Hot chocolate, rocky road or s'mores... The list is endless! We love working with mini marshmallows, as they're a fun and easy way to add some colour to your creations, with the added benefit of a chewy texture! Our personal favourite is a warm brownie with some ice cream, chocolate sauce and a sprinkle of these marshmallows. 

What Are Mini Marshmallows? 

Ours are Belgian, 1kg to a bag, and small enough to scatter without chopping. They are made the traditional way from glucose-fructose syrup, sugar and gelatine, whipped with air until they set light and chewy, and the pink comes from beetroot concentrate rather than an azo dye. 

Due to the gelatine, these are not suitable for vegetarian, vegan, halal or kosher work.

How to Use Mini Marshmallows

Scatter them over a finished surface rather than mixing them through a batter. Heat is what they react to, so anything much above 60C starts to slump them, and in a hot bake they will melt into the crumb and leave a hole behind. On a rocky road they go in with the biscuit at the end of mixing, once the chocolate is off the heat and beginning to thicken. On hot chocolate they float best on a drink that
has been poured and left to stand for a minute. Under a blowtorch or a hot grill they toast in about ten seconds, which is where s'mores and toasted-top brownies come from.

Troubleshooting 

Marshmallows take up moisture from the air, so an open bag in a warm room will clump. Reseal the bag between uses and store below 25C. If a bag has already clumped, a spell somewhere cool and a gentle squeeze will usually separate them again. Shelf life is 14 months from production, but once you open a bulk bag the clock changes: the specification asks for the contents to be processed within six months.

Pairings and Ideas 

Marshmallow is sweet and almost neutral, so it sits under a stronger flavour rather than competing with it. A few ideas to try:

• Scattered over a brownie with our chocolate topping sauce and toasted under the grill
• Folded into rocky road with biscuit pieces and dried fruit
• Floated on a spiced hot chocolate with a dusting of cocoa
• Pressed into the top of a cookie in the last two minutes of the bake
• Set into a chocolate bar mould with popping candy for a texture bar
• Toasted and folded through a semifreddo or a soft-scoop base