Once you make homemade marshmallows, there’s no turning back.
These are fabulous, vanilla-flavored pillows that are really easy to make if you organize your ingredients and space beforehand.
I finally made homemade vanilla marshmallows. Forever in my bucket list, I gathered my thermometer, bought some corn syrup and got to work.
Making marshmallows is not hard, but it takes focus and some organization. But doesn’t everything?.
After my fluffy, white, powdered sugared, pillowy squares were done, I felt I should’ve ventured into something really adventurous for me like a whole fish, which I hate, or boned and stuffed a whole chicken, but well, I wanted it to be fun too, and hey, there’s no complaining when there are homemade marshmallows in the house.
One of my favorite comic books ever is Asterix. I think I read every single one of them, and whenever I find one I read it again. There’s a particular scene in Asterix in Switzerland, where they have a huge cheese fondue, and, this being the times of the roman empire and its decadent ways, they play a game that is lost by whoever loses the piece of bread inside the pot, with outrageous consequences for the poor soul, and it all ends with most of them coated by cheese. It’s hilarious.
Gelatin hydrated in water
What about the marshmallows right? Well, there are so many stories about impossibly sticky situations in the kitchen when making marshmallows, the mixture coating half the counter, floor, mixer and so on, that every time I thought of making them, I always remembered this scene from the comic book, and was afraid me and my kitchen would go down a similar road.
Of course, extreme precautions were taken, so it was a walk in the park.
One of them involved the spraying of the pan, which is so emphatically suggested so they don’t stick when unmolded, I was certain not to miss it.
I used a butter-flavored vegetable spray, which is awful I know but nothing does it better than the spray, and coated the heck out of every inch of that pan, and made sure, very sure, there was no possibility of it sticking and not unmolding as it should. It certainly did, together with a yellow stain which was very visible.
So go easy on the spray.
Besides that, these are superb vanilla marshmallows, though I’m not much of an authority on the subject, just like with the graham crackers, since I don’t have the commercial ones to taste against. I’m pretty sure not being able to get a hold of those is a good thing.
A few tips to make your marshmallow-making easier and as un-sticky as possible:
- Have all ingredients ready and measured before you start.
- If you use glucose instead of corn syrup, which is even stickier, lightly coat the measuring cup with spray or oil before measuring it. That way it will slide out more easily.
- A candy thermometer is essential. And use high heat, otherwise, it will take forever to get to the needed temperature. It takes about 10 minutes anyway.
- A stand mixer is highly recommended. It will make the beating much easier.
- Line the pan with parchment paper, and spray the sides and spatula that you’re using to spread the mixture. And remember to coat with powdered sugar the top and sides so they can easily be stored.
- I must add, like my friend Renee left in the comments, don’t attempt these on high humidity days.
There are some recipes that use egg whites too. I didn’t have any and this recipe doesn’t use them, which is the one I wanted to try first. So much easier.
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Ingredients
- 2 Tbs (20g) powdered unflavored gelatine
- ½ cup (120cc) cold water
- 2 ¼ cups (450g) sugar
- ½ cup (160g) corn syrup or glucose
- ¾ cup water
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup powdered sugar (for dusting)
Instructions
- Put the first ½ cup cold water in the bowl of the standing mixer.
- Sprinkle the gelatin on top and let it hydrate.
- Line a baking pan with 2 inch sides with parchment paper and spray the entire surface with vegetable spray. Reserve.
- In a medium saucepan, put sugar, glucose or corn syrup and remaining water.
- Cook over medium heat until it dissolves, brushing the sides of the pan, just above the mixture, with a wet brush so that crystals don’t form.
- Increase the heat to high, put the candy thermometer on the pan, and boil until it reaches 248ºF /120ºC, that is between soft ball and hard ball stage.
- With the wire whisk, attach the bowl and start whisking the gelatin in the bowl.
- Slowly, but constantly, pour the sugar mixture into the gelatin while beating at high speed. Try not to pour it directly over the whisk but between the side of the bowl and the whisk, that way the most syrup will reach the gelatin and not be stuck in the beaters or sides of bowl.
- Keep on beating for some minutes until the consistency is fluffy, like a thick meringue. Add vanilla and mix.
- Immediately transfer the sugar mixture to the prepared pan, and smooth the top with an oiled or sprayed spatula.
- Let dry at room temperature for 1 hour and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Let dry for a few hours until it’s no longer sticky and can be unmolded.
- When ready, lift the parchment paper, and use an oiled or sprayed kitchen knife to cut it. You can also use an oiled pair of scissors. Dust each square completely with powdered sugar.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Keywords: vanilla marshmallows, homemade marshmallows
Can I whisk it in a food processor using the whisking blade?
Hi Jay,
You can use a handheld electric mixer. I don't recommend a food processor.
one other thing: do you know if they can be store on the freezer?
una cosa mas: sabes si puedo freezarlos?
Sabés que no sé? Pero te digo que me duraron + de 1 mes en una lata. Te recomiendo que si los vás a usar como cubierta para hacer algo tipo s'mores, guardalos sin almidón de maíz por encima, sólo azúcar impalpable. Así se derriten mejor.
gracias!
hola Paula,
where did you get the corn syrup? (yes, here in Buenos Aires…)
Hola Marina, conseguí lo + parecido, que es a base de fructosa. Buscalo en dietéticas tipo New Garden o Polti (en belgrano)o en el barrio chino pueden tenerlo. La marca es Natali, una etiqueta chiquita redonda con amarillo. El kero no hay más porque lo importaban (creo que de brasil). Una lástima porque era el mejor. Suerte!
si, le escribi a Unilever (dueños de Maizena, quienes lo producian) y me confirmaron que ya no existe. extraño el maple syrup 🙁
voy a ver entonces si consigo eso, que creo que tambien puede haber en Doña Rosa…
gracias
I made this recipe exactly as shown here since it was my first time. I don´t know how agar agar works and if it had to do with the bad results. I don´t know if you had the right syrup temperature either; that is critical too in order to achieve the consistency.
So sorry it didn´t work for you Leanne. I can only vouch for the pics you see here which are exactly the way this recipe turned out.
I am experienced at hard candy making and my thermometer has recently proven accurate. Inquiry into other marshmallows recipes displayed a small variety of temperatures as well. So, I doubt the temperature was this situation's failing. However, after having reviewed other recipes it does seem more likely that the agar agar was at fault. I will order a different gelatin substitute, try again, and keep you posted.
Here is a vegan recipe for marshmallows that I found. The ingredients are similar, but the amounts are very different. Hope it helps http://www.inhabitots.com/how-to-make-homemade-vegan-marshmallows/
I tried making a vegan batch of these, as per the instructions, twice. Both batches resulted in a sticky gelatinous mess that would never reach the described fluffy meringue-like texture. I used agar agar in place of gelatin. Agar agar is usually a fantastic replacement for gelatin. So, I'm forced to wonder if the recipe is bad or if if the agar agar just didn't work for this situation.
Paula, that scene from your favorite comic book is hilarious! glad you and your kitchen did not turn out that way during your marshmallow adventure. thanks so much for checking in on me from time to time. 😉
So nice to have you back in the game marilyn!
Hi Paula. I make marshmallows once a year. They are for my daughter and lucklily they last quite a long time as they still taste good when dunked in chocolate. That is my time test requirement!
Yum!
I loved Asterix as a child too, Paula! Marshmallows are on my bucket list as well. I have always been intimidated by the mess they might create as well so I am grateful for your explicit instructions. You have motivated me to give them a try. So beautiful!
You made marshmallows at home??!! That's great. I ate tones of them as a child, I wanna try too (not sure if they will look as gorgeous as yours).
Way to go, Paula! I wish I had your bravery, both in and out of the kitchen. These marshmallows look divine – you could sell these babies, that's how perfect they look. And thanks for all the tips and tricks in this post. That's one reason why I love food blogs so much – we tell it like it is, no sugar coating (pun intended) 😉
I haven't done mallows in AGES, need to do it again, there's no comparison
These are beautiful! I've wanted to make marshmallows for a while too. Thanks for such a detailed post. I'm less intimidated now 🙂