11 Best Edible Play Dough Recipes


Published: April 30, 2024 · Updated: November 23, 2024 by Sacha — This post may contain affiliate links. Read our full disclosure.

Do you have a young child at home who still tries to put everything in their mouth? These easy edible play dough recipes are made from food ingredients, and they are a great way to let babies and toddlers safely play and explore.

Looking for a homemade play dough recipe that is safe for younger kids? These recipes are all made using fully edible ingredients, which means that sneaking a bite is totally safe. They are a great way to introduce small children to play dough!

And not only is play dough fun, but it’s also a great way for kids to practice their fine motor skills, strengthen their hand muscles and develop their creativity. Give them a rolling pin and some cookie cutters, and have fun seeing what they create!

Why You’ll Love These Recipes

  • Simple ingredients: Most of the recipes in this article only require 2 or 3 ingredients to make. You should be able to pick up everything you need at the dollar store, or on your next grocery run.
  • Fully edible: These edible play dough recipes are perfect for babies in toddlers because they are not only taste-safe, but 100% edible.
  • Varied consistencies: Not all edible play dough recipes feel the same—depending on the ingredients that were used to make them, they can feel soft, stretchy, elastic, or anything in between.

P.S. If you have young kids at home are you’re looking for more ways to let them safely explore new textures, you’ll love this big list of Taste-Safe Sensory Play Ideas for Kids.

Taste-Safe vs. Edible Activities

Taste-safe activities are made using non-toxic ingredients. They are safe for kids to explore and even taste, but they are not meant to be consumed in large amounts.

Pro Tip: Recipes that contain uncooked flour are not taste-safe, because raw flour can contain foodborne illnesses. To make them safe to taste, you’ll need to heat-treat the flour to kill any lingering bacteria.

Edible activities are made from food-grade ingredients and are totally safe for kids to eat. The recipes in this article are all edible.

Top Pick: Baby Cereal Play Dough

Baby Cereal & Applesauce Play Dough
This recipe feels very similar to salt-based play dough, but it's made entirely from edible ingredients. It is both a fun activity for young children and a great way to use up stale baby cereal!
Baby Cereal & Applesauce Play Dough
Box of baby rice cereal next to three balls of rice cereal and applesauce play dough.

Why We Love It

Out of all the ones in this list, this recipe feels the most like regular play dough. It doesn’t contain any sugar, and it’s a great way to use up any boxes of leftover baby cereal that are cluttering up your pantry!

Box of baby rice cereal next to three balls of play dough.

Now that I’ve shared my top pick, here are 10 more ideas you’ll love:

2. Marshmallow Play Dough

Edible Marshmallow Play Dough
This edible marshmallow play dough is so much fun for kids. It only requires 3 simple ingredients, and it has a fun texture that is a bit more elastic than regular play dough.
Edible Marshmallow Play Dough
Stack of 4 balls of colourful marshmallow play dough beside regular-sized marshmallows.
Stack of 4 balls of play dough surrounded by marshmallows.

3. 2-Ingredient Pudding Play Dough

Edible Pudding Play Dough
If you're looking for a recipe that your child won't actively want to eat, give this easy pudding play dough a try. It's made from just 2 ingredients, and while those ingredients are 100% safe to eat, the dough doesn't taste very good, which might deter kids from eating large quantities.
Edible Pudding Play Dough
Hand squishing a ball play dough next to a pudding cup.
Hand squishing a ball of play dough next to pudding cup.

4. Frosting Play Dough

Edible Frosting Play Dough
This one is a classic for a reason! If you have a box of frosting leftover from your child's birthday, use this recipe to turn it into something fun for them to do.
Edible Frosting Play Dough
Ball of white frosting play dough with rainbow sprinkles, in front of a rolling pin.
Ball of white play dough with rainbow sprinkles, in front of a rolling pin.

5. Chocolate Frosting Play Dough

Edible Chocolate Play Dough
This chocolate-scented dough would work great for Valentine's Day, but you can make it at any time of year. (Just be prepared for the fact that it smells delicious and your child may want to sneak a few bites!)
Edible Chocolate Play Dough
Ball of edible chocolate play dough with chocolate sprinkles in front of rolling pin.
Ball of brown play dough with chocolate sprinkles, in front of rolling pin.

6. No-Cook Jell-O Play Dough

Edible Jell-O Play Dough
Have some leftover boxes of Jell-O in your pantry? This easy no-cook play dough recipe is the perfect way to use it up!
Edible Jell-O Play Dough
Hand holding round ball of Jell-O play dough in front of Jell-O box.
Hand holding a small ball of red play dough in front of Jell-O box.

7. Peanut Butter Play Dough

Edible Peanut Butter Play Dough
This peanut butter play dough is soft and stretchy, and it only requires 3 ingredients to make. Plus, because there is no cooking involves, it comes to together in just a few minutes!
Edible Peanut Butter Play Dough
Ball of peanut butter play dough with the imprint of 3 fingers.

8. Oatmeal Play Dough

Edible Oatmeal Play Dough
This recipe is a new favorite. The oats give it a fun, stretchy texture, and because it doesn't contain any icing or powdered sugar, your little ones shouldn't actively want to eat it.
Edible Oatmeal Play Dough
Oatmeal play dough, flattened by a rolling pin and cut with a star-shaped cookie cutter.
Oatmeal play dough, flattened by a rolling pin and cut with a star-shaped cookie cutter.

9. Marshmallow Peeps Play Dough

Edible Peeps Play Dough
Turn your leftover marshmallow Peeps into a fun activity for your kids! This recipe only requires a few simple ingredients, and it is perfect for Easter.
Edible Peeps Play Dough
Balls of pink and yellow play dough surrounded by bunny and chick marshmallow Peeps.
Balls of pink and yellow play dough surrounded by Easter marshmallow Peeps.

10. Pumpkin Play Dough

Edible Pumpkin Play Dough
Looking for a fun way to use up that leftover pumpkin purée? This simple fall-themed recipe can be made using canned or fresh purée.
Edible Pumpkin Play Dough
Ball of squished pumpkin play dough in front of a pumpkin and a can of pumpkin purée.
Orange play dough flattened with rolling pin, with star-shaped hole from a cookie cutter.

11. Cranberry Play Dough

Edible Cranberry Play Dough
If you have a young child at home, this edible cranberry play dough is a great way to safely keep them entertained them while using up leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving or Christmas!
Edible Cranberry Play Dough
Ball of pink play dough surrounded by cranberries.
Ball of pink play dough surrounded by cranberries.

Because they are fully edible, these recipes are the perfect way to introduce play dough to your child. You’ll only be able to keep them for a few days, but unlike some of the alternatives, they are perfect safe to give to babies and young toddlers.

If your child is a little older and you’re looking for an activity that will last, you can also try this Jell-O Play Dough (our favorite!), this Chocolate Play Dough, this Cinnamon-Vanilla Play Dough, this Dandelion Play Dough or this Rose Petal Play Dough.

Because they contain salt and cream of tartar, they aren’t prone to spoilage and will stay soft for months!

Frequently Asked Questions

Play dough made using edible ingredients will go bad a lot faster than traditional salt-based play dough, and generally doesn’t keep for more than a 3-5 days.

To make it last as long as possible, store it in an airtight container in the fridge when not in use, and bring it back to room temperature before play. If you notice any signs of spoilage, like mold or a bad odor, discard it immediately and do not let your child play with it.

While these recipes are safe to eat, you should never encourage your children to eat sensory materials as a snack. The point is simply to allow them to safely explore new textures, especially if they are too young to understand that some things aren’t safe to put in their mouth.

Have a question that wasn’t answered here? Let me know in the comments and I’ll be happy to help!

More Edible Sensory Activities

If you’ve tried these Edible Play Dough Recipes or any other recipe on my website, please let me know how it went in the comments below. I can’t wait to hear from you!

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The Craft-at-Home Family