Homemade Marshmallows: Recipes & Tips (Part 1)

[LoveToEatATL]

KEW - NEIL!!!!!

I believe I did it!!

Kew, your step by step directions were a godsend - thank you so much!! They look like they should and are now cooling. WOW! My hubby and I were licking the bowl - what a silly mess!!

Cannot wait until morning and then to share them with friends - they are gonna freak!!

Whisking the gelatin at the bottom of my kitchen aid was key!

I am sooooo excited!

Patti

[Tepee]

Turkish Delight

250g liquid glucose

1.25 kg granulated sugar

2250g cornflour

2 Tbsps rosewater

1/2 tsp pink food colouring, optional

120g powdered sugar

Oh, Oh, Redsugar! After the divine marshmallows, DH and I were dreaming about Turkish Delights. You must be telepathic! Thank you!

[AlainV]

Here is my variation of Nightscotsman's fabulous marshmallows : plain marshmallows coated with chocolate

When you eat them, you have first the crackling thin chocolate layer followed by the smoothness of the marshmallow. I just love it !

[viva]

AlainV, those look spectacular!

I was thinking of something similar for Thanksgiving (yeah, I start thinking about Thanksgiving 3 months in advance)...Has anyone tried making pumpkin or cranberry flavored marshmallows? I was thinking of a pumpkin or cranberry marshmallow, dipped in chocolate, sandwiched between thin, crispy gingerbread cookies as my cookie this year.

[Joni]

alain...please tell HOW you did those magnificent looking marshmallows....the day after you made the marshmallows, the chocolate used, the dipping method...(on a fork perhaps?)..!! Fabulous!

[AlainV]

alain...please tell HOW you did those magnificent looking marshmallows....the day after you made the marshmallows, the chocolate used, the dipping method...(on a fork perhaps?)..!!  Fabulous!

←

For the marshmallows, I just followed Neil's recipe (with glucose instead of corn syrup). I didn't put any flavoring (only gelatin, glucose, sugar and water) because I though it would interfere with chocolate.

I managed to cut and manipulate the marshmallows cubes without the help of potato starch or icing sugar, just with an oiled knife. It would also interfere with chocolate.

The final step was to dip each cube into a batch of tempered chocolate (I use Belgian chocolate of course : 2/3 black Callets and 1/3 white Callets from Callebaut) using a simple fork.

The coated cubes were then put on a waxed paper until the chocolate was hard and shiny, then trimmed to remove any excess of chocolate.

[DiH]

Made another batch of strawberry marshmallows... only this time I piped large "kisses" onto vanilla wafers, then lightly sprinkled them with either coconut or colored sprinkles. Fast, easy and toooooooo cute! Sorry, no picture; camera's on the fritz... bummer.

[LoveToEatATL]

Made another batch of strawberry marshmallows... only this time I piped large "kisses" onto vanilla wafers, then lightly sprinkled them with either coconut or colored sprinkles.  Fast, easy and toooooooo cute!  Sorry, no picture; camera's on the fritz... bummer. 

←

I made some of the strawberry marshmallows last week. I love the pink blush color, but I really loved the taste of the vanilla marshmallows much better.

Want to send some to friends in NJ and CA - I'm in Atlanta. Am I nuts? Will they get there safely?

Piped out kisses sound gorgeous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[JanKK]

All these variations sound marvelous! And I'm practically drooling just looking at those chocolate-covered ones ;)

Now ..... I've made these several times --chocolate, strawberry, vanilla ----and the other night when I decided I just HAD to have some, I had everything in ready to go and discovered I only had 3/4 cup of corn syrup, not the 1 1/4 called for. Wellllll................at that point it seemed pointless to waste everything and it was WAY to later to run out to the store, so I made them with the 3/4 cup ...........and they turned out absolutely perfect! Had no ill effect on either flavor or texture.

Just thought I'd share that ........I mean a few less calories means you can eat a few more, right?? ;)

[Tepee]

That's most interesting, JanKK! How about the sweetness? Is it less sweet? If it is, it's just the tweak I've been looking for, since everyone I know want their sweets not-so-sweet.

[momlovestocook]

Hi

A small favor(or maybe it's a big one). I want to make these tomorrow for our weekly campfire with friends. I didn't print out the recipe and recipegullet is down so I cannot access it. Could someone post it for me Please.

thanks so much

Sandra

[LoveToEatATL]

Sandra,

Did you get the recipe?

Anyone....I was wondering how cinnamon marshmallows would taste? Would I add cinnamon candies to the corn syrup mixture? Like red hots?

I think that would be amazing!

[momlovestocook]

No

I didn't get the recipe yet.

Sandra

[LoveToEatATL]

Sandra,

I don't know why you can't click on the original recipe and get Neil's. I tried it too and it didn't work for me either.

Anyhoo - here you go:

4 Envelopes of gelatin

1/2 cup strawberry puree

1- 1/4 cup water

3 cups sugar

1-1/4 cup light corn syrup

1/4 tsp salt

powdered sugar and potato starch (I couldn't find this so I am using corn starch) for dusting

Line a sheet pan with a 1" rim with foil coat the foil with vegetable oil or non stick spray. Fit the mixer with the whisk attachment (Sandra - Note: I have been using a Pyrex lasagna pan - I just think it makes for higher marshmallows)

Mix the strawberry puree, and 1/2 cup of the water in the bowl of the stand mixer and sprinkle the gelatin over to soften (Note: after a few minutes, I try to mix the gelatin - it doesn't seem to all soften. Also, give your mixer a good scrape at the bottom before adding the syrup mixture. My first batch had gelatin, unmixed at the bottom - ick).

Put the sugar, corn syrup, remaining 3/4 cup water and salt in a heavy saucepan. Note, I used a big pot, as the first time it boiled over and I had sticky syrup everywhere!. Bring to a boil and cook until it reaches the soft-ball stage (234-240F). Note, check out Kew's notes on the cooking stages - they are now my close reference

With the mixer at full speed, pour all of the hot syrup slowly down the side of the bowl. Be careful as the mixture is very liquid and hot at this point and some may splash out of the bowl - use a splash guard if you have one. Note: this is very good advice!. Whip until the mixture is very fluffy and stiff, about 8-10 minutes. Pour mixture into the foil-lined pan and smooth with an oiled offset spatula so that it's level with the top of the rim (it won't completely fill the pan). Allow the mixture to sit, uncovered at room temperature for 10 to 12 hours.

Mix equal parts powdered sugar and potato starch and sift generously over the rested marshmallow slab. Turn it out onto a cutting board or counter, peel off the foil and dust with more sugar/starch mixture. Slice with a tin-bladed oiled knife or oiled cookie cutters. Dip all cut edges in sugar/starch mixture and shake off excess. Marshmallows will keep several weeks at room temp in an air tight container.

Variation: Chocolate Marshmallows:

Replace strawberry puree and initial 1/2 cup of water in mixing bowl with 1/2 cup of cocoa dissolved in 1/2 cup of boiling water in a separate bowl. Soften gelatin in an additional 1/4 cup cold water in mixing bowl. Add cocoa mixture to mixing bowl and procede with recipe as above. This will produce a marshmallow with a strong chocolate flavor, but somewhat denser than the strawberry version. To get a lighter texture as well as a lighter chocolate flavor, reduce cocoa to 1/4 cup. Note, I made the chocolate ones last night and they are much denser. Today I plan to try the lighter version. Also, for some reason, this mixture when the syrup was added - SPLASHED EVERYWHERE - my kitchen looked like something from an "I Love Lucy" episode - funny on tv - not so funny in your kitchen!

Variation: Vanilla Marshmallows - my favorite!

Replace strawberry puree and initial 1/2 cup of water in a mixing bowl with 3/4 cup water and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or seeds scraped from 2 vanilla beans.

Sandra, last night I made some with raspberry preserves. They look, smell and taste heavenly. Please let me know how it goes!!

Patti

[momlovestocook]

thanks Patti

When they redid the site, the recipe section didn't come back. I guess they are working on the software for that part. It will be back, they are not sure when.

thanks again, your remarks will make it easier for me to make

Sandra

[LoveToEatATL]

Please let me know how it goes for you, Sandra!

[JustKay]

I didn't have enough liquid glucose too the other day when I was making 3-layered marshmallows. The first 2 batches were as per Neil's recipe. With the third batch, I added extra sugar to make up for the glucose (by volume).

Well .... upon cutting the marshmallows, I notice that the final layer = green layer (with less glucose) is not as thick as the other two which was equal in thickness ... meaning the (green layer) mixture didn't fluff as high. Also, ater a few days ... the green layer became a little 'crustier' and 'harder' compared to the other layers.

I've not had the marshmallows behaving this way before (I've done quite a lot of batches) ... so I guess substituting some of the liquid glucose with sugar does have an effect with texture although not noticeable until after a few days old.

JanKK ... did you simply use less corn syrup and not make up for the difference with sugar?

Edited September 12, 2004 by kew (log)

[JanKK]

That's most interesting, JanKK! How about the sweetness? Is it less sweet? If it is, it's just the tweak I've been looking for, since everyone I know want their sweets not-so-sweet.

←

I think they were slightly less sweet, TP ........although maybe not a lot , given that sugar is always the main ingredient? I didn't have any others for a side-by-side comparison.

And that's correct Kew .....I didn't add any extra sugar ---just decreased the corn syrup. Again, I didn't have a side-by-side comparison, but the texture seemd the same to me and they lasted fine (just ate the last one yesterday ;)

[Lloydchoc]

Just thought that I would let you know how my experiences with marshmallows is going. The potato starch is much better than corn starch for dusting. I'm now using 50/50 potato starch/powdered sugar. Keeps them very dry.

We are making flavored vegan marshmallows and have been selling them for the last few weeks at a couple of farmers' markets. We thought that this would be a good method for piqueing people's interest in our chocolates--it works. We're selling about 500-600 a week (but we're not getting rich at 4 for a dollar).

So far, we have tried vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, lemon and cinnamon. The three top sellers are vanilla, chocolate and strawberry in that order. The people are amazed, and some come back and buy them $5 at a time. I also found that anyone wearing a t shirt with the slogan "Meat is Murder" is an easy sell. And then there are the people that think that if it is vegan, then it must be healthy for them. At one farmers' market people kept asking if it was tofu (it wasn't labelled well then).

I'm still having problems with the chocolate. If I use a low-fat cocoa the texture is OK, but the flavor is flat (because the only low-fat cocoas that I have found are of low quality--think Nestle) and if I use the high fat full flavor cocoa, the texture comes out gummy. So far my compromise is to use half low-fat and half high-fat cocoa and add it after mixture has mixed for about 6 minutes and then whip it for another 6 minutes. Then I roll it in a mix of high fat cocoa, potato starch and powdered sugar (that adds lots of flavor). This makes for a marshmallow that is a little too fragile for my taste.

Any fat in the mix causes a problem with the texture. I have been using lemon oil in the lemon marshmallow (about a teaspoon) and when I add it to the mix, I can hear the mixer speed up and I have to beat it a couple of minutes longer to get a decent texture.

I use a fresh strawberry puree instead of water for the strawberry, and the texture here is heavier than the vanilla, but the flavor is so good that it makes up for every thing else.

I have found that not only is the water/gelatin ratio critical for a tender marshmallow, if you overbeat the mix, then the texture will be tough and chewy (I think that marshmallows should melt in your mouth).

Well, it is still a great learning experience and even if I have to throw out every third batch we are getting better.

If anyone has any experiences to share I would really like to hear them.

[LoveToEatATL]

Lloyd,

What makes them vegan? That's a great marketing strategy.

Are they vegan just in the way the basic recipe from Neil is done? Or are you doing something special?

I am very interested in cinnamon marshmalllows, can you tell me how you are doing them?

Thanks

Patti

[Lloydchoc]

Patti,

As I mentioned in a previous post, I am using Emes kosher gelatin which is made with carageenan, locust bean gum and malto-dextrin. I get it from barryfarm.com. It is about 3 times more expensive than regular Knox gelatin and it seems to take about 20% more gelatin to water to get the same texture, but once you get the proportions figured out, it behaves the same as regular gelatin. That being said, you are still looking at only 3-4 cents per marshmallow for ingredients--but the labor is another story.

The cinnamon marshmallows were very good, but not many people bought them (or even sampled them). For a recipe using 1 1/2 pounds of sugar, I added 2 tbs of Vietnamese cinnamon and a tsp of vanilla. For good measure I added a little caramel coloring so they didn't look so white. The cinnamon has just a little bite to it that cuts through the sweetness.

Lloyd

[nightscotsman]

I made cinnamon marshmallows a few months ago using ceylon true cinnamon which has a very subtle, complex flavor with very little bite. I think I used about a teaspoon for a half batch. I really liked the flavor and they were perfect in hot apple cider - didn't even have to spice the cider since the marshmallows already had a lot of flavor.

[momlovestocook]

I finally made these marshmallows yesterday. I only made half a batch since they were just basically to try the recipe. I make a recipe last week from epicurious that uses egg whites. My best taste tester(my dh with a monster sweet tooth) said these are way better. He said it was like eating fudge. I sent some of the other marshmallows to a friends place last week(had to stay home with sick dd) and she was impressed that I actually made marshmallows. Then she had to add that they tasted just like the ones you buy in a bag. WHAT!!!!! Obviously she needs her taste buds checked LOL. Now I'm debating on whether or not I'm going to bring some of my better batch for her to try.

thanks for the wonderful recipe. It is definitely on my list of things to make for my dd's teachers for the holidays.

Sandra

[jgarner53]

he had to add that they tasted just like the ones you buy in a bag.

I think that for some people, this is a compliment -- as though your goall had been to recreate store-bought marshmallows from scratch.

[bkeith]

I think that for some people, this is a compliment -- as though your goall had been to recreate store-bought marshmallows from scratch.

←

Back when I was just a beginner decorator, I made a birthday cake for my niece and iced it with a Swiss meringue buttercream. One of the comments I overheard at the party was "This icing is so good! It's like Cool Whip!"

I took it in the spirit in which it was intended.