Digital Genetics

Looking for something fun and inexpensive to do with the kids? salt dough is the answer. The dough itself is very easy to make – the hard part is deciding what to make with it.

With christmas fast approaching, and a tree sorely needing decorating, salt dough provided an fantastic opportunity to make some homemade decorations and presents.

The recipe is simple:

• 2 Cup Plain Flour
• 1 Cup Table Salt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 cup water

Preheat oven to 120°C. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper. In a large bowl, mix table salt and flour together. Gradually add 1/2 cup of water and mix to desired consistency. Knead the dough on a flat surface, adding a few more drops of water as needed (but not making it too moist).  Bake decorations for 2 1/2 hours or until firm and dry. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Tips:

• You can store prepared salt dough in a sealed container in the refrigerator for a day or two before using.
• You can add color to the dough by mixing food coloring or paint into the water before adding it to the flour/salt mix. Alternatively, you can paint the finished baked dough with acrylic paint.
• Painted objects should be sealed on all sides with polyurethane spray or clear varnish to make them lasting gifts or keepsakes.
• After baking, smooth any rough edges with fine sandpaper. An emery board will also do the trick.
• When adding small molded pieces, always put a dab of water in the spot where the piece is going to be added. baking will “cement” the piece in place.

More Resources

To help you with your own salt dough creations, I found the following resources quite useful:

• How to make a salt-dough sunflower
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjU6PxSOD9k&nofeather=True
• The Little Experience: Salt Dough
  http://www.the-little-experience.com/web_site/pdfs/free_pages/salt_dough.pdf
  

My fruit bowl experiment prior to baking in the oven

Post-oven fruit bowl

Courtesy of taste.com.au

after taking some inspiration from nigella, my daughter and I cooked up some delicious chocolate croissants. The entire process was dead easy and the results were delicious!! My only regret was that we gobbled up the chocolate before they were cooked, then when we realised how good they were, we didnt have any more choc to make more

You can check out the recipe by going to:
http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/164/chocolate+croissants