THE Marshmallow they are small sugar cylinders, usually white and soft to the touch; consumed mainly in the United States. These candies can be prepared in a variety of ways. The best known are certainly cooking on the fire to be eaten alone, as in the Anglo-Saxon tradition, or inserted between two biscuits together with a piece of chocolate; however, they are also suitable as an ingredient in more elaborate desserts as a substitute for Butter cream in layer cakes and as a frosting of cupcakes. Try to enjoy them immersed in a cup full of cocoa with an exquisite one Chocolate fondue to inebriate you with sweetness.

Preparation

1

Take a thick-bottomed saucepan and fill it with 40 g of water along with the granulated sugar. Bring to a boil and cook the ingredients over low heat for about 5 minutes. Once the sugar has completely dissolved, transfer the syrup obtained into a glass or ceramic bowl.

2

Meanwhile, soak the gelatin sheets in a bowl filled with water for at least 10 minutes. Then take it out, squeeze it well and transfer it to the bowl with the syrup. Mix well and then add the remaining 40 g of water.

3

At this point, whip the sugar and gelatin mixture with an electric mixer. Continue until it becomes white, shiny and firm: it will be ready when, lifting some with the spatula, it does not slip off (it will take approximately 15 minutes).

4

Line a baking tray with parchment paper and pour half of the frothy mixture into it; now with the help of a spatula level the surface well (in this way you will get the classic white Marshmallows).

5

Add 2/3 drops of food coloring to the remaining mixture (one teaspoon if using the powder coloring) and mix quickly. Line a second pan and fill it with the colored foam. At this point the trays must rest from 6 to 10 hours, uncovered and at room temperature.

6

After the time has elapsed, place the parchment paper on a cutting board. In a small bowl, mix the icing sugar together with the corn starch (or potato starch); dip the blade of a knife in this flour and start cutting into strips and then into cubes.

7

The mixture must be completely divided into many small cubes which will then be passed into the bowl of powdered sugar and corn starch.

8

Retrieve the cookie cutters and create different shapes for your Marshmallows before serving them.

Accessories

• A bowl
• Thick-bottomed saucepan
• A glass or ceramic bowl
• Electric hand mixer
• Spatula
• Two baking trays
• Baking paper
• Chopping board
• A saucer
• Knife
• Cookie molds

Tips and tricks

• Marshmallows can be colored with gel food colorspreferably light, which in this preparation are better than liquid or powdered ones.
• The timing of drying Marshmallows varies according to the home temperature and the humidity present in the air; the sweets will be ready when, by gently touching the surface of the mixture with the finger tip, the finger is clean and dry.
• If you would like to be inspired by American films, blaze them for a few moments to give them that typical brown color and a smoky aroma: the inside melts while the caramelized outside becomes more crunchy.
• You can also flavor your Marshmallows with the natural aroma of the flavor you prefer: from classic vanilla, an essential aroma of lavender, rose or orange blossom or with a more particular extract of pure raspberry or cherry.

storage

Marshmallows can be stored in a cool place and in glass containers, for about 3/4 days.

History

It seems that these sweets already existed among the Egyptians in 2000 BC They were born from the union of cereals, mallow sap and honey; the mixture was then cooked and offered to the pharaoh, the gods and the nobles. They were later very much in vogue in France in the 1800s and since then methods have been sought to produce them with ease. In 1950 in the United States a technique was found so simple that it turned Marshmallows into one of the most consumed sweets by Americans.

Their name in Italian is translated with ‘sweet cotton‘; they are the evolved form of a sweet originally obtained from the Althaea Officinalis plant: the term derives from the fact that these candies are produced through the juice of the ‘mallow’ plant that grows in the ‘marsh’ swamps. By combining the two terms in the English language we obtain ‘Marshmallow’.