The humble marshmallow is infinitely better when made at home just remember these unabashed sugar bombs should be a rare pleasure
Ive always been fairly indifferent to the marshmallows fluffy charms. Sure, there was a time when Flumps were my recreational drug of choice for a quick sugar hit, but the sticky top of the Tunnocks teacake has always been the flipside of that buttery biscuit base, while fancy restaurant petits fours never felt worth the extra calories. Rather like their close relative the meringue, the marshmallow just seemed too simple to be interesting a one-dimensionally sweet sponge fit only for binding together rice crispy cakes or burning on a barbecue, but certainly not worth spending much time or effort on. Turns out sometimes even Im wrong. This is one of those things that is infinitely better made at home the texture lighter; the flavour, well, the flavour is just about anything you want it to be, from vanilla to Sichuan peppercorn, and the process, well, its nothing short of magic.
The egg question
Marshmallows are, like many so things involving eggs, a lot easier to master once you understand the basic chemistry involved. According to Harold McGees On Food and Cooking, the secret lies in whipping air into a mixture of sugar syrup and gelatine the protein molecules in the latter collect in the bubble walls, and this reinforcement, together with the viscosity of the strip, stabilises the foam structure, keeping the air in as the mixture cools.
Egg white, though traditional, is not vital here, but does give softer, more delicate results. Indeed, several of the recipes in which I try using it are so fragile, they are hard to shape, while the sole dairy-free recipe has a pleasing bounciness about it familiar from commercial versions. Perhaps my palates been spoilt by all those Flumps.
As a bonus, the egg-free versions keep better, which can only be a good thing when so much sugar is involved. That said, the difference is surprisingly slight, so I would be very interested to hear other peoples thoughts on the matter.
The setting agent
As the name suggests, the first marshmallows were set with the mucilaginous root of the marsh mallow plant, which McGee describes as the weedy relative of the hollyhock. These days, gelatine is preferred, though agar-agar, derived from algae, is sometimes used as a vegetarian alternative. The first recipe I try using it, from the Primrose Bakery Everyday book, is a bit of a disaster because Im unable to dissolve the agar flakes in the tiny amount of water called for, giving a set, but grainy result with a very unpleasant, faintly fishy flavour I suspect a typo.
Read more: www.theguardian.com