Gingerbread is one of my favorite snacks, but I never thought much about making it until I started playing around with this recipe for Gingerbread Play Dough.
What Are The Ingredients For Gingerbread Playdough?
There are just five main ingredients needed for this gingerbread play dough recipe: flour, molasses, salt, powdered sugar, and ground cinnamon.
You can also add raisins or chocolate chips if desired.
You should be able to find all these items at your local grocery store.
If not, they’re easily ordered online from Amazon or any other major retailer.
How Do You Make Gingerbread Playdough?
You start by mixing together some flour, powdered sugar, baking soda, and salt into a thick paste using cold water.
Then, add enough hot water to form dough balls between 1/4 inch (6 millimeters) wide.
You can also add more or less water depending on how soft or hard you want your gingerbread playdough to be.
Once all of the playdough has been formed, roll them out onto parchment paper until they’re flat and thin, then cut them into shapes before adding any decorations.
What Is The Best Gingerbread Playdough Recipe?
The gingerbread dough is incredibly versatile.
You can shape it into any form you like or roll it out on a cookie sheet to create some great cookies.
But there’s something even more fun – play dough!
Once you start rolling the dough out, you’ll see how it becomes an edible toy.
And if you want to get really creative, you can add in all sorts of things such as candies, sprinkles, nuts, etc., to give your gingerbread toys their own personality.
When I first made these gingerbread playdough recipes, I was surprised by how quickly they came together.
The process wasn’t very long at all, so once you get going, you should be able to whip up a batch almost immediately.
Since they are baked in the oven, they don’t require refrigeration either.
Just keep them away from moisture and heat until you’re ready to use them.
I actually found myself wanting to bake these little guys right after I had finished mixing up the dough.
If you’re looking for another way to enjoy gingerbread without baking, try making some of these gingerbread pops instead.
How Do You Store Gingerbread Playdough?
I like to keep some playdough in my fridge so that when I’m ready to use it, I don’t need to go out to purchase more.
If you are also going to be storing playdough in your refrigerator, here is what you can expect from it over time:
- It will become sticky after being stored at room temperature for a while.
- If you put it into the freezer, it may lose its stickiness or become too hard to work with (it doesn’t completely freeze).
- You should always try to remove as much moisture as possible before freezing it because if it freezes too quickly, it may crack.
- When frozen, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
How Long Does Gingerbread Playdough Last?
When the kids were little I was always looking for ways to preserve their artwork so they could keep it forever instead of throwing away all those drawings and paintings.
That’s when I discovered how simple it was to freeze play dough.
Once we had enough frozen creations, I would just pull them out whenever we needed some fresh dough or wanted to give our kids something new to work on.
I also made sure to label each container so I knew which cookie dough belonged to which child.
When it came time to bake cookies from the play dough, I would save half of the batch as “leftover” dough for future projects.
The same goes for any other food item that you want to freeze and use later.
Nowadays, I still love freezing play dough (as well as most any other type of homemade treat) because it allows me to plan ahead without having to worry about running out of anything.
Plus, there are countless fun things you can create by using different colors and shapes of play dough.
But what happens if your play dough doesn’t get eaten right away?
How long will it actually last before it starts to break down?
What Can You Make With Gingerbread Playdough?
You’ve got plenty of options when using gingerbread play dough.
You could use it as a craft project or to decorate cookies.
And don’t forget to give some away at the end of the holiday season.
How Do You Color Gingerbread Playdough?
In order to create different colors, you will need food coloring.
Food coloring comes in liquid form (like the red dye we used) or powder (which is more common).
If you don’t want to use any food coloring at all, then you could always try using liquid watercolors instead.
You might also be able to get some ideas from these two videos on YouTube.
One video shows how to make clear gingerbread play dough, while the other focuses on how to make colored gingerbread play dough.
Making Clear Gingerbread Play DOUGH
- Mix together 2 cups flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon salt into a bowl.
- Whisk together 1 egg yolk, 1 tablespoon milk, and 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar.
- Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well until combined.
- Divide the dough into 4 equal parts and roll each part out onto parchment paper until they are thin enough to see through them.
- Cover the rolled-out dough with plastic wrap and let sit for 30 minutes before rolling out again.
- Cut shapes out of the dough using cookie cutters.
Making Colored Gingerbread Play DOUGH
- Combine 6 ounces powdered food coloring with 3/4 cup warm water and stir vigorously until completely dissolved.
- Stir in 1 cup of confectioners’ sugar.
- Add 2 teaspoons vanilla extract and continue stirring until smooth.
- Pour the solution over the rolled-out dough and knead until fully incorporated.
- Let the dough set up for 10 minutes so it becomes less sticky.
- Roll out the dough again and repeat steps 3 – 5.
- If desired, sprinkle cinnamon on top of the finished dough pieces.
What Scents Can You Add To Gingerbread Playdough?
You don’t need many different kinds of spices or herbs to give play dough its own unique scent.
You can use any flavor you want as long as the scent doesn’t overpower the rest of the mix.
Some suggestions include cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, allspice, peppermint, spearmint, rosemary, basil, sage, lemon, orange, lime, strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, cherry, peach, apple, pear, cranberries, pineapple, mango, watermelon, grapes, cantaloupe, honey, maple syrup, chocolate chips, peanut butter, raisins, walnuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios, hazelnut, pecans, coconut flakes, pretzels, popcorn, marshmallows, graham crackers, gingersnaps, ginger snaps, or anything else that sounds good to you.
What Happens If You Eat Gingerbread Playdough?
I decided to find out what would happen if we ate gingerbread play dough by eating some.
I was surprised at how delicious the end result tasted because the gingerbread flavor was still very present. The texture also seemed right – not too hard or soft.
There were no aftertastes from the sugar and molasses like there might be when eating traditional gingerbread (which is why I prefer the homemade version).
Instead, the gingerbread taste lingered on long after we had finished eating our playdough.
So, does anyone else want to try this gingerbread play dough?
If so, let’s dive into the recipe below!
Is Gingerbread Playdough Safe For Kids?
I don’t think you need any special safety precautions just because the recipe calls for baking soda.
It sounds like there are no chemicals or dangerous substances involved at all – so long as you use common sense when handling it, there should be nothing wrong with eating it.
But I suppose we can always err on the side of caution if you want to be extra careful.
If you do decide to bake some gingerbread play dough (or anything else), make sure to keep an eye on them while they bake.
You might not notice any problems right away, but if something starts smelling off-putting or looks strange after awhile, take them out immediately and let them cool completely before trying to eat them.
Equipment
- 1 Pot
- 1 Pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 cup salt
- 2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp ginger
- 1 cup water
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/4 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Flour, salt, and cream of tartar should be thoroughly combined.
- Whisk well after adding the ginger and cinnamon.
- Mix the water, oil, and vanilla in a skillet or pot.
- Mix thoroughly after gradually adding the dry ingredients (flour, salt, cream of tartar, cinnamon, and ginger) to the saucepan. on a low to medium heat setting.
- This playdough takes a little longer to mix and cook because it contains cinnamon. To ensure that the salt dissolves in the water, continue to stir thoroughly and, if you can, spread out in the pan.
- Don’t stir constantly while cooking. Prior to combining and rotating the dough in the saucepan, let it stand for a short while. When the dough begins to ball up and appears to be fully baked, it is ready.
- Cool after turning off the heat.
- The dough should be smooth after ten minutes of kneading.
Video
Nutrition
My blog is all about creating delicious meals with ingredients that are easy to find in your local grocery store. I’m passionate about making yummy meals that I can share with my friends and family.