Salt Dough Ornaments

Description

Make Salt Dough Ornaments using cookie cutters. This is one of the easiest methods for making ornaments. You can color the dough for younger children and use crayons to add patterns.

Making rabbit ornaments for Easter with Salt Dough.

Ingredients

1 cup salt
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon Alum (optional)
3/4 cup cold tap water
Food Coloring Drops

Materials

Rabbit Cookie Cutter
Crayons
Medium Bowl
Rolling Pin
Straw to make hole in ornament
Floured surface to work on
Generously floured cookie sheet to bake cookies on
Narrow Ribbons

Use cookie cutters to make rabbit shaped salt dough.

Steps

In a medium bowl, place all dry ingredients and mix to blend dry ingredients thoroughly.
Add food coloring to half the amount of water (start with 8-10 drops) If the color is what you want, add the rest of the water and mix. If you want the color darker, add more food coloring to the remaining water and mix.
Add water to the dry mixture and mix with hands. Use gloves if you don't want the color on your hands.
If the dough is sticky add more flour and if it is too dry add a little more water. The dough should be nice and smooth and will not separate when it is kneaded properly.
Roll out a quarter of the dough on a floured surface. Roll the dough as close to 1/4 inch as possible.
Cut with a cookie cutter and while the cookie cutter is in place, use a straw to punch a hole in the cookie so you can later attach a ribbon.
Prepare cookie sheet with a generous layer of flour
Place the cookies on the floured baking sheet and bake in warm oven below 200 degrees, most ovens have a warm setting for 2 to 3 hours. (Parent step only!)
Remove from oven, turn over and return to oven. Repeat at least 3 times.
Turn off oven and let cookies remain inside until cool.
After the cookies are dry, brush off excess flour decorate with crayons and tie with ribbon.

Important Note

This baking process allows the cookies to dry slowly, if the oven is too hot they will start to brown and salt dough should be as white as possible for the prettiest results.

Tips and Suggestions

This toddler activity is best done in two days. The first day make the dough, cut it out and bake. On the second day decorate and display.
Don't make the dough in advance or use leftover dough.
Alum is optional. Alum is an astringent that aids in binding the ingredients.
Cookies larger that 2 1/4 inches may not dry flat. If you are experiencing this, allow the cookies to dry at room temperature for 24 hours on a floured cookie sheet, then continue to dry out in warm oven. Most average size cookies are dry in 24 hours.