Fluffy Homemade "Mallows"

Merry Christmas Eve!!

I can't believe it has taken me so long to make these. It's always the recipes that you make a mental note more than a million times to make, that turn out so darn good! Finally, after probably over a year, I got around to making homemade marshmallows. Whatever possessed me to, I will never know, but the other morning I was going through my usual routine of gandering at recipes and found one for cane syrup.

Okay, now that I'm recollecting, the reason that I have been so hesitant to make marshmallows is that EVERY recipe I come across for them involves corn syrup. As I pass the bottles of corn syrup at the grocery store the thought crosses my mind to get it, but my body won't follow through and actually pick the stink'n bottle up. Something about corn syrup (high fructose or not) repulses me.

Well, back the story, I found a recipe for cane syrup which can be used as a replacement of corn syrup! A light bulb went on and I quickly found a recipe for marshmallows and got to work, (at 5am mind you) by 9am I had marshmallows! The homemade cane syrup wasn't the easiest thing to make, especially since my (you would think) handy dandy Pampered Chef candy thermometer was failing on me...I still think it was by the grace of God that the second batch actually turned out enough to make the marshmallows. And when the marshmallows turned out, I was SUPER excited!! They are just like what I said in the title "fluffy" and "mallowy". I am most certain that a small rodent would mistake it for a nice comfy pillow if he were to come across them! haha

If your adventurous...here is the recipe for the mallows...and if your REAL adventurous follow this link for the cane syrup recipe! Merry Christmas!!

Fluffy Homemade Mallows

Ingredients:

About 1 cup confectioners’ sugar

3 1/2 envelopes (2 tablespoons plus 2 1/2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin
1 cup cold water, divided
2 cups granulated sugar (cane sugar worked just fine)
1/2 cup light corn syrup <-- As I said above, I used cane syrup!
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites or reconstituted powdered egg whites
1 tablespoon vanilla (alternately: 1/2 of a scraped vanilla bean, 2 teaspoons almond or mint extract or maybe
even some food coloring for tinting)

Directions:
1. Oil bottom and sides of a 13- by 9- by 2-inch rectangular metal baking pan and dust bottom and sides with some confectioners’ sugar.
2. In bowl of a standing electric mixer or in a large bowl sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold cold water, and let stand to soften.
3. In a 3-quart heavy saucepan cook granulated sugar, corn syrup, second 1/2 cup of cold water, and salt over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to moderate and boil mixture, without stirring, until a candy or digital thermometer registers 240°F, about 12 minutes. Remove pan from heat and pour sugar mixture over gelatin mixture, stirring until gelatin is dissolved.
4.With standing or a hand-held electric mixer beat mixture on high speed until white, thick, and nearly tripled in volume, about six minutes if using standing mixer or about 10 minutes if using hand-held mixer.
5. In separate medium bowl with cleaned beaters beat egg whites (or reconstituted powdered whites) until they just hold stiff peaks. Beat whites and vanilla (or your choice of flavoring) into sugar mixture until just combined. Pour mixture into baking pan and don’t fret if you don’t get it all out (learning from my mess of a first round). Sift 1/4 cup confectioners sugar evenly over top. Chill marshmallow, uncovered, until firm, at least three hours, and up to one day.
6. Run a thin knife around edges of pan and invert pan onto a large cutting board. Lifting up one corner of inverted pan, with fingers loosen marshmallow and ease onto cutting board. With a large knife trim edges of marshmallow and cut marshmallow into roughly one-inch cubes. (An oiled pizza cutter works well here too.) 7. Sift remaining confectioners’ sugar back into your now-empty baking pan, and roll the marshmallows through it, on all six sides, before shaking off the excess and packing them away.

recipe by: smitten kitchen, originally from Gourmet