Flavored Marshmallows
2011 © copyright Savory Simple, all rights reserved
I think of these as seasonal marshmallows but I’m pretty sure they’ll be wonderful any time of year. But really, what’s better in the cold winter months than hot chocolate with marshmallows? I decided to make three separate flavors to give away in goody bags at Thanksgiving this year. I made pumpkin spiced marshmallows, cardamom marshmallows and cinnamon marshmallows. This recipe is incredibly flexible and you can use just about any spice or extract you want. How about peppermint or nutmeg marshmallows? Have fun with it!
You’ll need a stand mixer and a candy thermometer. A pizza cutter is useful for cutting even marshmallows but you can use a regular knife. I’ve used gelatin sheets but you can easily substitute them with powdered gelatin.
Adapted from ‘Baked: New Frontiers in Baking’ by Matt Lewis & Renato Poliafito
Ingredients:
- 12 Gelatin Sheets
***
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- for cardamom marshmallows: 1 tablespoon cardamom
- for cinnamon marshmallows: 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- for pumpkin marshmallows: 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice & 1 tablespoon pumpkin powder
Method:
- Mix the confectioners sugar and cornstarch. Set aside.
- Grease a 9×13 baking dish (I use cooking spray with flour) and line the bottom with parchment paper, allowing the paper to hang over two sides. Lightly grease the top of the parchment paper.
- Soak the gelatin sheets in a large metal bowl filled with ice water and set aside.
- Add 1/2 cup of corn syrup to a stand mixer with the whisk attachment.
- In a medium saucepan, gently stir together the sugar, 1/2 cup corn syrup and 1/2 cup water. Turn the heat to medium high and attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan.
- Set up a double boiler: bring some water to a boil in a small to medium saucepan. Drain the water from the bowl of gelatin and gently squeeze the softened sheets to remove excess water. Place the bowl on top of the saucepan and allow the gelatin to melt while stirring with a heat resistant spatula.
- Add the melted gelatin to the stand mixer and turn the speed on low.
- When the sugar mixture reaches the soft ball stage (235-240 degrees F), remove from the heat. Slowly and carefully pour the hot sugar down the side of the mixer bowl. When all of the sugar has been added, turn the mixer up to high and allow it mix for around 5 minutes, or until it begins to turn white and fluffy.
- Now is the time to add your flavors. Turn the mixer down to medium and slowly add the spice, vanilla and salt, making sure to scrape down the side if anything gets stuck. Continue to beat the mixture until it’s thick.
- Quickly pour the mixture into the prepared pan. You don’t need to even out the tops, it should fall into place and smooth out on it’s own.
- Allow the marshmallows to cool for 6 hours or overnight.
- Dust the top of the marshmallow with the confectioners sugar/cornstarch mixture. Using the sides of the parchment, remove the marshmallow from the pan and place it on a cutting board.
- Use a pizza cutter to create 1 inch by 1 inch marshmallows (or whatever size you prefer). As you cut them, dust the sides with the cornstarch mixture to prevent sticking.
- Store them in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
*** for information on gelatin sheets vs. powder, check out this link. There are varying opinions on the ratio between powdered and sheet gelatin, but if you want to use the powdered kind for this recipe, I’d try using 3-4 packets.
Nom, nom, nom, nom! These look wonderful!
Gorgeous pic, love all the white! I’m bookmarking this to try soon!
Thanks! I tried other setups with color but I kept drifting back toward all white.
They look awesome! I have always wanted to try to make them as well. Maybe soon!. What did you use to color them? When I make macarons, I always use the powder dyes or the icing colors, they always work. You ought to try…
I didn’t use anything to color them, though the pumpkin powder added an orange tint to the pumpkin marshmallows.
Wow, I had no idea you could make flavored marshmallows. I’ll have to pass this along for the holidays so that my family and friends can give this a try. Thanks for the share.
Lovely and great picture!
Cardamom!
Those were by far my favorite.
I know I’d love them.
What a sweet gift… I love marshmallows. I am going to give those cinnamon ones a try for sure
Yum! I love marshmallows, I’m sure homemade are better. Now I just need to convince someone I know to make them for me :D
Mmm, I think cinnamon sounds sensational.
That looks sooo good! And I have a recipe for Grownup S’mores that will go so well with homemade marshmallows…
These look amazing. Great for the holidays!
Ooooo, pumpkin powder! I will have to explore this…
~Emilie
Oooooo I love marshmallows! Great stuff!This recipe looks so easy, I might try it some time down the road but for now I shall enjoy my store-bought ones :P I love how you can throw in any spice or flavor you want!
how fantastic! How do you think I could go about making mint ones? (Like peppermint in hot chocolate)
I think that would be delicious!
I just had mint marshmallows yesterday, so I can assure you they’d be amazing in hot chocolate! Thanks for this recipe.
You make it sound so simple! I will have to give it a try.
Beautiful! I’ve always wanted to try these. I may make some for Christmas!
I’m going to be making marshmallows and caramels and nougats in class next week! I was excited before, but now this post has me TWICE as pumped up! :D
Nice! Great photo too. Very impressive!
Sound so good. I don’t have a stand mixer yet, but so far have made it with pure determination and elbow grease. This one might be a bit more difficult, though.
Can imagine them on s’mores. Oh my.
:D
Oh yea, love the photo. All white. Really cool….artistic :)
I love marshmallows! And I recently bought a really nice candy thermometer so these have to go on a ‘must try’ list.
I LOVE marshmallows but never knew how to make them. So you know what I’m going to try after Thanksgiving right? This recipe.. Love this Flavored Marshmallow recipe
Oh I adore homemade marshmallows. Love the flavors you have chosen :)
How long can I put off trying to make my own marshmallows? I have a friend who made them a while back. I must try this holiday. Yours look outstanding! Love the cardamon……
I think my girls would love me to try this recipe! These marshies sound far more tasty than the supermarket ones.
I’ve never made marshmallows before, but I’ve always wanted to try. Great post!
I can’t even decide which I like better, the cardamom or the cinnamon!
Yum. Yum. Yum.
I am not good with gelatin, and have never tried making marshmallows at home.
these looks yummm..loved your clicks.
I have never attempted to make marshmallows before. I was always able to con a friend into making them for me. With your instructions, I might be able to make them myself. Hhhmmm! What flavor?!?
GORGEOUS photo darling!!! And the recipes…well, nough said! Brilliant! I want to make marshmallows now ;) x
You know, I’m not a fan of marshmallows but these look so lovely! :)
Wow, loving marshmallows!! :) Yummy!
I’ve always wanted to make my own marshmallows. This is my inspiration!
Wow…thats a detailed recipe! So nice and yum…. thx for visiting :-)
wow…irresistable n hearty..
first time here..love your space..
very interesting posts with lipsmacking presentation..
Am your happy follower now..;)
do stop by mine sometime..
Tasty Appetite
Thanks for the inspiration! Got some pretty good gift ideas now! :)
Yum!
OMG! I can taste them now! Ooh yummy!
Those sound delicious! I always walk past the gourmet marshmallows at Whole Foods and never get them but wish I did when I get home. I’ve told myself as soon as I see them there this season, I will be picking up some! I can’t wait to try them in my hot chocolate. All your different flavors of marshmallows are a great idea. I remember seeing the vanilla and chocolate at Whole Foods but not the variety like you had. I’m sure the people you gave them to at Thanksgiving loved their gift!
A Thanksgiving goody bag filled with home-made, flavored marshmallows? What a unique and versatile idea!
You have a lovely space here. I’m so glad, I stumbled upon your blog! Do drop by my space sometime. I’d love to hear your feedback.
Ohh, I love to make marshmallows! One of the easier candy making operation in my opinion, and everybody is always impressed :) You take great photos,btw.
These look fantastic! I’ve been thinking about making my own marshmallows for a while now… I think this is the perfect season to finally do it.
These look gorgeous – have always wanted to make them! Will have to figure out a substitute for corn syrup as we can´t get it here :(
How does their consistency compare to traditional store-bought marshmallows?
They’re very similar. Homemade marshmallows are softer, but aside from that they have the same level of chewiness. After a few days the outsides get slightly stiff, making them more like store bought marshmallows.
What a unique, funky concept! Great share!
Oh I’m so glad I saw this!
I tried handmade marshmallows for the very first time just a few months ago in Paris. It was in a little shop called Pain du Sucre where they had them displayed in giant glass jars. I tried pistachio, cassis and rose water and they were the most delicious little sweet treats.
Now I can try making them myself. Thank you!
Yum! I thought about doing rose marshmallows. I think I’ll make those next!
I’ve always wanted to make marshmallows! These are beautiful. Your blog is beautiful!
I have always been a bit scared of making my own marshmallows as I can imagine the mess I’ll create in the kitchen :) but I think I’m going to have to give it a try soon.
It’s a surprisingly clean process! Just have your pan ready to go when the marshmallow is done mixing.
I made marshmallows once! Yum!
Wow, you make your own marshmallows! They look and sound amazing!
Your photography is gorgeous, I love how simple & clean it is, no distractions. I’m actually going to be trying to make some marshmallows today from a different recipe I saw, hopefully mine turn out as beautifully as yours did! Wish me luck :)