Prep Time : 30 + 15 Minutes | Cook Time : 0 Minutes | Total Time : 4 hours | Difficulty : Organised
Hello my lovelies! Y’all know I’m obsessed with marshmallows. They’re pretty close to magic really. Pillowy goodness whipped out of a few ingredients. These striking and delicious mallows have no artificial colours or flavours and that’s pretty magical too. In fact they taste for all the world like ice cream. I have made blackcurrant and raspberry today. Strong flavours that balance beautifully with the soft sweetness of marshmallow. I was talking to a friend once about how the flavour of the purple lolly illustrates the difference between NZ and American tastes. In the US purple lollies are grape flavoured which is very sweet and here the purple lollies are blackcurrant – a much sharper flavour. These kinds of philosophical discussions are important for something I’m sure…
You can use any strong fruit puree to flavour your mallows how you like. Dark or red berries work best because the flavour is concentrated – things like apple juice won’t give you a lot of oomph. Squeeze your pulp from fresh or frozen berries as store bought juices can be diluted or have added sugar and there is sugar enough in this recipe! You can also use dark plums or sour cherries for a stone fruit twist – just experiment and see what you like. These mallows are strongly flavoured and if you prefer a softer taste use 2 tablespoons fruit puree and 2 tablespoons water instead of 1/4 cup of puree.
Line your pan with foil. Grease the foil with a little vegetable or coconut oil.
Put your egg white into a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.
Puree your berries and strain the mixture through a fine sieve. Measure out a quarter cup of the strained puree and pop it into a small microwave safe bowl and zap it till it’s just bubbling – 30 to 40 seconds or so.
Sprinkle the gelatine on top a little at a time, stirring until it’s dissolved. Be patient and do it a bit at a time so it doesn’t give you big lumps. It won’t be perfectly smooth at the end but don’t worry.
In a small saucepan combine the second measure of water (1/2 cup) with the sugar and lemon juice.
Over a medium heat, dissolve the sugar and then bring the syrup to a simmer.
Turn the heat up to medium high and cook the syrup until it reaches 125C (260F). IF it goes a few degrees over your marshmallows will be a little firmer but don’t let it go past about 128C.
Now for the tricky timing part. Your egg whites need to be at soft peaks but if we beat them too early and let them sit they will slowly collapse again. When the syrup is in the high hundred and teens start whipping the egg white. The hotter the syrup gets the faster the temperature rises so your egg whites won’t sit for long.
If you are using a stand mixer and find it is having trouble starting to whip one egg white use a whisk to get it whipped up a little bit so there is enough volume for the mixer to catch.
When the syrup is ready pour a little bit of the gelatine mixture into the hot syrup and whisk to combine. It will foam up a lot. Slowly add the rest whisking all the time until it’s all combined.
Start your mixer up again on medium. While the whites are whipping slowly add the syrup in a thin stream. If you dump it in the egg whites will cook into lumpy scramble.
When all the syrup is in turn the mixer up to high and whip for 5 to 7 minutes until the marshmallow is pillowy and has cooled significantly.
Use a silicone spatula to spread the marshmallow out into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
Set the pan aside to cool and set for about two hours. Gently press the top of the marshmallow to see if it’s ready to cut. It will be springy and won’t stick to your finger too much when it’s ready.
Sift the cornstarch and icing sugar together into a small bowl. This stuff is your best friend. Whenever something is sticky just dust away.
Put down a piece of baking paper. Dust the paper with a little of the cornstarch mixture.
Dust the top of the marshmallow with the cornstarch mixture. Lift the block out by the foil and invert it onto the baking paper.
Carefully peel back the foil.
Lightly oil a large sharp knife and cut the marshmallows into squares. I make them about one and a half inches and get six by six from a pan this size.
After every few cuts wipe down the knife with a warm damp cloth and oil it again – it will make cutting much easier and will help prevent the surface of the mallows from tearing.
Dust all the cut sides lightly with the cornstarch mixture.
Inhale at will.
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Real Fruit Marshmallows
Prep Time : 30 + 15 mins | Cook Time : 0 mins | Total Time : 4 hours | Difficulty : Organised
Makes : approx. 36 mallows
Glorious pillowy marshmallows made with real fruit juices .
Ingredients:
- For handling:
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 cup icing sugar
For the mallows:
- 1 large egg white
- 1/4 cup (60 mls) strong berry fruit puree, heated (you will need about a cup of berries for this)
- 1 tablespoon (12 grams) powdered gelatine
- 1 + 1/4 cups (250 grams) white sugar
- 1/2 cup (120 mls) hot water
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
– If using metric cups, reduce volume measures by 1 tablespoon for every cup of dry or liquid ingredients –
Equipment:
- Standing mixer (a hand held will get you there but will take longer)
- 8 inch square pan lined with foil
- Small saucepan
- Sharp knife
Directions:
Line your pan with foil. Grease the foil with a little vegetable or coconut oil.
Put your egg white into a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.
Puree your berries and strain the mixture through a fine sieve. Measure out a quarter cup of the strained puree and pop it into a small microwave safe bowl and zap it till it’s just bubbling – 30 to 40 seconds or so.
Sprinkle the gelatine on top a little at a time, stirring until it’s dissolved. Be patient and do it a bit at a time so it doesn’t give you big lumps. It won’t be perfectly smooth at the end but don’t worry.
In a small saucepan combine the second measure of water (1/2 cup) with the sugar and lemon juice.
Over a medium heat, dissolve the sugar and then bring the syrup to a simmer.
Turn the heat up to medium high and cook the syrup until it reaches 125C (260F). IF it goes a few degrees over your marshmallows will be a little firmer but don’t let it go past about 128C.
Now for the tricky timing part. Your egg whites need to be at soft peaks but if we beat them too early and let them sit they will slowly collapse again. When the syrup is in the high hundred and teens start whipping the egg white. The hotter the syrup gets the faster the temperature rises so your egg whites won’t sit for long.
If you are using a stand mixer and find it is having trouble starting to whip one egg white use a whisk to get it whipped up a little bit so there is enough volume for the mixer to catch.
When the syrup is ready pour a little bit of the gelatine mixture into the hot syrup and whisk to combine. It will foam up a lot. Slowly add the rest whisking all the time until it’s all combined.
Start your mixer up again on medium. While the whites are whipping slowly add the syrup in a thin stream. If you dump it in the egg whites will cook into lumpy scramble.
When all the syrup is in turn the mixer up to high and whip for 5 to 7 minutes until the marshmallow is pillowy and has cooled significantly.
Use a silicone spatula to spread the marshmallow out into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
Set the pan aside to cool and set for about two hours. Gently press the top of the marshmallow to see if it’s ready to cut. It will be springy and won’t stick to your finger too much when it’s ready.
Sift the cornstarch and icing sugar together into a small bowl. This stuff is your best friend. Whenever something is sticky just dust away.
Put down a piece of baking paper. Dust the paper with a little of the cornstarch mixture.
Dust the top of the marshmallow with the cornstarch mixture. Lift the block out by the foil and invert it onto the baking paper.
Carefully peel back the foil.
Lightly oil a large sharp knife and cut the marshmallows into squares. I make them about one and a half inches and get six by six from a pan this size.
After every few cuts wipe down the knife with a warm damp cloth and oil it again – it will make cutting much easier and will help prevent the surface of the mallows from tearing.
Dust all the cut sides lightly with the cornstarch mixture.
Cook’s Notes:
- Get everything out before you start so you can grab what you need quickly – things happen fast in the middle of things and you don’t want to be caught short
- For a less dominant flavour, use half fruit puree half water to make up the 1/4 cup needed in the gelatine step
– Keep marshmallows in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks. They will form a crust on the outside as they dry out a little –
Adapted from The River Cottage Family Cookbook by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall.
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This looks so good! What a fun treat to make for Valentines Day!
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
Hi Vanessa – I would say they’re at their best for 3-4 days – because of the fruit they don’t last as long as regular home made marshmallows which will kind of dry out forever and still be good!