Easy homemade vegan marshmallows and healthy orange hot cocoa
Vegan, reduced sugar (well, depending on how we want to interpret "sugar" today), and oh so tasty, these vegan marshmallows are kitchen science magic in a snap. I’ve been cradling the idea of making some for a long time, because Chef F loves marshmallows. I’ve been procrastinating all the while, though, because aside from the the occasional camping s'more, they’re not really for me. That said, cocoa is a stellar competitor to camp fire sweets this time of year, and the project finally became irresistible. Now, it’s bound to be at least an annual bit of fun.
I won’t go so far as to call these “healthy” —I mean, how laughable that Twizzlers and Peppermint Patties are labeled as “low fat food”? But, they are a little bit better than the standard, and they are homemade. It's soooo easy to make a batch, and there are honestly moments of “ooh” and “ah” in the process, from whipping aquafaba to witnessing the changes in texture to enjoying the firm-fluffy cloud result.
I used this Hidden Veggies recipe with aquafaba and agar powder, but I subbed in Lakanto monkfruit sugar for half the total sugar amount, and it worked great! Next time, I may try monkfruit sugar only and will update with results. This time, I guess I erred on the side of cheaper.
I'd almost say I'm hooked on this snowy fluffiness, but an 8X8 pan is way more marshmallow than we need, even when shared. The holiday season is perfect for making the most of the pan, though, with brownies, cookies, fudge and bars just begging for a little marshmallow swirl. A couple of cubes were so, so delightful in my favorite date-sweetened orange hot cocoa, lending just the right extra silky pizazz. What will you do with yours? Please let me know!
Wishing you a day of cloudtastic, creamy loveliness, friends!
Homemade marshmallows (from The Hidden Veggies)
Makes approximately 25 marshmallows
1/2 Cup aquafaba
1/4 Teaspoon cream of tartar
2 Tablespoons vanilla
2/3 cup water
1 Tablespoon agar agar powder
3/4 Cup sugar
3/4 Cup monkfruit sugar (or go with 1 1/4 Cup sugar, as per original recipe)
Vegan powdered sugar for dusting
Dust the bottom of an 8"x 8" pan with powdered sugar and set aside.
Put the aquafaba in a mixing bowl with the cream of tartar and mix on high for 6 minutes until very fluffy.
Add some vanilla extract and whip for 3 more minutes until it is white again and it forms very stiff peaks. (You need to whip the aquafaba for a total of at least 9 minutes.)
In a small saucepan, combine water and agar agar and bring to a boil.
Boil the water and agar agar for 3 minutes stirring frequently.
Add sugar and boil for another 3 minutes stirring constantly over medium-low heat. (Be careful not to cook it too hot or you will burn or caramelize the sugar.)
Turn off the heat and add the hot sugar mixture into the beaten aquafaba.
Add this mixture slowly while beating aquafaba with a mixer set to low for about 30 seconds. This will turn the fluffy white mixture a little shiny.
Quickly pour it into the pan that has been dusted with powdered sugar.
Dust the top of the marshmallows with powdered sugar and let sit and cool for at least an hour.
Cut into 1" squares and dust all sides with powdered sugar.
Turn your oven to 150°F (66°C). Once it reaches that temperature, turn it off and set your cubed marshmallows in the warm oven for about an hour to dry out a little.
Date-Sweetened Orange Hot Cocoa
Per 1 serving
1 Medjool date
1 Cup unsweetened plant milk
1 good squeeze fresh orange juice (about 1-2 Tablespoons)
1 Tablespoon cacao powder
1/2 Teaspoon orange zest
Warm all ingredients in a saucepan then blend all ingredients in a high speed blender (feel free to swap the order of these steps). Serve with a vegan marshmallow, above.