Easy Marshmallow Recipe

EASY MARSHMALLOWS
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Marshmallows are perhaps one of the simplest confections you can make. They only require
a handful of ingredients, a batch can be thrown together in 10-15 minutes (plus *cough*
3 hours for them to set), and you can flavor them however you like. (You haven't LIVED
until you've had coconut marshmallows!)

Hardware needed:

  * Stand mixer
  * Candy thermometer
  * 8x8 or 9x9 baking pan, 2" deep
  * Large knife (preferably non-serrated. the bigger, the better.)
  * Colander
  * Three bowls
  * Plastic wrap
  * Cooking spray

Ingredients:

  * 2 envelopes of unflavored gelatin. I tried with one envelope and you wind up
    with a confection more like taffy than marshmallows.
  * 1/4 cup cold water
  * 1 cup granulated sugar
  * 1/4 cup corn syrup
  * 1/8 tsp salt
  * 1/4 cup hot water
  * Powdered (confectioners) sugar

Optional:

  * 1 egg white. I tried it with 2, and the result was a slightly fluffier,
    springier marshmallow, but the difference was subtle.
  * food coloring
  * flavoring (see "Flavorings" at end of recipe)

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Stage ONE:
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Place one sheet of plastic wrap into baking dish, fitting to sides and bottom. Spray
liberally with cooking spray. Set aside.

Put 1/4 cup of cold water in the mixing bowl of a stand mixer. Add both gelatin packets
and stir slightly. If desired, add "thick" flavoring (see "Flavorings" at end of this
recipe). Set aside.

If using an egg, beat the egg white (discard the yolk) until soft peaks appear. Set aside.
(Note that the egg will not be cooked during the processing of the marshmallows, so if
you are nervous about eating raw egg whites, you can skip this. However, adding the
beaten egg whites makes the marshmallows significantly lighter and fluffier. You might
consider using pasteurized egg whites, or powdered egg whites, if raw eggs aren't your
thing.)

Put sugar, corn syrup, salt, and hot water in sauce pan and place over low heat, stirring
frequently with wooden spoon, until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium high and
bring to boil, without stirring. When temperature reaches 240F (use candy thermometer),
remove from heat, and immediately pour over gelatin mixture. Stir candy mixture and
gelatin mixture until gelatin mixture dissolves.

Beat slowly in mixer, then increase (gradually) to high speed. Beat until mixture expands
about 3x, and is thick and fluffy (usually about 3 minutes). Stop mixer. If you're using
an egg, add the beaten egg whites at this point. Also, if desired, add the "thin" flavoring
(see "Flavorings" at end of this recipe). Also, add food coloring at this point, if you
want some color. Mix until combined, about another 30 seconds.

Pour immediately into baking dish. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

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Stage TWO:
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Remove chilled confection from refrigerator. Lift plastic wrap from baking pan and
turn upside down over cutting board that has been dusted liberally with powdered sugar.
Remove plastic wrap and pat bottom of marshmallow brick with paper towel to remove
excess oil.

Put about 1/4 cup of powdered sugar in a small bowl. Put colander in a second bowl. Get a
third bowl for storing the final product in.

Spray a large knife (the bigger the better, honestly) with cooking spray, and dust with
powdered sugar.

Using the knife, cut marshmallow brick into small cubes (2cm is about right for me). Roll
each cube in the powdered sugar, then place in the colander. Periodically shake the
marshmallows in the colander vigorously to remove excess powdered sugar, and transfer
them to the third bowl.

When finished, store the marshmallows at room temperature in an air-tight container.

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FLAVORINGS
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You'll want to add some kind of flavoring, even if it's just a little bit of vanilla.
Without flavoring, the gelatin is what you taste, which is a little unpleasant.
There are basically two types of flavorings here: "thick", and "thin" and each
must be added at a different point in the recipe (as indicated in the text of the recipe,
above).

"Thick" flavorings:

  * OMG CHOCOLATE! Mix 2 tbl of cocoa powder with 1/8 cup of HOT water.
  * Peanut Butter: 2 tbl of creamy peanut butter. Note that marshmallows made with real
    peanut butter don't "fluff up" as well as the others, tending instead to be more
    dense. Perhaps it's the oil in the peanut butter? Need to experiment with a
    peanut butter flavoring instead.

"Thin" flavorings:

  * Vanilla: add 1/4 tsp vanilla extract. (If you like a strong vanilla flavor, double
    that.)
  * Coconut: add 1/2 tsp coconut extract.
  * Pina-Colada: add 1/2 tsp coconut extract and 1/2 tsp pineapple extract.
  * Lemon: add 1/2 tsp lemon extract and a few drops of yellow food coloring.
  * Raspberry: add 1 tsp raspberry extract. 4 drops of red food coloring for color.
  * Strawberry: add 1/2 tsp strawberry extract and 4 drops of red food coloring.
  * Peach: add 1/2 tsp peach extract and 3 drops yellow + 1 drop red food coloring.

I've experimented with the following, but have not yet found a satisfactory result:

  * Mint: I accidentally added 1 tsp of mint extract to my batch and got toothpaste-flavored
    marshmallows. Need to add much, much less next time, probably more like 1/4 tsp (or less).
  * Orange: I originally used 1/2 tsp, but after tasting the batter felt it was too subtle.
    However, 1 tsp was a little too much. Next time go with 1/2 and see how the marshmallows
    turn out, and go up to 3/4 tsp if necessary. For color, 2 drops red + 3 drops yellow food
    coloring was about right.
  * Blueberry: 1/2 tsp of blueberry extract was not enough, the flavor was too subtle. Next
    time I'll try a full tsp. Also, 3 drops of blue wasn't blue enough. Perhaps more like 5 or
    6 drops would do better.

I'll add more as I find combinations and amounts that work well. If you have a favorite
flavor, let me know and I'll add it here, too.

Enjoy!