Peppermint Swirl Marshmallows

Back in May, I finally shared with you all my life-changing homemade marshmallows. The marshmallows that blow you away with one squishy, sugary bite. The marshmallows that I make twice a year.

And guess what? Time for some more marshmallows!

There's a reason though why I always make them in December.

Three words.

Peppermint.
Swirl.
Marshmallows.

There's really nothing more festive or delicious for the Christmas season! And the best part is that they're exactly the same as the basic vanilla marshmallow recipe, just with some peppermint extract added and a little food coloring fun.


Peppermint Swirl Marshmallows
adapted from source

4 gelatin envelopes
3/4 cup water
1 Tbs vanilla extract
1.5 tsp peppermint extract

3 cups sugar
3/4 cup water
1 1/4 cup corn syrup (Karo)
1/2 tsp salt

Red food coloring

Coat a 9x13 and 8x8 pan with vegetable oil or non-stick spray.

Fit a stand mixer with the whisk attachment. In the mixer bowl combine the 3/4 cup of water with vanilla extract and peppermint extract. Sprinkle the gelatin over the liquid to bloom (soften).

Add the sugar, salt, corn syrup, and remaining 3/4 cup water to a heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil with the lid on and without stirring. When this mixture is at a boil, remove the lid and continue to cook without stirring until it reaches the soft-ball stage (234-240 F).

With the mixer at medium speed, pour all of the hot syrup slowly down the side of the bowl into the awaiting gelatin mixture. If you have a splatter shield for your mixer, I highly suggest you use it. This is going to whip for a long time and it will definitely splatter, and molten sugar is very hard to clean off counters and cabinets!

When all of the syrup is added, bring the mixer up to full speed. Whip until the mixture is very fluffy and stiff, about 8-10 minutes. Yes, you read that right!

Pour the marshmallow fluff into the oiled pans and pat the bottom to get all bubbles to surface. Drop a few drops of red food coloring on various areas of the surface (3-5 drops will do) and swirl around with a toothpick or chopstick. Then let sit to cool for at least 8 hours.



Sift confectioners sugar generously over the rested marshmallow slab. Turn the slab out onto a cutting board dusted with more confectioners sugar. Slice with a pizza cutter into desired shapes. If you're feeling creative, you can try a greased cookie cutter to cut the marshmallows into holiday shapes! Dip all cut edges in confectioner's sugar and shake off excess.

You can eat these plain, or dip them in chocolate and cool for a fun holiday treat! And of course, very best of all, you can plop a few into a nice steaming cup of hot cocoa and enjoy a peppermint hot chocolate!