Cook Out in Style

Total Time Needed:: Weekend Projects

When Dale and Karen Peckinpaugh of West Lafayette, Indiana, take their 5 children, ages 8 months to 5 years, on a camping trip, they always pack their official deluxe homemade marshmallow roasters. During campouts, the roasters generate great excitement, says Karen: "We all can't wait to start the campfire!"

These instructions make one roaster; simply multiply as needed to make one for each family member.

Materials

Flat-nose pliers
Wire hanger (free of paint or coating)
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup salt

1/4 cup water
Aluminum foil-covered cookie sheet
Acrylic paints and paintbrushes
Mod Podge

Instructions

Using the pliers, straighten out the hanger.
Make salt dough by mixing the flour, salt, and water in a medium bowl. Roll the dough into a ball (if you're doubling or tripling the recipe, divide it into equal portions before rolling), then sculpt the handle. To make our stack of marshmallows, roll the ball into a log, then use a butter knife to score it. To make a hot dog, halve the ball, roll one half into a log, then flatten the other half into an oval and wrap it around the log.
Insert the straightened hanger into one end. Keeping it level, slowly push it until about 2 inches protrude from the opposite end. Leave this end of the wire as is for baking, but bend the long end into a wide U shape so it fits into your oven.
Lay the roaster on the foil-covered cookie sheet and bake it in a preheated 250-degree oven for 50 minutes. Remove it from the oven, turn it over, and cool for an hour. Turn it again and cool for at least 6 hours more.
Unbend the U shape, then use the pliers to bend the short end of the wire as shown. Pull the wire back through the handle until the bent segment lies snug against it, then press this end down on a hard surface.
Paint the handle as desired. We coated the top and sides first, let it dry, then turned it to paint the bottom.
Allow the handle to dry for at least 4 hours, then apply a coat of Mod Podge. Tightly wrap the skewering end with clean foil before each use.