Homemade Marshmallows Recipe (2024)

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Homemade marshmallows are so sweet, delicious, and fluffy. They are so much more flavorful, you’ll never look at store-bought marshmallows the same. Follow my tips on how to make marshmallows below.

Homemade Marshmallows Recipe (1)

Y’all homemade marshmallows! Need I say more? It is something that is so simple and fun you would never guess.

Making homemade marshmallows are a super fun and easy dessert your kids will love. They seem like a daunting task, but they are fun to make and tasty.It’s fun to see how big and fluffy they get too.

I’ve played around with this recipe a lot over the years since first posting it, and we love also making them without refined sugar.

I’ve dipped them in white chocolate and coconut, decorated them for Easter, made pumpkin spice, and even peppermint marshmallows. There are so many ways you can make these.

These are delicious to top hot cocoa with! You may have seen a picture from last week on Instagram and Facebook of my delicious homemade hot cocoa topped with these bad boys.

These are so much better than the store-bought marshmallows.

Yeah it was beyond awesome! I savored every single drop and I love how these marshmallows melt. Have I convinced you yet?

Tips For Making Homemade Marshmallows:

  • I don’t usually use a thermometer and it seems turn out just fine. Its a good option to have, but you don’t need a thermometer.
  • You can use all honey and not use refined sugar at all which is a plus.
  • You can flavor them if you want to! Different extracts work well. Maybe try vanilla your second round of making them.
  • When you cut your marshmallows, make sure to warm the knife under hot water and it will help cut the homemade marshmallows.

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Tools you may need:

Whisk

Electric Mixer

Measuring cups and spoons

Saucepan

9×13 baking dish

Parchment paper – you can either grease the baking dish or line it with parchment paper for easier removal.

Cutting board

Knife for cutting marshmallows

Homemade Marshmallows Recipe (2)

Can you make these without refined sugar?

Yes! Instead of using 1 cup sugar and 1/2 cup honey, just use 1 cup of honey (or maple syrup). You could also use half sugar and half honey or maple syrup. Therer are definitely different options you can choose from.

How long do homemade marshmallows last?

The homemade marshmallows will usually keep for 3 weeks are room temperature. You can also freeze them, see below.

Do marshmallows freeze well?

Since the sugars acts as a preservative, these homemade marshmallows keep for up to 3 months in the freezer.

Dividing the marshmallows into small clusters and wrapping with cling wrap will help them keep their freshness.

Homemade Marshmallow Ingredients:

Gelatin – I always go for grass-fed gelatin because grass-fed animals are a much healthier option.

Organic Sugar

Honey

Salt

Vanilla extract – you can easily make your own homemade vanilla extract.

Powdered sugar

Organic cornstarch

Homemade Marshmallows Recipe (3)

How To Make Homemade Marshmallows:

  1. Whisk 1/2 cup of cold water and gelatin into the bowl of the electric mixer. Allow the mixture to sit for 15 – 20 minutes.
  2. Combine the sugar, honey, 1/2 cup of water and salt in saucepan over low heat. Make sure to stir until the sugar completely dissolves.
  3. Increase the heat to high and cook the mixture without stirring until the temp reaches 240 degrees. Take off heat immediately. Many times I don’t actually take the temperature and it still works out fine.
  4. Turn your stand mixer on low and slowly pour the honey mixture in the soften gelatin. Once combined, increase the speed to high and beat for 15-20 minutes.
  5. Add the vanilla during the last two minutes of whisking.
  6. While its mixing, combing the powdered sugar and cornstarch. Set aside.
  7. Generously grease the baking dish (or line with parchment paper) and pour the marshmallow mixture into the pan and smooth out flat. Let it sit for 4 hours or overnight.
  8. Turn out onto a cutting board and cutting using a knife or cookie cutter.
  9. Break apart the cubes and roll in powdered sugar and cornstarch mix to keep it from sticking.

More delicious dessert ideas:

  • Easy Blackberry Cobbler Recipe
  • How To Make Sweetened Condensed Milk
  • Creamy Custard Pie: Easy Dessert Recipe
  • Vegan Fudge: Easy Decadent Dessert
  • Lace Cookies With Pumpkin Spice

Homemade Marshmallow Recipe

If you try this recipe and love it, I would love if you could come back, commented on the post, and give it 5 stars! Please and thank you.

Homemade Marshmallows Recipe (4)

Homemade Marshmallows

Homemade marshmallows made with simple ingredients that taste better than store-bought.

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: homemade marshmallows, how to make marshmallows

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 15

Calories: 92kcal

Author: Amy K

Ingredients

  • 3 Tbs gelatin unflavored preferably grass fed
  • 1 cup water cold and divided
  • 1 cups sugar
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/4 tspsalt
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • powdered sugar and GMO free corn starch for coating the marshmallows

Instructions

  • Whisk together 1/2 cup cold water and gelatin in the bowl of your electric mixer. Allow to sit for 15-20 minutes.

  • Combine sugar, honey, 1/2 cup water and salt in a saucepan over low heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves.

  • Increase the heat to high and cook without stirring until the temperature reaches about 240º. Immediately remove the pan from the heat.

  • Turn your stand mixer to low. Using the whisk attachment, slowly pour the hot honey mixture into the softened gelatin. Once combined, increase the speed to high and beat for about 15-20 minutes. Add in vanilla extract during the last 2 minutes of whisking.

  • Generously grease a 9x13 inch baking dish. Pour marshmallow mixture into pan and smooth out flat. Let sit for at least 4 hours to overnight. Turn out onto a cutting board and cut marshmallows using a knife. I found it easiest to cut the marshmallows if I ran the knife under hot water before cutting each row.

  • Break apart cubes and roll in powdered sugar and cornstarch mix to keep from sticking.

Notes

Lightly cover to keep fresh. Will stay fresh for 3 weeks. Place in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 92kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 4mg | Potassium: 6mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 23g | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 1mg | Iron: 1mg

Tried this recipe?Mention @ablossominglife or tag #ablossominglife!

Have you ever made homemade marshmallows before?

Originally published in 2015, this post was updated in December 2019.

Homemade Marshmallows Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What are the ingredients in marshmallows? ›

CORN SYRUP, SUGAR, DEXTROSE, MODIFIED CORNSTARCH, WATER, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF GELATIN, TETRASODIUM PYROPHOSPHATE (WHIPPING AID), NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, BLUE 1.

How long do homemade marshmallows last? ›

Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

Why are my homemade marshmallows not fluffy? ›

Even just a couple degrees too hot or too cool makes all the difference. If the sugar isn't cooked hot enough, they'll be mushy (and possibly contribute to the "soggy" factor mentioned above). If the syrup is cooked too hot, they'll set too firm and chewy and lack volume.

Are homemade marshmallows better than store-bought? ›

While making homemade marshmallows is admittedly more time consuming than just buying a bag from the store, they truly put the store-bought version to shame. Far better in both texture and flavor, homemade marshmallows are 100% worth the effort and time it takes to make them–I promise!

How do you make marshmallows hard fast? ›

Place the marshmallows in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes. The warm air will dry them out without melting them.

How much gelatin is in a marshmallow? ›

A traditional marshmallow might contain about 60% corn syrup, 30% sugar, and 1–2% gelatin.

What are traditional marshmallows made of? ›

A typical marshmallow contains sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin, plus some air. That's it. “A marshmallow is basically a foam that's stabilized by gelatin,” says Richard Hartel, a food engineer at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. In marshmallows, the foam is made up of air suspended in the liquid sugar mixture.

What does corn syrup do in marshmallows? ›

Corn syrup pulls double duty in a marshmallow. It doesn't crystallize like sugar does, plus it actually reduces the amount of dissolved sugar that crystallizes.

Are marshmallows good or bad for you? ›

Marshmallows are a sweet treat that many of us enjoy with hot chocolate, on top of sweet potatoes, or even shaped into peeps at Easter time. But these fluffy white puffs aren't very nutritious. Marshmallow ingredients usually include just sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin.

Is there a substitute for marshmallows? ›

Sweet And Sticky Alternatives To Marshmallows

Honey and maple syrup are some of the more common choices, as they're less processed, but other syrups will work fine. Just be cautious of using more strong flavored syrups like molasses or treacle, as that intense flavor may overpower all others.

How do you make marshmallows taste better? ›

Simply use this homemade marshmallow recipe as a base, then try one the ideas below for your next marshmallowing adventure!
  1. Dip Them in Chocolate All Fancy-Like. ...
  2. Dip Them in Chocolate Then Put Stuff On Top. ...
  3. Give them the Seattle Treatment. ...
  4. Substitute Fruit Juice for Water. ...
  5. Dust Them in Granulated Sugar.
Jun 4, 2021

Can you over mix marshmallows? ›

If you mix too long, the marshmallow becomes stubborn. Instead of being a flowing goo, it is already resilient enough to resist your attempts to spread it evenly across your pan. If you overwhip and the gelatin sets quicker than anticipated, your marshmallow will not spread as easily as you hoped.

Why are my homemade marshmallows so wet? ›

If the marshmallows are too soft, soggy, wet or lack volume after setting for 4 hours or so, your sugar syrup may not have gotten hot enough OR you did not whip them long enough. Whipping times will vary quite a bit depending on your mixer.

How long will marshmallows stay fresh in a Ziploc bag? ›

Seal the container or zipped bag opening. Then shake the container to coat the marshmallows and prevent them from sticking together. Remove marshmallows from the refrigerator when you're ready to use them. You can store the marshmallows in a dark corner of the refrigerator for 2-3 months.

How to package homemade marshmallows? ›

You can use either a large airtight container or ziplock bag, like I do. The cornstarch aids in removing the stickiness of the marshmallow by adsorbing moisture, so thoroughly coating them is key. And to ensure that they stay in the shapes you cut, it's a good idea to store them in layers.

What happens when you put a marshmallow in vinegar? ›

We found that the vinegar had caused the most "melting" even though it had not melted as much as we thought it would have. When we turned it with forceps, it came apart easily and was much smaller on the side that was in the vinegar. The co*ke and the cranberry juice "stained" the marshmallow and made them soggy.

Can you dehydrate homemade marshmallows? ›

Arrange the marshmallows on your dehydrator trays, leaving space between them. They do puff up a bit, so this keeps them from sticking together and allows air to circulate. Dehydrate at 150ºF (65ºC) for 6-10 hours until the marshmallows are dry.

What is added to marshmallows that makes them squishy and fluffy? ›

Air bubbles make marshmallows light and fluffy

That's because marshmallows are a foam. They contain a lot of tiny air bubbles which are surrounded and stabilized by sugar and proteins from egg whites and gelatin. Since air doesn't weigh much, adding it into a product decreases its density.

Does Jet Puffed marshmallow have gelatin? ›

Jet-Puffed marshmallows contain a relatively short list of ingredients, but it is crucial to examine each one closely. The primary components include corn syrup, sugar, modified cornstarch, gelatin, and artificial flavor.

Can Muslims eat marshmallows? ›

Foods like jellybeans, marshmallows, and other gelatin-based foods also typically contain pork byproducts and are not considered Halal. Even products like vanilla extract and toothpaste can contain alcohol! Muslims will generally not eat meat that has also come in contact with pork.

Do Trader Joe's marshmallows have gelatin? ›

In fact, they're made with exactly the same recipe, which means these miniature clouds of chewy, vanilla-y goodness are also gluten and gelatin free.

Do all marshmallows have gelatin? ›

Today, instead of mallow root sap, most marshmallows on the market contain gelatin, which comes from the skin, bones, and tendons of animals. But not all of them are made this way, and it is possible to buy vegan versions of the classic s'mores ingredient. Here are some of the tastiest vegan marshmallows on the market.

Do marshmallows have dairy or eggs? ›

While most marshmallows are dairy-free, there are other allergens to consider, like soy and eggs. Don't let the science of ingredients like gelatin and modified food starch scare you away from enjoying these fluffy, sugary treats.

What substance in a marshmallow makes it fluffy? ›

But first, it's interesting to note that most marshmallow recipes contain corn syrup and/or raw egg whites which makes them soft and fluffy.

References

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