homemade peppermint marshmallows

After finding this tempting recipe by Miss Martha, I thought it would make a great pairing to my hot chocolate mix I was planning on giving my neighbors for the holidays.  The intentions were there… but my time ran out so the hot cocoa went out solo.  However Tessa & I did manage to make one batch right before Christmas.

Normally I’m all about simple recipes that look & taste fabulous… this one is not simple but the latter does apply.  Plus it’s pretty cool to tell everyone that you know how to make your own marshmallows ;-)

Here’s what you’ll need:

Coat an 8-inch square pan with cooking spray; line bottom with parchment paper. Coat the parchment with cooking spray, and set pan aside. Put sugar, corn syrup, and 3/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until sugar is dissolved. Stop stirring; let mixture come to a boil. Raise heat to medium-high; cook until mixture registers 260 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Meanwhile, sprinkle gelatin over 3/4 cup water in a heatproof bowl; let stand 5 minutes to soften. Set the bowl with the gelatin mixture over a pan of simmering water; whisk constantly until gelatin is dissolved. Remove from heat, and stir in extract; set aside.

Beat egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until stiff (but not dry) peaks form.

Whisk gelatin mixture into sugar mixture; with mixer running, gradually add to egg whites. Mix on high speed until very thick, 10 to 12 minutes.

Pour mixture into lined pan. Working quickly, drop dots of red food coloring across surface of marshmallow. Using a toothpick, swirl food coloring into marshmallow to create a marbleized effect. Let marshmallow stand, uncovered, at room temperature until firm, at least 3 hours or overnight.

This batch made 30 marshmallows.  The dyed marbling was a fun touch, but I don’t know if I’d add it again as some of it bled through the powdered sugar coating & looked a little horror-movie-like as opposed to candy-cane-lane.

The subtle minty taste & marvelous melting qualities of these gems give them a 4 star rating!

Tessa & I made just enough of these to give to a few family members & friends on Christmas Eve.  Since most of the gift giving is geared towards the kids in our families, I like to surprise the adults with a little something special.