Several years back I had the opportunity to eat (scarf) some delicious homemade marshmallows. I had forgotten about them since then, but being the compulsive diy-er that I am, I decided to try my luck at making a batch or two. I originally found this recipe on Pinterest. I literally just copied and pasted the recipe and photos from the Sparkling Ink website, but to see the original post click here.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons gelatin powder
- 1/2 + 1/2 cup (1.25 + 1.25 dl) cold water
- 2 cups sugar (5 dl) sugar
- 1/2 cup (1.25 dl) light corn syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 egg whites
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- oil and confectioner's sugar for the dish
- confectioner's sugar for dusting
For this recipe, you'll need a food thermometer and around 13 x 9 inch (33 x 22 cm) rectangular dish. I used a ceramic oven dish, but a deep metal pan works just as well. Firstly, it is good to remember that there are differences between different type of gelatins, but I don't see any reason why gelatin sheets couldn't work for this recipe too. Just follow the instruction on the package. One gelatin sheet usually equals one teaspoon gelatin powder.
Brush the bottom and sides of the dish lightly with oil and dust with confectioner's sugar. In a metal bowl, combine gelatin powder and 1/2 cup cold water. Let stand to soften.
In a pot, combine 1/2 cup cold water, sugar, corn syrup and salt. On low heat, stir the mixture until the sugar dissolves using a wooden spoon or a rubber spatula . Turn the heat up to medium, and bring it to a boil. Without stirring, let the mixture simmer until it reaches 240 F (115 C) by the thermometer. This took about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Pour the sugar mixture on top of the gelatin, and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.
Using an electric mixer, beat the mixture on high speed for around 8-10 minutes until white, fluffy and almost tripled in size. In a separate bowl with cleaned beaters, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Spoon the egg whites into the bowl of marshmallow fluff, add vanilla (or your choice of flavoring) and beat just until smooth and combined. Pour the mixture into the oiled and sugared dish, and sift confectioner's sugar generously on top.
Allow the marshmallows to set for at least 3 hours in room temperature. Remove from the dish and cut into rough cubes using a sharp chef's knife. Instead of back and forth movement, just press down with the knife. This way the knife won't get stuck, and the cubes will spring back up. Sift confectioner's sugar on a plate, and toss the cubes in the sugar on all sides. Shake off the excess sugar and pack the marshmallows in an air-tight container, layers divided with parchment paper. Store in cool room temperature up to a week.
It really wasn't bad, but I would like to add my 2 cents and take the guess work out for anyone else who tries this. Don't freak out like I did when you smell the gelatin mixture and think something went terribly wrong. Yes, it is normal, and no you cannot taste it once all is said and done. Also, if you are also a rookie like me, you will not really know where to look for powdered gelatin. I found it on the baking aisle in a tiny little box under all of the flavored Jellos. The box said gelatine I believe, and it had 4 packets inside. All four of the packets roughly equals the 3 Tbsp the recipe calls for so don't waste your time measuring it all out. And lastly, if you have never whipped egg whites, it will take about 3-4 minutes of beating on high to attain the "stiff peaks" necessary for a successful batch of mallows. Other than that, the recipe does look a bit scary but I can assure you it isn't. It just looks that way because of all of the steps.
In other news, I will be participating in a Christmas sale this Friday and Saturday. For anyone interested, the sale will be on Friday and Saturday @ 315 Twister St. NE, in Albany. I am not sure on exact times but it will be advertised in the Democrat-Herald so you can look there if you like. I will also update as soon as I find out. Among other hand crafted items, I will be selling my marshmallows. Come by and say hi!
{Brittany}
