Birthday party dough

Happy Friday, friends! And happy fourth of July weekend! It's so hard to believe how fast this summer is flying by. July always starts off as a full-on celebration between my son's birthday and America's birthday.   It's turned out to be a busy but very fun week!

I whipped up funfetti cupcakes (following my vanilla cupcake minis cake recipe)  for my son's birthday dinner and topped with rainbow chip frosting. What is it about those sprinkles? I swear it's like opening a can of instant happiness. And while I fought the urge to eat the leftover frosting by the spoonful, I did not want to toss it away. I came across a fun idea instead. And I have to share!

We made Play-dough!  Or as my son calls it, Birthday Party Dough!

This is such a fun way to use canned frosting. Sure, that stuff is convenient to have on hand, but I rather have my kids play with it than eat it, if I'm being honest. And if they do give this dough a taste test, it's just sugar.  I'll trade the sweet for toxic any way I can. Specifically with my one year old around!  I love making homemade slime with my kiddos; however, I will now make this taste-safe option my go-to.  And goodness, this smells heavenly!

You can mix up by hand or with an electric mixer. Just add the powdered sugar to the frosting slowly as you go. I chose to use my hands and have my son get in on the fun. Plus, I was too lazy to use (clean) the mixer. I did start with a fork to combine but as it got thicker, we just squished and rolled it together. 

So, I guess you could say we dough-ve right in...sorry, couldn't resist that ;) 

The amount of powdered sugar may vary, just stop adding at around 3 cups, or when it's not as sticky. I added an additional 1/4 cup and that worked better.

I made another batch for my son's girlfriends (yes, he has two) and found that if I added a drizzle of oil as well to the dough ball, it did not stick at all! So play around and see what works.  And a little bit of stick isn't a bad thing. Buy yourself some more time by giving your kiddos a tub of water to play with afterwards. 

Again, I did not come up with this idea--it's all over the internet.  But I love it! And all good, easy and happy things deserve a space on this blog.  Especially when it keeps the children busy. I did tweak it just the slightest bit (I'm all about avocado oil these days!) when things got a bit sticky.

Give it a try and let me know what flavors you make. Let's get this party started!

Birthday Party Dough

Ingredients:

1 cup rainbow chip frosting (or any flavor)

3 cups + 1/4 cup powdered sugar

Avocado oil (or preferred oil), optional

Instructions:

1. Add frosting and powdered sugar to bowl and mix. Once ball is formed, drizzle a small amount of oil and knead well. 

Notes

• Store in airtight container/baggie for several days 
• Allow to reach room temperature for easier play, knead 
• Add additional oil if starts to harden
• Throw away with any sign of yuck (it will spoil eventually!)