Marshmallow from scratch

Making marshmallow at home is fun and easy. The results are much fluffier, softer - heck, it tastes much better and nothing like the bags you find at your megalomart.

The ingredients for this recipe are:

3/4 cup water
2 x 28 Gram packets of gelatin (2 x 1 Oz. )
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pinch salt
Powdered sugar (for dusting the sticky goo)

If you had enough corn and corn syrup in your life, you might appreciate that this recipe has none.

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Step 1: Gelatin-ing

2 packets of gelatin go into 2/4 cup water. Stir well. Move on.

ayornet says: Jun 24, 2012. 7:01 PM

here my marshmallows (:

ayornet says: Jun 24, 2012. 6:58 PM

I made this today! I put the gelatin with the water, and them made the syrup and when I was going to mix all together the gelatin was solid D: like really solid!!! so I heat it up and it melts :) But the mixture get viscous so fast that I started to worry ...
But they are yummy!! so happy this is my first time making marshmallows! so thanks for sharing! I attach the photo of them!

norml says: Mar 2, 2011. 2:19 PM

I use my vita-mix blender to make powdered sugar from granulated, works great but the fine powdery texture doesn't have have a long shelf life. I suppose you could blend it with another starch?
Does anyone know how to make this great recipe vegan with a gelatin substitute?

Tiktaky in reply to normlJan 18, 2012. 2:36 AM

Agar-Agar would be the easiest substitute, You can also try Kosher Gelatin, some companies use plant cellulose to make the gelatin. (but some companies also just use a different process on the animal bi-products, so read the fine print)

You can use corn flour or rice flour (non gelatinous) instead of powdered sugar, or use an icing mixture rather than pure powdered sugar.

nuha (author) in reply to normlMar 2, 2011. 6:09 PM

The powdered sugar is for the sake of nonstick. If you lay down a bunch of graham or your favorite cracker, and smear the goo over it you can have a half s'more and not need powdered sugar.

Regarding non-animal gelatin, I have not tried out any. My first guess would probably be agar-agar.

skaar in reply to nuhaApr 3, 2011. 1:00 PM

carageenan makes marshmallow that will keep shape upward of 200degrees.

creativegirlz says: Oct 26, 2011. 4:02 AM

Home-made marshmallow in a cup of hot cocoa, topped with chocolate chips!! Perfect for warm weather!

creativegirlz says: Oct 22, 2011. 3:29 AM

This recipe was a success! As we dont have any corn syrup available, so this one is a knock-out! i have some queries though. I dont have candy thermometer nor it is available here, so the checking of soft-ball stage was difficult, it didnt work out that way, so i went with my instincts and it worked. Do you have any other tip on how to be sure of the temperature/consistency of syrup?? and how to make this marshmallow absolute super white??
btw thanks for sharing this recipe!!! I am attaching a photo of my marshmallows!

nuha (author) in reply to creativegirlzOct 22, 2011. 5:19 PM

Hmm. Now I have to make another batch. These look awsome!
To be honest, I've always added color - never went for bright white. I suppose bright white food coloring (yes, it exists) may do the trick.

Regarding the soft ball, you need: (1) very cold water (2) boil to right temperature.
If your water is really cold, and a few drops of syrup simply don't form a soft ball, it indicates the syrup is not ready. When it is, you can kind of clump it together. It's not going to be a hard marble - it's between honey and pine sap in strength.
In any event, the finished product looks like is worked and probably didn't survive 24 hours.. so trust your instincts!

creativegirlz in reply to nuhaOct 25, 2011. 4:28 AM

to be honest, im really into making desserts than eating! :) they wudnt have survived if i hadnt given these to my cousins for fondant making.
about white coloring, wilton or other colors are not available in here, but it was white. Actually i made these to make fondant, but it didnt work (fondant was not so elastic and was way too sugry) coz of no cornsyrup or liquid glucose, thats what my cousin says.

mariana.rodrigues says: May 21, 2011. 6:24 AM

I just did this last night, and it worked great! I was craving some toasted marshmallows but can't get any good ones where I live, this was PERFECT! Next time I'll get better vanilla extract, I only had artificial extract, but it still tastes great!

red-king says: Nov 29, 2009. 9:27 AM

every kitchen SHOULD have a fire extinguisher, unfortunately not all of them do though.

curiousperson says: Nov 22, 2009. 2:11 PM

turned out delicious. lovely, fluffy texture. we added 2 tsp maple syrup for a slightly richer flavor. would have given 5 stars if a less refined substitute for granulated sugar was suggested

veinard says: Aug 28, 2009. 9:55 AM

This is great! Look forward to trying it. If you're going to be rigid on the corn ingredients... it's important to note is that virtually all powdered sugars are made with corn starch, between 2-30%. Occasionally you can find tapioca starch powdered sugar, but it's not easy. Pretty sure Trader Joe's carries it during the holiday season (I have a friend with a corn allergy, who loves to cook). I wonder if one could use an alternative dusting material such as cocoa powder, simple flour (might be a bit dry), or rice flour (maybe blend granulated sugar with rice flour... never tried it but could work) Again, great stuff!