Hot Chocolate Play Dough | Sensory Activities for Children

hot chocolate play dough final

Hot Chocolate Playdough is a fun option when you need sensory activities for children. It lets them get their hands messy with a fun winter smell.  Playdough is one of our favorite art activities because it is so versatile, but I'm not a fan of the smell.  Using hot cocoa (or many other drinks) brings a new layer of fun and is a great base for a sensory bin!

Playdough is a wonderful activity for kids and kids at at heart.  It builds fine motor skills, dramatic play, and can be the best sensory activity- appealing through sight, touch, and smell. (while homemade playdough is safe I wouldn't recommend trying out the sense of taste).

Must-Have Kids Craft Supplies

Sick of hearing “I'm bored”? Keep these fun craft supplies on hand for this activity and creative play time!

This fun Hot Cocoa Play dough will keep the kids busy for hours.  It is also a fantastic use for K cups- whether you use the whole cup, cocoa included, or keep your empty k cup to upcycle just for the mug portion. Grab a few items from your pantry and get started making this inexpensive and fun kid activity for the winter season and watch their imagination soar!

Ingredients for Hot Chocolate Playdough

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup water
  • 3  Hot Cocoa K cups or 1/4 cup baking cocoa
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup salt
  • 2 tsp. cream of tartar
  • 2 Tbsp. coconut oil

How to Make Hot Chocolate Playdough

Combine flour, salt, cocoa, cream of tartar, water, and coconut oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.

hot cocoa ingredients

Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to solidify and pull away from sides of the pan – about 5 minutes.

hot cocoa mix

Remove from heat and flip the dough out onto a floured surface, allow to cool enough to touch then knead for 2 minutes until smooth.

Once the dough is completely cooled it is ready for play. Store in an airtight container and it should last for weeks, I keep mine in the refrigerator when not in use to extend the life a little bit.

To make hot cocoa mugs for playdough fun:

Remove top seal from the cup, wash and dry thoroughly.

Cut a chenille stem in half, then fold that in half and twist from top to bottom.

Bend each end a bit to form a D for the handle, place hot glue on ends of chenille stem, let it cool for just a couple seconds then press into sides of cup to create a mug.

hot cocoa play dough horizontal

Provide your child with cookie cutters, a roller, plastic butter knife, white pompoms for marshmallows, and cut-up paper straws- this activity is guaranteed to keep them busy for hours. Hot Cocoa stand anyone?

cocoa playdough play

More Sensory Play Ideas:

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Hot Chocolate Play Dough

Course DIY & Crafts
Keyword play dough, playdough, sensory activities, sensory fun, sensory play
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Author Savanah

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 cup salt
  • 3 Hot Cocoa K cups or 1/4 cup baking cocoa
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp. cream of tartar
  • 2 Tbsp. coconut oil

Instructions

  • Combine flour, salt, cocoa, cream of tartar and coconut oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add hot cocoa and vanilla extract.
  • Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to solidify and pull away from sides of the pan, about 5 minutes.
  • Remove from heat and flip the dough out onto a floured surface, allow to cool enough to touch then knead for 2 minutes until smooth.
  • Once the dough is completely cooled it is ready for play.

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4 Comments

  1. What a cute idea! I will have to think about doing this one. I haven’t been very good at doing crafty things with my son yet and I really really need to!

  2. While mixing this, it seems rather dry? Even with the Coconut Oil…..why is there no water in the recipe? I had to add 1 cup of water to get it to mix together to resemble play dough.

    1. Barb, Thank you so much for pointing it out to me. I have no clue how I left out the water. It is supposed to be 1 cup of water for the recipe. Going to update it right now!