Marshmallows: The Basic Recipe

I've been playing around tons with this basic marshmallow recipe, adding coloring, cutting and piping it into different shapes...basically having loads of fun when I should probably be cleaning my house or shoveling snow.

I'm finding it's incredibly versatile, hence these treats for Mateo's 2nd birthday. The 'fluff' was softer than usual after the long beating, so I quickly scooped it into a piping bag and pipped out dozens of 'M's and '2's instead of patting the marshmallow mix into a pan.
A dusting of powdered sugar finishes them off.


Aren't they cute? Shh, he hasn't seen them yet.
I hope there are some left for his birthday.

I wanted to share this recipe with you without delay, so you can start playing around and not miss out on any of the fun! It's one of the simplest I've seen. Enjoy!

(more photos and tips to come, but this recipe is all you need to get started)

Basic Vanilla Marshmallows
(from the French Laundry Cookbook by Thomas Keller)

3 envelopes of Knox gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cups corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Line a 9x13 pan with plastic wrap and lightly grease all over with vegetable oil.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water. Soak for 10 minutes.

Combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil hard for 1 minute.

Pour boiling syrup into gelatin and mix at high speed. Add the salt and beat for 12 minutes. Add vanilla and incorporate into mixture.

Scrape into a 9 x 15-inch pan and spread as evenly as you can.

Cover marshmallow mixture with another piece of oiled plastic wrap and press mixture into the pan. 

Let mixture sit for a few hours or overnight.

Remove from pan, dredge the marshmallow slab with confectioners' sugar and cut into 12-20 equal pieces with scissors or a chef's knife.

Dredge each piece of marshmallow in confectioners' sugar. Enjoy!