Who says marshmallows have to be square? This experiment marks the kick off of a little marshmallow spree I’ll be on all weekend. I figure once I get out the stand mixer and the gelatin packets I might as well go for it. I think homemade marshmallow are so worth the little extra effort, the flavor and texture is much better than store bought. One bite reminds you that marshmallows are actually candy, not the tasteless puffs we’re used to from the bag. These remind me of vanilla taffy.
I’m going to be honest, though, these aren’t easy to shape into perfect dollops. You’re going to have to prepare yourself for some slumped, misshapen heaps among the occasional perfectly swirled dollop. But if you can muster a little dexterity and a lot of tolerance for a sticky mess, you’ll wind up with some pretty cute little treats. The issue is that the marshmallow goo has to go inside a large zip lock baggie and then get extruded out through a hole you cut in one corner. Sounds simple enough, but it’s a little bit of a challenge. I used my basic vanilla bean marshmallow recipe that you can fine here. If you want to you can just make them the old fashioned way, in neat little cubes. I think these have a whimsical charm, though, and are worth the sticky fingers.
Keep them for the kids’ cocoa, give them away by the bagful. These will come in handy in the next few months, I promise. I suppose you could sprinkle them with crushed candy canes, or dust them with cocoa powder for a variation. Sprinkles, too. There are lots of reasons to make these, but the main one is that making marshmallows is just plain fun. A little bit of this, a little bit of that, and you end up with the silkiest glossiest marshmallow cream.
What You Will Need
- Vegetable oil, for brushing
- 4 envelopes unflavored gelatin (3 tablespoons plus 1 1/2 teaspoons)
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 cups light corn syrup
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract or paste
- confectioner’s sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Lay out a large sheet of parchment paper on a flat surface and spray it with cooking spray.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, put 3/4 cup of water. Sprinkle the gelatin over it and let it sit.
- In a medium saucepan, put the sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Begin heating it, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Then stop stirring and let the sugar syrup come up to 238 degrees. It will boil for a while before it gets there.
- Then, with the mixer on low, slowly pour the hot syrup into the gelatin. Gradually increase the speed of the mixer until it is on high. Beat on high for about 12 minutes until the mixture is stiff. Beat in the vanilla.
- Pour the marshmallow into a gallon sized zip lock baggie. The easiest way to do this is the set it over a small bowl and fold back the top to form as big an opening as you can. Snip a 1/2 inch hole off one corner.
- Working quickly, pipe little spirals, working from the outside in, until you have a nice dollop. Go on until you have used up all the marshmallow cream.
- Let the dollops sit until they are firm, several hours at least, depending on how dry your weather is. Dust them with confectioner’s sugar and carefully peel them off the paper. Dust the bottoms with confectioner’s sugar as well.
Notes
These won’t spoil, but they will dry out, so keep them in an airtight container.
This recipe adapted from Martha Stewart
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http://theviewfromgreatisland.com/2013/10/diy-marshmallow-dollops.html
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Have fun!
