Moon Dough New and Improved Formula {Push N’ Pop Breakfast Set Review}

Just over a year ago, we wrote a Moon Dough review about the innovative and unique, hypo-allergenic, wheat-free, non-stick and non-stain modeling dough that is unlike any other.

While this fun and almost-magical compound had Big Sister E smiling away, there were a few issues with it that resulted in it being relegated back to the box for much of the time: the mysterious ingredients that required hand scrubbing after playing with it, the lack of carrying case, accessories that were too difficult for a child to work on her own and, the big one, the crumbly nature of it that resulted in pieces of the stuff anywhere and everywhere.

Fortunately, moms across the country echoed my opinions and Spin Master, the creators, listened. Taking their concept back to the lab, they have now debuted a new dough formula that keeps the positives (Moon Dough never dries out!) but has also improved on the negatives (they now claim it has a better consistency for molding and is less crumbly).

Well, heck! If Moon Dough is new and improved, we were willing to give it another shot!

Knowing that my kids love to pretend with food, the Moon Dough Breakfast Set was just the thing to combine play cooking with the creativity of modeling dough and the fine motor skills that it would require.

When the box arrived, the bright colors and fun possibilities inside jumped out at us right away!

Opening the package, I found three Push & Pop tools, a Twisty Mold, two colors of Moon Dough, and a themed place mat.

But... wait a minute.

Let me look back at the cover of the box for a second.

Sure enough, that picture shows three colors of Moon Dough, mainly the orangish-brown that works for the waffles and toast. Does it matter? Nah, not really. But I would appreciate if Spin Master didn't show items on the box that aren't actually included (even with their tiny disclaimer that "The item inside this package may vary from the photographs and/or illustrations"), just so that I don't have to explain to certain kids of mine why their waffles are going to be red or yellow only.

However, when it came time to play, right away I did like that the Moon Dough "Push N' Pop" accessories make it extremely easy for children to push and pop the detailed designs right out. After showing Big Sister E how to turn the Twisty Mold so that the pieces would fall from there as well, she was thrilled to get started cooking.

Making breakfast has never been simpler for little hands!

In terms of the Moon Dough itself, we found it to be just as squishy and fun to manipulate as the original. It breaks and tears apart easily and has a fluffy yet solidly soft texture that sticks to itself and not to hands or the table. In no time, we had a full plate of yummy breakfast foods that were ready for snacking...

...and I was happy to see that there were far less crumbled pieces of Moon Dough everywhere I looked. That's not to say that it didn't crumble at all, but instead of feeling as though we were going to spend forever doing cleanup, it took only a moment to take a chunk of the dough and use it to collect all of the small, stray pieces or quickly pick them up from the floor.

As with our previous experience with Moon Dough, Big Sister E has had a great time playing with this entertaining modeling compound and every time it is brought out she is sure to tell me, "This is fun, Mama!" I love seeing the imagination that she puts into making food - whether using the molds or just her creativity - and the way that it never dries out is a big plus.

Although I'd still like to see some sort of storage container for this set (the Moon Dough each have a bag but it would be nice to be able to keep them with the accessories) I have to give kudos to Spin Master for listening to the customer feedback they were receiving and making changes that kids as well as adults can appreciate. I've already been able to bring this new formula out much more than I did with the old... and that just makes everyone happy.

For more information and to see the various sets available, visit MoonDough.com. Moon Dough can be purchased at Target, Walmart, Kmart, Toys 'R Us, Amazon and more.

(Other than the Moon Dough Breakfast Set that I was sent from Spin Master in conjunction with my membership to Team Mom, I was not provided with anything or enticed to do this review in any way. This review is solely my opinion of this product.)