Messy Fun with Edible Yoghurt Paint

If you have smaller kids, they will love getting their hands dirty with this edible finger paint!

At fifteen months, Squish still has a tendency to put everything in his mouth, so I love arty activities that are not likely to end in a call to Poison Control. This yoghurt paint is baby safe and takes just seconds to make and a little goes a long way.

The paint has just two ingredients, yoghurt and food colouring. I used double cream yoghurt (which was about to expire anyway, so I felt less guilty about food wastage) and gel food colouring.

Yoghurt paint made with yoghurt and food colouring

I put about a teaspoon of plain yoghurt into each compartment of an ice tray (I have an old one that is reserved for messy art activities). Then I added a little food colouring to each one. I put a good squirt of colouring in each one as I wanted vibrant colours, but in retrospect I would put less as the finger stains were a bit tough to get out afterwards. Mix the yoghurt and the colour and voila, paint is ready.

Before you let the little ones loose with the paint, I would suggest some mess control as this gets messy. I stripped Squish down to just his vest, put aprons on for both kids and put down a big plastic tablecloth on the floor. Then I let the kids do their thing.

 Squish was reluctant at first, but once he got into it he really enjoyed it. All the colours were soon varying shades of brown and green as Squish dipped his fingers in every pot. Noodle did not seem to mind the colours being mixed- she was lost in deep concentration painting her fairy. Gulp... I made the faux pas of complimenting her ninja turtle (the fairy ninja-turtle is in the top left of the pics below).

The final masterpieces

The end result was quite impressive in my view (but I am biased), although clean up was a bit of a schlep and Squish had to have a bath afterwards. 

P.S. We have experimented with edible paints made with flour, water and colouring before, but I prefer the texture and finish of the yoghurt paint, which does not become powdery once dry. You can also add edible food glitter for a shimmer effect.