Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Marshmallows Made From Powdered Egg Whites



One of the great things about powdered eggs is that when I use them I am free of the fear of salmonella.  I must admit that I was never one to be real worried about eating raw cookie dough or drinking real eggnog.  Until a few years ago I had a horrible bout of salmonella poisoning and I am NEVER going to do that again.  


So anytime a recipe has me add raw eggs I am leery.  But powdered eggs have been pasteurized a process which kills bacteria.  So any time I make a recipe that calls for eggs that will not be thoroughly cooked I use powdered.  


Marshmallows is one of those recipes.  The egg whites aren’t really cooked, they are tempered as you add the hot syrup, but not actually cooked.  So this is definitely a recipe I want to use powdered egg whites for.  


The first time I ever heard of anyone making marshmallows was a few years ago when my friend Kim invited me over for a marshmallow making party.  “Marshmallows?”  I asked a little skeptical.
“Yes, they are the best holiday treat.  I give them to all the neighbors at Christmas.”  Kim says
“Really?”  I say
“They are amazing. You will love them”  Kim says to convince me.  

I went to the party and we made TONS of marshmallows.  It was super fun, and she was right homemade marshmallows are delicious.


The ingredients in this recipe are simple, egg white (powdered of course), gelatin, sugar, corn syrup, and vanilla.  All foods that you probably have in your food storage.

This recipe has two things going on at once, so be sure to read through the recipe so you know what you are doing.  You will be making a syrup on the stove AND whipping the egg whites at the same time.  When I make recipes that are like this I make sure to get all my ingredients and tools out before I start so that I don’t get flustered.  
 

Marshmallows made with Powdered Egg White

Printable Recipe

Makes:  25-50 marshmallows
Adapted from The Great Book of Chocolate

2 envelopes  powdered unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup  + 1/3 cup cold water
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup light corn syrup
4 teaspoons egg white powder plus 8 teaspoons water
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon vanilla paste


Marshmallow Mix
1 ½ c cornstarch
1 ½ c powdered sugar 

1.    In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the 1/2 cup of cold water to dissolve and soften.

2.    In a small saucepan fitted with a candy thermometer, mix the sugar and corn syrup with 1/3 cup (80ml) of water. Place over medium-to-high heat.    

Note that you will use this saucepan twice, to make the syrup and melt the gelatin, eliminating the need to wash it between uses.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, pour in the egg white powder and water and beat on low speed until frothy. Add the pinch of salt.  

Note:  Keep the mixer running.  You are not going to turn it off until step 6.

4. When the syrup reaches about 210ºF (99ºC), increase the speed of the mixer to high and beat the whites until they are thick and fluffy.

5. When the syrup reaches 245ºF (118ºC), slowly pour the hot syrup into the whites, pouring so that the syrup against the side of the egg white bowl so that it does not fall on the whisk since some of the syrup will splatter and stick to the sides of the bowl.

6. Scrape the gelatin and water into the pan that you used for the syrup and swirl it to dissolve. 
(There should still be residual heat left in the pan from making the syrup in it to dissolve it).
Pour the liquified gelatin slowly into the whites as they are whipping. Add the vanilla extract and continue to whip for 5 minutes, until the mixture is feels completely cool when you touch the outside of the bowl.


7. Dust a baking sheet evenly and completely with a generous layer of the marshmallow mixture. (I used about 2 cups).   Make sure there are absolutely no bare spots.

8. Use a spatula to spread the marshmallows in a layer on the pan. Allow to dry for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, uncovered.


9. Put about 1 cup (140g) of the marshmallow mixture into a large bowl.
Dust the top of the marshmallows with some of the marshmallow mixture. Use a pizza cutter or scissors (dusted as well with the marshmallow mixture) to cut the marshmallows into any size or shape pieces that you’d like and toss the marshmallows in the marshmallow mixture. Shake the marshmallows vigorously in a wire strainer to remove the excess powder.
Alternatively, you can dust a baking sheet and put scoops of the marshmallow on it, and let them cool.  


 
Storage: The marshmallows can be made up to one week in advance, and stored in an airtight container.