Holiday Recipes - Cranberry and Champagne Marshmallows

Cranberry Marshmallows

This recipe uses dried cranberries from your local market, since they are sweeter in flavor than whole uncooked cranberries, even with additional sugar added.

Perhaps one reason the cranberry is referred to as The Ninja Fruit on TV is that is has such a strong and tart flavor. It is delicious, but too strong for the marshmallow, I think, without the concentrated sweetness resulting in the dried fruit.

This fruit flavored and pink-tinted marshmallow may be made with other dried fruits as well, including dried apricots, dried pineapple, dried peaches and others. As an alternative to fruit flavors, you could substitute peppermint flavoring, rum, or other flavorful ingredients you might consider. The second recipe below contains Champagne, for example and you may think of many other potential ingredients for a refreshing Holiday difference.

EQUIPMENT

• One 8" square baking pan.
• Candy Thermometer.
• Bowls and mixing spoons.
• Measuring cups and spoons.
• Clean and sanitized counter top and large cutting board

COMPONENTS

• 1 ½ Cups sugar
• ½ Cup water
• ½ Cup light corn syrup
• 4 Egg whites
• 2 Tablespoons powdered unflavored gelatin
• 4 Tablespoons cold water
• ½ teaspoon pure (real) vanilla extract
• 2 Tablespoons dried cranberries, powdered in your blender.
• 1 Box of cornstarch and 1 Bag of confectioner's sugar.

FUN WITH MARSHMALLOWS

• Combine the sugar, water, and corn syrup in a medium saucepan after you clip a candy thermometer into the pan on the rim of the pan.
• Bring this sweet mixture to a boil and cook it to the soft ball candy stage or 235 degrees F.
• At the soft ball stage, syrup dripped from a spoon into a glass of cold water will form a soft blob roughly like a ball. At the hard ball stage, it will definitely be a firm ball in the cold water and you have cooked the syrup too long. In this case, you will need to find something else to make in a hurry. Until you are confident in cooking with a candy thermometer to the syrup-and-water test method, you might want to have other recipes handy for syrups that are cooked longer. This will save waste, because you can't un-cook sugar syrup.
• In your bowl mixer fitted with your whisk attachment, whip the egg whites to the soft peak stage.
• In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the 2 tablespoons of water and let it dissolve (bloom).
• When the syrup reaches 235 degrees F, remove it from the heat, add the gelatin, and mix well. Pour the syrup mixture into the whipped egg whites. Add the vanilla and continue whipping until mixture is stiff. Then add in the powdered dried cranberries and it will become pink.
• Spread the mixture into the baking pan that has been greased and then dusted with cornstarch to prevent sticking. The marshmallow layer should be about 1-inch thick when spread. Let the pan of marshmallows cool, dust the top with confectioners sugar and turn the pan over onto a clean counter top dusted with confectioners sugar. Next, cut the square into 1-inch squares --Do this with a clean pizza cutter. Place the squares onto a serving plate or place in a large ziplock bag with some more confectioners sugar and shake to coat each square and prevent sticking.

Champagne Marshmallows

Yield: 50 1-inch squares

Ingredients

• 3 Envelopes gelatin
• ½ Cup chilled Champagne
• 2 Cups granulated sugar
• 1 Cup corn syrup
• ¼ Cup Champagne
• ¼ Cup water
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 Bag confectioners sugar

Directions

Set up a baking sheet sprayed with non-stick spray or vegetable oil.

Pour chilled Champagne into the bowl of a standing mixer and sprinkle the gelatin over it to soften and bloom for 10 minutes.

Combine sugar, corn syrup, Champagne, and water in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook until it reaches 240 degrees F and the soft ball stage. Remove from heat.

Drizzle the syrup down the inside of the mixer bowl slowly into the gelatin, Mix at high speed until fluffy and stiff -- 10-12 minutes. Add the salt and vanilla and fold into the mixture. Pour into the pan and smooth it with an oiled spatula. Then let it sit uncovered at room temperature overnight.

Remove marshmallows from the pan by turning it over onto a cutting board or counter dusted with confectioners sugar. Dust the other side with powdered sugar.

Using a clean pizza cutter, cut the rectangle into 1 inch equal squares and dip each into powdered sugar and shake off excess. Or put confectioners sugar into the bottom of a large ziplock bag and sake several marshmallows in it at once.

You can also dip these marshmallows into colored sugars, candy sprinkles, white ot toasted coconut, and other condiments.

Marshmallows can be stored for several weeks in an air-tight container or up to 4 months in the freezer.