Homemade Marshmallows

As those of you that have read any of my food blog posts know we are on a special diet called Feingold because of my eldest child's sensitivity to food dyes and other chemicals in foods. So I home make a lot of our food and we eat a lot of organic foods because of them not having some of those chemicals. Well it is camping and smores time in our neck of the woods and I did not want our son to be left out of the fun. Among other things store bought marshmallows have blue food dye in them. Really!!!! Is that really necessary??!! Apparently so. Last summer I tried a couple of different recipes that were okay but I was not thrilled with and just melted when trying to roast them. Also a lot of recipes call for corn syrup which is not restricted on the Feingold diet but we still try not to use it. After asking around a friend of mine suggested a recipe she found and used from this blog. http://looksgoodinpolkadots.wordpress.com/2008/01/02/homemade-marshmallows-yum/    All I can say is AWESOME recipe!! I made it for our last camping trip and they tasted great and could be roasted over the campfire. Some of the other kids at the campsite were asking for the homemade ones over the store bought ones. Success!! I have copied and pasted the recipe below, the only change I made is adding that you can use Lyle's Golden Syrup instead of the Agave Nectar. I happened to have the Lyle's Golden Syrup on hand so I tried it and it worked great.

Step 1- make corn syrup replacement (or skip this step and use Agave Nectar or Lyle's Golden Syrup).
2 c. organic cane sugar
3/4 c. filtered water
1/4 tsp. cream of tarter
Dash of kosher salt

• Combine ingredients in heavy saucepan, bring to a low boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat, cover and allow to simmer for about 3 minutes, scrape down sides of pan to incorporate all sugar.
• Remove lid and allow to simmer until reaches soft ball stage (about 235 degrees F).
• Cool, store in airtight container at room temp.
• Makes 2 C.

Now for the marshmallows-
3 T. of unflavored Gelatin (or sub Agar Agar Powder, most recommendations I’m finding state equal amounts, though I’ve found one that says 1 tsp per cup of liquid).
1 c. chilled filtered water
1.5 c. organic cane sugar
1 c. corn syrup replacement (cane sugar recipe above or agave nectar or Lyle's golden syrup)
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. real vanilla extract
1/4 c. powder sugar (or process cane sugar until fine and powdery, add a bit of starch to achieve same consistency)
1/4 c. corn starch/tapioca flour/potato starch/arrowroot powder

• Chill your metal mixing bowl and whisk attachment(s).
• Place chilled bowl on base of stand mixer and attach whisk.
• Start by putting gelatin (or replacement) into bowl.
• Add 1/2 c. chilled water
• In medium saucepan combine remaining water, cane sugar, corn syrup replacement and salt. Cover and cook for about 3 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook until mixture reaches about 235-240 degrees F (soft ball stage). Once temperature is reached remove from heat.
• Now, turn your stand mixer on low. Slowly add hot mixture to gelatin. When all syrup is added, put mixer on high. Continue to whip until mixture becomes thick and temp cools. Add the vanilla and whip for about a minute longer.
• This mixture will whip for 10-15 minutes. So, prepare your pans while it is mixing.
• Spray a 13 x 9 inch rectangular pan with non-stick cooking spray (I just oiled it using FG approved oil). Combine powder sugar and corn (tapioca or potatoe if corn is out) starch in a small bowl. Sprinkle mixture in pan (saving some for sprinkling on top of marshmallows), cover pan and shake to fully coat.
• Now you can add the mixture to the pan. It is difficult to spread. Use a rubber spatula coated with non stick spray (or oil). Once spread out in the pan, sprinkle the top with more of the sugar/cornstarch mixture, cover w/ foil and allow to set up over night. Cut into 1 inch pieces, roll in powdered sugar / corn starch mixture  and store in zip top bag at room temp.                     Again so glad that I found this recipe on this blog!!  http://looksgoodinpolkadots.wordpress.com/2008/01/02/homemade-marshmallows-yum/