Candy Recipe: Vanilla Bean Marshmallows For Dummies

Monday, February 18, 2008 - by MichelleG

Marshmallows are one of those candies which I absolutely adore eating. Loads of them jammed into a cup of hot chocolate, eaten straight out of the bag, squished up with a square of chocolate or in a s’more… I just adore marshmallows. I’ve tried making them previously, with mixed results. Either not the right consistency (not squidgy enough or too squidgy) or just impossible to handle, marshmallow making has not been one of my great culinary successes.

This time I set out to find the easiest recipe, with the least amount of ingredients and the minimum messing about. I finally found a recipe which has only three ingredients (four if you count water) and is basically idiot-proof. Mariko previously wrote about a marshmallow recipe that was too complex for me – this one is much easier.

I’ve since made these marshmallows several times. While I like the final product, it does taste a bit “gelatine-ish” – so if you’re very picky, perhaps try an egg-white based recipe (but be prepared to own things like a sugar thermometer). The vanilla bean in this recipe is a pretty expensive ingredient but well worth it – it adds to the flavor a lot, and makes you look cool for using a gourmet ingredient.

Vanilla Bean Marshmallows
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 Tbsp granulated gelatine
1 vanilla bean

Line a 1.5 inch deep baking dish with baking paper, or just spray with vegetable oil spray. Set aside.

Combine gelatine, sugar, 2/3 cup hot water, the seeds scraped from a vanilla bean and the bean itself in a medium pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves and the syrup goes clear (about 3-4 minutes.) Strain into the bowl of an electric mixer. (At this point you can wash and dry the bean and use it for other things.) Allow syrup to cool for 30 minutes, then whip on high speed with the whisk attachment of your mixer. Once the mixture is white and glossy and very thick (about 10 minutes), spread it into the baking pan. Allow to set at room temperature for one hour or until firm, then cut into squares using a kinfe sprayed with oil. To store, liberally dust the squares with either potato flour or confectioner’s sugar – alternatively you could roll these in coconut, but then that’s another ingredient!

Simple to do and gorgeous to eat, these little babies also make a great gift for other Candy Addicts in your life. You could play with this recipe, too – add some essences, colors, and so on. Alternatively whip up a batch of home made graham crackers, and start the process of making them into s’mores… they’re so good they’ll make you swoon!

marshmallow, DIY, recipe, s’more