Boy oh boy do I have a treat for you guys today! If you’ve never tried one, homemade marshmallows are like little fluffy pillows of heaven. They are exceptionally delicious.
Mixing booze and marshmallows has been on my to-do list for a while now (some to-do list eh?) and you cannot even begin to understand how excited I was to give these a try. These are pretty much the coolest thing ever. Don’t be fooled by their girly pink exterior – these little guys mean business.
Now friends, it’s all about showcasing the champagne here. Do not, I repeat DO NOT go out and buy the cheapest bottle of champagne to make these – you will regret it. The taste of the marshmallows desperately depends on the taste/quality of your champagne. By all means I do not expect you to go buy a $50 bottle of bubbly, I am just suggesting that you skip the Cooks this time and get something at least a tiny step above it.
Okay that’s out of the way – we can move on now 
I added the champagne in two different stages to make sure they would accurately portray that sweet bubbly drink. First, I added it in to to activate the gelatin, then again to heat with the sugar. The result is a sweet airiness with a distinct champagne flavor. The pink gel color gets added to give them a cute valentine’s day flair, but could definitely be made without or with a different color of your choice.
Personally I like to eat my marshmallows straight from the container, but there are other more classy options like adding them to a cup of coffee, as an ice cream topping – or making them into an adult S’more treat with some dark chocolate (Okay, I take that back…I’ll probably make one of those too).
I prefer to cut my marshmallows into small squares so I always get a ton out of one batch. That makes it easy to share with friends or around the office – or even bundle them into cute little bags to give out to friends!
Ingredients:
- 3 packages unflavored gelatin
- 1 cup ice cold champagne, divided
- 12 ounces granulated sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 drops pink gel color
- 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- Nonstick spray
Directions:
Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the champagne. Have the whisk attachment standing by.
In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup champagne, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat.
Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add the vanilla and pink gel color during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows.
Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use.
When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.
Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.
Recipe adapted from Alton Brown
When do I get whiskey marshmallow????
PS: I love Cooks always and forever. As long as it’s not Andre! PPS: These are so pretttttty!
Ari @ Ari’s Menu recently posted..Cookie Butter Cookie Dough Bars
I love the idea of adding some bubbly! Please send a bag of these my way!
Stephanie @ Eat. Drink. Love. recently posted..Red Velvet Rice Krispie Treats
What the what. Holy cow, are you like, on a personal mission to get me fat? Serioussssly, if this wasn’t so genius and you weren’t so sweet I’d probably have to hate you
Hayley @ The Domestic Rebel recently posted..Valentine Heart Chow
Do you let the champagne go flat before using it for the syrup? I just made some with double chocolate stout and it specifically said to use FLAT beer. Also, does it foam up like crazy when it boils because of the alcohol?
Hi Carolyn! Sorry – your comment originally got flagged as spam!
I did not let it go flat – it didn’t really foam up or do anything crazy when I used it. I am sure that you could use flat champagne if you wanted to, but I didn’t find it necessary. Thanks for your questions