I mean, yum! Three of my favourite things all bundled up into a little square of squishy delight that makes you feel like a kid and a grown-up at the same time. I've made marshmallows once before but have been intrigued by the hip and happening Marshmallowists and their very grown-up flavours, so this time I wanted to make us a little treat for a special birthday weekend. The whole marshmallow process is very therapeutic, from the sweet aroma of raspberries wafting around the kitchen to watching the marshmallow mix billow up into complete fluffiness.
There are all sorts of interesting flavours to experiment with: Blackcurrant & Mint, Coconut, Passionfruit & Ginger, Blueberry & Gin - and these are just a few of the Marshmallowist flavours but you could come up with your own dream blend. Then it's so easy to cut them into fun shapes. These marshmallows have a sort of soufflé texture and are very light. I thought the Raspberry & Champagne flavour might put the boys off (fingers crossed) but they absolutely loved them too!
The process is very straightforward...the hardest part is waiting so long to eat them! And they would make a wonderful home-made Valentine's present for a loved one :)
Raspberry & Champagne Marshmallows (recipe from The Marshmallowists)
Ingredients
- 15 LEAVES OF DR OETKER GELATINE
- 300G RASPBERRIES
- VEGETABLE OIL
- 300G WHITE GRANULATED SUGAR
- 240G LIQUID GLUCOSE SYRUP
- 2TBSP CHAMPAGNE (I USED PROSECCO IN PLACE OF THIS)
- 75G CORNFLOUR
- 75G ICING SUGAR
Method
- Measure 200ML cold water into a shallow, microwaveable bowl and then add the gelatine leaves one by one ensuring that each leaf is fully covered with water. Leave them to soak for 10 minutes. Next make the raspberry purée by blitzing the raspberries in the food processor and then sieving them to remove the pips - you will need 175G raspberry purée. Line a square tin (I used a square 24CM x 24CM tin but a square or rectangular one of a similar size will work) with clingfilm trying to get it as smooth as possible and then lightly grease it with a little vegetable oil.
- Heat the soaked gelatine and water in the microwave for 1 minute until it's fully dissolved.
- Put the sugar, 120G of the glucose syrup and 100G raspberry purée into a medium pan and bring to the boil. Keep heating until it reaches 112°C on a sugar thermometer (this should take around 5 mins) and then pour it into a mixer. Add the remaining 80G raspberry purée and the remaining glucose and mix on low speed.
- Whisking all the time, add the melted gelatine and its liquid and then increase the speed to medium. You need to wait for it to thicken so that it doesn't splash out of the mixer as it's scalding hot. Then increase the mixer to maximum for a further 12 minutes until you can lift the whisk out and the mixture holds its shape. It should have quadrupled in size.
- Reduce the mixer to low and add the Champagne (or Prosecco) and continue mixing for a further minute. Then tip the marshmallow mixture into the prepared tin, level it and leave it to set at room temperature for 4-6 hours (or overnight).
- Sift the cornflour and icing sugar into a bowl. Cut the set marshmallows with a hot, wet knife and dust with the icing sugar mixture. If you prefer to cut them into shapes, like the hearts above, dip your cutters into hot water and then cut your shapes out of the marshmallow.
