I have had enough Snow. For something white and fluffy, make mine marshmallows.

What is better than curling up in front of a fireplace with a mug of hot chocolate and marshmallows or in the summertime, roasting marshmallows over an open fire, perfect for making tasty s'mores? Actually, my fireplace is fake, a DVD on the TV screen, received as a "fun" gift at Christmas and any marshmallows cooked over an open flame end up as blackened fiery stickyness that gets flicked off the marshmallow stick and hurled into the air, like a comet through the night sky, much less actually being eaten. But now I have tasted what a real marshmallow should taste like, and I won't be wasting any of these squares of gooey goodness as charred offerings.

So today I am joining Cole at All the Small Stuff for Tuesdays at the Table with my recipe of Homemade Marshmallows. This week's theme recipe is Cookies, and while a marshmallow technically is not a cookie, in the pantheon of snacks, theses are more similar to a cookie than cake, pies or puddings. So shall we begin?


Mara Moorhead's Homemade Marshmallows

3 packages unflavored gelatin 1/4 oz each
1 cup cool water
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla (more to taste and I do add more)
confectioners sugar
Candy Thermometer

Combine gelatin and 1/2 cup water in bowl of electric mixer with whisk attachment.

Combine sugar, corn syrup, salt and the other 1/2 cup water in small, deep saucepan. Cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves (about 5 mins) stirring constantly. Raise heat to high and continue cooking without stirring until temperature reaches 240 degrees on candy thermometer (soft boil).

With mixer on low speed, slowly add syrup mixture. Increase speed to high and whip mixture until thick and cooled to room temperature (about 8-10 min).

Add vanilla towards end of mixing. You can also add peppermint extract or any other flavoring that you like.

Spread in a greased pan and sprinkle top with powdered sugar. Spray your hands or spatula with cooking spray ...... these are very sticky! Let sit overnight.

I make my marshmallows in a glass 9x9 pan, to give height to my marshmallows. You could use a larger pan for a smaller size. To make s'mores, I place a square of chocolate, topped with a marshmallow on top of a graham cracker and place under a low broil for just a minute, just enough to brown and melt. Then top with another graham cracker and enjoy.

Of course they have also been delicious in my hot chocolate, but I'm looking forward now to warmer weather and outdoor fires, armed with my tasty marshmallows and trusty marshmallow sticks, I promise no more burnt orbs of goo being tossed into the air. (Oh okay, maybe just the occassional one, they are fun to fling).

Enjoy.

Have a good day.
Sherrie