Another Agave Marshmallow

If you’ve been reading my stuff for awhile you’ve already seen me write about my homemade agave marshmallows.  But it’s been so long and I thought it needed an upgrade.  And with Easter around the corner, I thought it the perfect time to do so.  (Plus, most of my older stuff needs upgrading anyway, to be honest.)I used to make these with my son when he was younger… and when I was pregnant with my daughter I went through a time when some kind folks were trying to market them.  That never panned out, for many a reason, but needless to say, I was making these marshmallows every day for a very long time.

So I set out to change that.

(usually makes 16 large marshmallows…she just made super jumbo ones for the picture)

 

First you need a standing mixer.  If you don’t have a standing mixer, you can use a giant bowl and an electric handheld mixer.  If you don’t have an electric mixer, you can use a whisk but may the force be with you.Place your bowl in the sink and fill it up with hot water.  Place your mixer’s whisk attachment (or electric beater attachments) in the hot water as well.  Let this sit and warm up while you start to prepare your ingredients.  (Note- you’re doing this so when you add your gelatin mixture, it doesn’t seize up in a cold bowl.)

In a microwave-safe cup or bowl (I always use my 1 cup glass measuring cup), dissolve 2 packages of plain gelatin (I use Knox original/unflavored gelatin) into 6 TB of cold water.  Stir with a fork until fully dissolved…

(she did all of this herself…my favorite is her checking the 1 cup line on the measuring cup)

…Microwave the gelatin/water on high for 15 seconds, stir and again for another 15, stir and again for another 15.  It should now be liquified and hot.

Dry off your now hot mixing bowl and beater and place the gelatin mixture in, along with 1 cup of agave nectar (I prefer the light instead of the amber because it produces a whiter marshmallow, but we only had the amber on hand), 1/4 tsp kosher salt, and a good splash of vanilla extract.

Turn your beater on medium at first to get it started, then begin to increase the speed as more air becomes incorporated and the mixture becomes lighter and fluffier.

See stages below…

This takes 8-10 minutes, sometimes 15, depending on the weather and your mixer.  But I highly encourage standing by and watching the magic take place…

 

It’s done when it’s completely white and fluffy and holds its shape when it drops back into the bowl from the whisk…

And do not forget to give that whisk to your little chef.  She earned every bit of that gooey goodness.
(And be sure to work quickly because it will soon harden and become un-lickable.)

 

Using a rubber spatula, spread the mixture into a greased and well floured 9×9 inch pan.  Wet the spatula to make spreading easier and spread evenly.Let it sit at room temperature for about 3 hours until it’s firm.  The longer you wait, the easier it will be to remove, but 3 hours is fine.

 

When you’re ready to remove, run a knife around the edges of the pan…

…Dust your counter with flour and invert the pan.

Slap the back of the pan to release it onto the counter.

Using a pizza cutter dusted in flour, cut into desired sizes (you can see here the chef chose the extra large size…and mama later cut them in half).

Toss your cut marshmallows in some more flour to prevent sticking, although they will remain a bit tacky.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for as long as they last in your home.

*These are great to add to lunchboxes, they’re fun to make crispy rice treats with, they’re fun to even cut into different shapes for different holidays.  We’ve even dyed the whole mixture before and then cut into bunny shapes for homemade ‘peeps’.

*I do not recommend using these in hot chocolate.  THEY WILL SIMPLY PUDDLE.  These are made from an already liquified sweetener, unlike traditional marshmallows that boil white sugar and corn syrup until they ‘candy’, so they just melt back into liquid.  And they’re just not as fun in that sense.

But they are entirely fun in every other sense…