You may be wondering where I've been these last few weeks. Well the truth is, I've just been busy with life. With getting Christmas shopping done, enjoying a wonderful Thanksgiving, with our annual trip to the sand dunes, and everyday life of a stay at home mom of 2, it's just busy. I have been thinking about our neighbor gifts and what I want to make for them this year. I haven't done the same thing for our neighbors every year like some people. So I wanted to try something new.
I was watching the Barefoot Contessa one day and she made
toasted coconut marshmallows. They looked delicious and somewhat easy. So I decided to try and make a peppermint version. I used the basic marshmallow recipe and changed some things that I thought would work.
Here is the recipe:
3 packages unflavored gelatin
1 cup ice cold water (divided)
12 oz sugar (1 1/2 cups)
1 cup light karo syrup
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. peppermint extract
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
Empty packages of gelatin in the bottom of your mixer bowl with 1/2 cup of cold water. Make sure you use the whisk attachment.
In a saucepan, add 1/2 cup water, sugar, karo syrup, and salt. Put it on medium high heat and cover for 3-4 minutes. Remove lid, insert a candy thermometer and cook until it reaches 240 degrees F. Remove from heat.
Start your mixer on low (with just the gelatin and water in it, you will see it has been expanding) and slowly add the syrup mixture, pouring it down into the bowl along the side.
Once all syrup is added, increase the speed to high. Whip until it becomes very thick and is luke warm. 12 - 15 minutes (15 for a more stiff marshmallow). During the last minute, add the peppermint and vanilla extracts. (If you want normal marshmallows, just add 1 tsp. of vanilla extract.)
During the 12-15 minutes of whipping the mixture, prepare your pan.
Mix the cornstarch and powdered sugar together. Spray a 9x13 pan with nonstick spray, sprinkle the mixture in the pan and coat the bottom and all the sides.
I added a little more to it, by sprinkling the bottom with some Andes peppermint crunch pieces.
Once I was ready to fill the pan, I added a couple of drops of red food coloring. I didn't mix it too much, or you will have very pink marshmallows. (unless that is what you want!)
Then, very quickly, dump it into your prepared pan. I sprinkled more Peppermint crunch on top, and added more of the cornstarch and powdered sugar mixture on top.
Let is set for 4 hours or overnight. Then put it onto a hard surface that has been dusted with the powdered sugar mixture. Using a pizza cutter, cut into 1 inch squares. I put the squares into a bowl of the powdered sugar mixture to make sure all sides were coated.
A couple packets of hot chocolate, some homemade peppermint marshmallows, a cute box that looks like a snowman and you have yourself a great neighbor gift!
Labels: christmas, food, gift
