Make your next steaming mug of hot chocolate Irish with these Baileys Irish Cream Marshmallows!
Hot chocolate weather is close to its bitter winter end. As much as I love a nice mug of steaming hot chocolate floating with marshmallows, I am glad this cold snowy situation is almost over.
I am ready to greet the flowers in bloom and longer days. I’m ready to shave my legs because let’s face it – It’s been furry under these tights.
I wait for spring with a mixture of anxiety (can you get here already?!) and gusto (YEAH!).
But first… Let’s say goodbye to winter, to hot chocolate, to all this damn snow in style homies.
Next week the Irish celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. And the rest of America adopts a country as its own. I’m equal opportunity when it comes to celebrations.
Kiss me hot dammit – I’m Irish.
Kiss me – I made Bailey’s Irish Cream marshmallows.
Boozy marshmallow situations are the shizz. If you haven’t tried them, I suggest you hit this one. Do not hesitate.
Boozy marshmallows are simple. You cook down sugar and corn syrup with booze. Then you whip the syrup into bloomed gelatin. Seriously – It is that simple.
Of course there’s a setting period. You have stuff to do, right?
Right.
You have a Kelly green St. Patrick’s Day outfit to pick out. You have to unroll your flag, make sure it’s tight for the occasion. You come back, cut your marshmallows, make a lil’ hot chocolate; toss the marshmallows in there… Put your feet up.
Homemade marshmallows melt much, much faster than store-bought. In no time at all you’ll have a Bailey’s Irish Cream infused hot chocolate.
And that is how you celebrate the end of a season, my friend.
Go for yours.
[purerecipe]
Ingredients
For the marshmallow coating
- 3/4 cup Confectioners powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup Cornstarch
For the bloom
- 3/4 ounces 3, ¼ oz packets Unflavored gelatin
- 4 ounces Water
- 1 1/4 teaspoon Cocoa powder
For the boozy sugar syrup
- 5.5 ounces Light corn syrup
- 13 ounces Granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup Baileys Irish Cream
- 1 ounce Water
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla beam paste
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
Prepare the coating:
- In a medium bowl combine the powdered sugar and cornstarch. Cover and set aside.
Prepare the pan:
- Spray an 8”x8” square pan with PAM spray and sift the marshmallow coating to bottom of the pan. You are looking for an even coat. Set the pan aside.
Prepare the bloom:
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, combine the gelatin, water, and cocoa powder. Stir with a fork lightly to combine and prevent the gelatin from clumping to the bottom of the bowl. Leave in the mixer while you prepare the sugar syrup.
Prepare the sugar syrup:
- In a medium stainless steel pot combine the light corn syrup, granulated sugar, Baileys Irish cream, water, vanilla bean paste, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Cover the pan with a lid and continuing boiling, covered, for 5 minutes. Covering the pan allows steam to form which melts any sugar which may have crystalized. After five minutes, insert a candy thermometer and bring up the temperature of the syrup to 240° Fahrenheit.
Marshmallow makin’:
- Once the syrup has reached 240° Fahrenheit, remove pan from heat and allow the temperature of the syrup to reduce to 210° Fahrenheit. This can take anywhere from 7-10 minutes. You can help it along by partially submerging the pan in a bowl of ice water and stirring the syrup. The syrup will look a bit curdled (from the cream). You can either strain it when you pour into the gelatin or leave as is. I left as is. It made no difference to the end result.
- Once the syrup has reached 210° Fahrenheit, carefully pour the syrup (be careful – It’s STILL HOT!) into the mixing bowl with the bloomed gelatin. Start your mixer, on low at first as you add the syrup, and then increase the speed to high. Allow the mixture to double in volume.
- Turn off the mixer and using a silicone spatula very lightly sprayed with PAM, pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Smack the pan a few times against your counter to remove air bubbles and sift some of your prepared coating over the top of the marshmallow mixture.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
To cut marshmallows:
- Remove marshmallow pan from the fridge. Liberally sift your work surface with the marshmallow coating. I mean, be liberal with it. Don’t skimp on it. Remove the plastic wrap from the pan.
- Use a knife (or your fingers) to loosen the marshmallow from the pan and pull it out. Place onto the powdered surface and then flip the marshmallow square to coat the other side.
- Using a large chef’s knife (or the largest knife in your kitchen), cut 8, 1” vertical strips. Periodically clean your knife because marshmallows stick! Now with your knife make 1” increment cuts horizontally. You should now have a crap load of marshmallows squares - Or rectangles if you have linear issues. And I say a crap load because I ALWAYS forget to count. Or I'm eating marshmallows.
- As you cut the marshmallows, toss them into the marshmallow coating to prevent sticking. Store them in an airtight container or a large ziplock back. They last forever…Really – Weeks and weeks.