Toddler & Me Recipes

Below you will find all the recipes we used during the Toddler & Me Class, including some tips and tricks help you get the most out of these activities!

Remember, all of these recipes are taste-safe, but that doesn't mean they taste good!

Categories:

~ Finger Paints

~ Doughs

~ Color Mixing

~ Fizzy Experiments

Finger Paints

1. Corn Syrup Paint

Ingredients

Corn syrup

Food coloring

Mix a few drops of food coloring in with the corn syrup (separate colors in separate bowls). Kids can use their fingers or brushes to paint onto glossy paper, watercolor paper, card stock, or directly onto a tray.

This paint will dry "mostly" hard, but may remain tacky to the touch.

Tips:

Keep pictures in a cool, dry place as warm areas may cause the corn starch to melt.

2. Corn Starch Paint

Ingredients

Corn starch *Optional: a bit of Salt, a drop of dish soap

Water

Food coloring

Pour corn starch into a small pan and slowly add cool water (about 1 part corn starch to 1 part water). Whisk until blended. Turn on heat to medium and whisk while the mixture thickens, adding more water as needed to desired consistency. Divide the mixture into separate bowls before adding food coloring. It's ready to paint with!

Tips:

Only color as much of the mixture as you need. This will allow you to set the remaining corn starch mixture aside for another day! Just make sure you place it in an air-tight container in the fridge. This paint is not mean to last and will flake on paper.

3. Potato Flakes Paint

Ingredients

Potato flakes

Hot water

Food coloring

Pour potato flakes into a bowl and slowly add hot water until it reaches desired consistency. Continue to mix until it is creamy in texture, then divide the mixture into separate bowls (1 for each color). Add food coloring and mix again. Then paint!

Tips:

This paint is not mean to last and will crumble on paper. Get creative! Edible paint is easy to make. Using whipped cream, pudding, yogurt, or flour? Add some food coloring and let your little one "paint" on a tray or cookie sheet while you prepare a meal.

Doughs

1. Pumpkin Dough

Ingredients

1 c Coconut milk 1 tsp Powdered sugar

1/2 c + 1 Tbsp cornstarch 1 tsp Xanthan gum

1/4 c Canned pumpkin Dash of cinnamon

Whisk everything (except the 1 Tbsp cornstarch) together in a small saucepan until the mixture becomes putty-like, about 2 minutes. Remove from pan and place on a parchment sheet or cutting board dusted with cornstarch. Turn with a spoon as it cools, adding another 1 Tbsp of cornstarch. After the mixture cools enough to handle, continue kneading, dusting your hands or the table surface with cornstarch as needed.

Tips:

This dough did not turn out as planned during class! My oldest son and I found that it did take more cornstarch than called for, and LOTS of kneading before it was dough-like, but it did get there! This dough does not save well. Discard after use.

Color Mixing

1. Milky Galaxies

Ingredients

1/2 c Milk

Food coloring

1 Drop of dish soap

Pour milk into a shallow plate. Drop different colors of food coloring in 2-3 different places in the milk. Dab a Q-Tip or paint brush in dish soap and touch the soaped tip into the milk. Watch as the colors swirl all on their own!

Tips:

Talk to your child about the colors you started with and what colors they see after they start to mix. This is a good way to introduce primary and secondary colors.

2. Color-Mixing in Cream

Ingredients

1 c Whipped cream

Food coloring

Scoop whipped cream into a tray or plate. Drop food coloring into the tray and let your child mix the color with the cream, and with the other colors.

Tips:

Switch it up by using yogurt or vanilla pudding - anything light/white in color! For Easter you can roll boiled eggs in the whipped cream for a tie-dye effect (it's best if you soak the eggs in vinegar first). Alternately, you can place the colored cream or plain old paint into a ziplock bag for mess-free mixing!

Fizzy Experiments

1. Fizzy Rainbow Paintings

Ingredients

Baking soda

Food coloring

Vinegar

Mix baking soda with food coloring (or non-toxic craft paint). Using their fingers or paint brushes, children can paint rainbows - or any picture they'd like! Use a dropper or spray bottle to drop vinegar onto the painting and watch it fizz!

Tips:

The more baking soda used, the more it will fizz!

2. Fizzy Cloud Dough

Ingredients

1 c Baking soda 1/4 c Vegetable oil

1 c Flour Food coloring

Vinegar

Mix all dry ingredients followed by the oil. Use a dropper or spray bottle to drop vinegar onto the painting and watch it fizz! If you are using oil-based or powdered food coloring, you can mix it into the flower mixture. If using water-based food coloring, mix it into the vinegar!

Tips:

This activity is more fun in color, but you can leave out the food coloring if you don't have it. Alternatively, you can use a non-toxic powdered paint pigment.