Pumpkin Pie Playdough

We have been experimenting. Inspired by the recipe in the October issue of Family Fun magazine, we made our own no-cook version. Actually we tested out two different no-cook recipes. The first one was very simple and fast, but the outcome was gritty and the kids didn't like it as much as our good old stand-by recipe. It is basically the same recipe as in the magazine minus the cooking part.

• 1/2 cup of salt
• 1 cup of flour
• 1 tablespoon of cream of tartar (found in the spice section and once you have this little bottle you can makes lots of playdough...I think it is the ingredient that makes this dough so nice and keeps it nice for awhile)
• 1 tablespoon of oil
• I cup of boiling water
• red and yellow food color (add to hot water)
• pumpkin pie spice or a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger...whatever is in your spice cabinet that smells good!

Mix dry ingredients together. Add oil and spices. Slowly add hot water and mix. Will get very gooey. I usually end up adding additional flour until the consistency is right. My kids love this messy, mixing stage. We all put our hands in the bowl to mash and knead the dough. After playing with it, place the dough in airtight container to enjoy on another day. We also use this recipe to make regular playdough by adding a packet of kool-aid (instead of food coloring and spices).
Camille made lots of birthday cakes (candles made from a stash of barrettes I have been looking for!). Noah was into making patterns using cookie cutters and things he collected around the house. Smells good and easy to do.