15 seconds because it was sooooo chilly from being in our fridge, and it was just perfect!
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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children. As your child's parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family. I always encourage contacting your child's pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult supervision. Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies). Observe caution and safety at all times. The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.
Asia, your posts lately are making me HUNGRY! I'm going to suggest Linc's daycare give this one a shot when the kids are a little older. Looks like fun. :)
ReplyDeleteHahahaha! Our house does smell awfully awesome. ;) Aw, thanks! I hope the kiddos enjoy it. :)
DeleteYou are the master of chemistry for all things kid!!! I have never made play dough with real pumpkin yet. Now I have something to do with the leftover pumpkin from baking!
ReplyDeleteHa! Thank you, Chelsey! And yes - something to do with those leftovers - I hate throwing them out!!!
DeleteYou've definitely got me curious about this one! Have to try it and feel the texture. Thanks so much for sharing this post in the Discover & Explore linky. I'm also featuring this post today.
ReplyDeleteIt's very interesting - and smells just like pumpkin pie filling! I hope the kiddos love it! And thank you for the feature!!!! :)
DeleteTried it! Success. My 1 and 3 year old loved it. I had just been wondering what to do with all that leftover pumpkin. PERFECT. I love your sight, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteWahoo!!! It's so awesome to not have to chuck that leftover pumpkin! So glad they loved it. :) :) :)
DeleteI couldn't seem to get the stickiness out of this dough. Right now I am refrigerating it, so maybe it will dry out a bit..any thoughts?
ReplyDeleteHmm. If you add enough cornstarch that should take care of it -- maybe your pumpkin just had more water than ours? Add 1/4 cup cornstarch and let me know if that doesn't take care of it. :)
DeleteHow much cornstarch did you use? I need to make a LARGE batch of this so I need to know how much to purchase.
ReplyDeleteBetween 1-2 cups of cornstarch per 1 cup of pumpkin depending on the water content of your pumpkin (which varies a TOOOON depending on the brand). Hope that helps!!! :)
DeleteIt seems awesome innovation dear asia...I.was eaherly waiting my daughter to turn two so that I can introduce playdough..between how long it lasts?!! Wont it go rotten?
ReplyDeleteAny edible playdough will only last a few days and should be refrigerated and checked for mold. The salt that we add to the playdough that lasts for months preserves it, but it's also what makes it inedible. If your daughter isn't going to be putting playdough in her mouth, I'd recommend making the regular playdough (you can search our site for microwave playdough to get the recipe). That's what my kiddos played with at 2 -- I just kept a very close eye on them to make sure they didn't try to sneak any tastes. Hope that helps! :)
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