Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Vegan Marshmallow Recipe

In early 2009, I set out to create an "open source" vegan marshmallow recipe. Vegan marshmallows have eluded the public sphere for many moons. There are a few vegan marshmallow recipes floating around the internet but, at the time of writing this, most were total flops.

The marshmallows in this recipe are firm to the touch. They roast great. They melt under heat. They even puff when they catch fire.

I present the first free, open-source vegan marshmallow recipe that:

1. Works.
2. Will now and forever be open source. That means if you try it and have an improvement or a new recipe, post a comment or send an email and I will post new discoveries.
3. Has many thanks to those who helped contribute thoughts, ideas and other comments along the way, including: Bryanna Clark Grogan's Vegan Feast Open Cooking Forum, the Post Punk Kitchen Forum, and countless internet sites dedicated to hydrocolloids, molecular gastronomy and plain old vegan goodness.

I am not a professional chef nor an expert. I'm just a vegan who loves to cook and research new ways of cooking. I also don't like driving multiple hours for a marshmallow. They can be expensive and hard-to-find locally. This recipe is excellent. My wife called it, "perfect."

I will, however, give credit where credit is due. The commercially available marshmallows are wonderful and are worth the effort to find them or order them. They are:

Also, Everyday Dish TV has launched their subscription service! They have been working for months on perfecting a marshmallow recipe and marshmallow meringue. I highly recommend getting a subscription. The pictures alone will make you want to eat your flatscreen. They take vegan marshmallows into the stratosphere of culinary delights.

That said, below is the recipe. I will deconstruct it in other posts for those who wish to experiment.

Marshmallows are basically a stiff fluff with cooked sugar whipped in.


Pan
Use a small 8x8 baking pan for amazingly thick marshmallows or 8x12 for a more manageable, bite-sized marshmallow. Mix 2T of vegan powdered sugar and 2T of cornstarch together. Spray your pan with oil and dust with the sugar/cornstarch mixture. Set aside.

Fluff
The fluff part of this recipe was inspired by Jeanette Sutton's web site recipe for agar marshmallows at meatandeggfree.com. She deserves a tremendous amount of credit for her work on fluff, a key to marshmallow success. If you are looking for an agar marshmallow, try Jeanette's recipe.

5T soy protein isolate 90% (available at many health food stores)
2t Baking Powder
3/4C cold water

Sugar Syrup
1.5C raw sugar
1C light corn syrup
1/2C water
1T Genutine Vegetarian Gelatin
2t vanilla extract

Genutine is a commercial product (click here to order) made primarily of carrageenan with locust bean gum and sucrose, according to their web site. It has no animal products in it. Not even close.

To make the fluff, mix the dry ingredients together first in a stand mixer. Add the water and whip with a whisk for 10 minutes until you get stiff peaks and an increase in volume. The volume will not increase dramatically and fill the bowl as you might see when using the Angel Food Marshmallow Mix. However, you will see some increase and you should get stiff peaks.

To make the sugar syrup, mix the Genutine with the raw sugar in a saucepan. Then add the water and whisk quickly. You should have a thick mixture. Add the corn syrup. Stir and heat on the stove. Use a candy thermometer and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it reaches 230 degrees. By this time, it should be thick and gloppy. The mixture will begin to gel as one large mass and you will be able to catch sight of the bottom of your pan as you stir. Hurry up and stop cooking! Stir in the vanilla.

WARNING! This is extremely messy, gooey and sticky. If you have a splatter shield for your mixer, go get it! Otherwise, you will likely need a hand-held steam cleaner to clean your mixer when you are done. I speak from experience. DOH!

Turn the stand mixer on high and whisk the fluff as you quickly add the sugar syrup. DO NOT ADD THE SYRUP SLOWLY! The sugar gel is so sticky, it can climb up your whisk attachment and begin to gum up its connection to the mixer. Just dump it in with the mixer running as fast as it will go. Let whip for 10 minutes. Use a rubber scraper and pour the mixture into your prepared pan. Cover with a sheet of wax paper and push down the mix so it gets into the sides of the pan. Remove the wax paper and let cool in the fridge for at least an hour.

When cool, turn out on a cutting board. Cut squares in the size you like and coat all sides with more of your corn starch/powdered sugar mix.

Yields 30-35 marshmallows.

Get your camera. Find a pretty plate. Put your marshmallows on it. Take a picture. Post it on a blog somewhere. Then apologize to your spouse for the colossal mess you made.

Shelf life? As a vegan who has not had marshmallows in a very, very long time, the shelf life is about 24 hours before you eat all of them from off the shelf. I do not know how long they will last if you do not eat them. Perhaps someone can post a comment.

Mini Marshmallows
If you want mini marshmallows, after mixing, immediately put the mixture in a piping bag and pipe out your mini marshmallows in the size and shape of your choice.

Happy cooking!

154 comments:

  1. Bravo! Looking forward to getting the necessary ingredients to give it a try.

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  2. I am sooooooooooo grateful !

    Now all I need ist some isolate (still can't figure out which one to buy since you said "no shake mix") and some locust bean gum (yup, no genutine for me *rats*) and then I'll be whipping awaaaaaaaay. YAAAAAYYYYYYYYY !

    Thanx to you and your patient wife :o))))
    Hugs, KiKi

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  3. Hey Kiki!

    Glad you're excited about the recipe. I'm not certain you will need locust bean gum. That's just a guess, but I believe there is so little of it in the mix that it may not make a big difference. I think you will need some sort of gum for the fluff mix. That seems to be essential. If you have some other kind of gum, you may want to try that and see what happens.

    Dave

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  4. bless you.

    i look forward to watching for new versions or feedback.

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  5. THANX,
    IM MAKING S'MORES TONIGHT!

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  6. Brilliant!

    Now I can eat all the sweet&sara's marshmallows I've been hoarding in the fridge, because I can make more at home!

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  7. awesome. so excited to try.

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  8. Hello

    I tried making these the other day,and although they went white and fluffy, I found that there was an overriding taste of the soya protein isolate (which I don't like!). I added 3t of vanilla to try and cover the flavour, but it didn't work. Is this how the marshmallows are supposed to taste, or am I doing something wrong? I used unflavoured pure isolate.

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  9. Hi,

    Sorry to hear the soy taste was too strong for you. That's the first time I've heard that but nonetheless, everyone's taste buds are different. I don't pick up that taste. Other recipes you will find on the internet all use some sort of soy protein isolate or Versa Whip, which is soy protein hydrolysate. They also use agar which can impart a seaweedy taste. Some people taste it. Others don't.

    You may want to try the Angel Food commercial vegan marshmallow mix. It is the only mix or recipe that does not contain any soy listed on the ingredients and you can make it at home.

    Or, maybe you have access to another source of pure vegetable protein that is not soy? A pure source of protein is essential for any marshmallow recipe, vegan or not. Emes gelatin was found to contain more than 50% animal protein. Gluten flour does not work. I tried that one already.

    Also, try adding the vanilla after about 8 minutes of whipping rather than right off the stove. Vanilla is mostly alcohol and it can burn off very quickly in the sugar syrup leaving little flavor behind.

    See what you can come up with and report back. After all, the recipe is open source. Let us know what you find out.

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  10. Do you think this would work if I used pea protein instead? I have tried the angel foods vegan marshmallow mix but mine came out too soft and melted [but still delicious] maybe it was the weather of the fact I used agave syrup instead of corn.

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  11. From what I found online, pea protein would very likely work great. It has the same protein content as soy. I haven't come across it at my local stores, but if you can get it, try it! I don't see any reason why it would not work.

    Also, the angel food mix came out soft for me too using the regular ingredients. I believe, this was because the directions state cooking times and not temperatures. Candy making is a pretty exact science. They could improve their results by providing temperatures. For the cost of the mix, it is a tough sell to experiment with it much.

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  12. Hi, Alice here from Angel Food! Congratulations on cracking the code and thanks for mentioning our marshmallow mix here! I've actually added the cooking temp back into the instructions (105 celsius) because of unreliable results. The time-based recipe appeals because not everyone has a candy thermometer, but I'm happy now that I can give people the time version and the temp version!

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  13. Hi Dave,

    thanks for getting back to my question (re: soy protein too strong a flavour for me, June 8th).I shall give your suggestions a go - I may have added vanilla too early. I shall let you know how it goes.

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  14. Try out the pea protein isolate if you can find it too. I think it would work. I just can't get it in my area.

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  15. yum! i'm so doing this! and then i'm dipping them in chocolate and rolling them in graham cracker crumbs and eating them!
    thank you! thank you!!!! i'll be sure to come back and let you know how it went.

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  16. Possibly adding a little salt would help with the flavor.

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  17. Have you ever tried Versawhip 600K? I've been trying to come up with a Cool Whip texture with it and I've only been able to make a marshmallow fluff texture.

    This could be a good product to try for you marshmallows. It's supposed to replace egg whites and can be used for any kind of foam or whip in a recipe.

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  18. Yes, I actually have a more detailed discussion of Versa Whip in the e-book. Versa Whip is labeled as soy protein hydrolysate in commercial products. It is often used in commercially made vegan marshmallows and can make for a great fluff part of the recipe. The downside is that it can be difficult to find and expensive. In the basic marshmallow recipe on this site, I tried to construct a recipe with as many easily available ingredients as possible. That's why I left it out. Versa Whip can certainly make a great marshmallow if you're willing to shell out the $$$.

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  19. So is the Genutine the 400-C or the x-9303? I am trying to figure out which one to order.
    Thanks, I can hardly wait to make them!!!

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  20. Get the X-9303. Let me know if you have any other questions. Happy marshmallowing!

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  21. vegan powdered sugar? Why is it more "vegan" than ordinary sugar? I don't know of any sugar made of animal, or even sugar manufacturing harming animals ( except humans in costa rica)? ;D

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  22. Regular old granulated white sugar from the grocery store is bleached white with animal bones. Some people prefer not to use it. You can actually put raw sugar in a food processor and make your own powdered sugar or some people use organic powdered sugar.

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  23. Well, not entirely true. The sugar is not bleached, but rather filtered using activated carbon, that in turn can be made from either wood charcoal ( which is vegan) and/ or bone charcoal.

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  24. I stand corrected in my terminology. Either way, many vegans are not willing to take a chance that bone charcoal was used.

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  25. Posting this in the hope it may help people in the UK:

    With the help of this recipe and Jeannette's fluff recipe I have come up with my own version which seems to work (waiting for it to set now!). I used xanthan gum instead of guar gum, cream of tartar and baking soda instead of baking powder, and egg replacer (composed of soy protein isolate and potato starch) instead of the soy protein isolate as that's what I had on hand.

    In the sugar syrup I used 1 3/4 cups of sugar, 1/4 cup fructose syrup, and 3/4 cup water. I added three sachets of Vege-Gel. I possibly could have gotten away with less vege-gel. It doesn't gel together in one large mass as you described and not having a sugar thermometer I just cooked it to soft ball stage.

    It's setting now but I can already tell it's the best shot at vegan marshmallow I've made so far. It's quite a humid day though so I'm not sure how well it will set (that's why I added so much Vege-Gel, and hey, it's England, it's always humid here...)

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  26. I can't wait to try this recipe. My mother adores vegan marshmallows; thanks so much!

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  27. Would a Braun hand blender provide sufficient whipping power for this or do you think I'd be in danger of burning out its motor? Thanks!

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  28. No. You will burn out the motor. I don't think the Braun stands a chance. The marshmallows are really thick and you need a full stand mixer to do the job. Even a strong arm isn't enough...

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  29. Thank you SO much Dave!!! I have tried to make veg mallows many times and this one works and is so great! I love this recipe and appreciate your post. Now I can't wait to try all the variations!! I'm getting ready for camping and found this recipe just in time for s'mores!! Thank you again!

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  30. Great to hear you found the recipe in time! Enjoy the s'mores!

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  31. Oh man, I'm so glad I stumbled over this. I work at a vegan bakery and have recently been put in charge of making the candies and chocolates. I'm not vegan, personally, but I've come to find out how hard to find your precious marshmallows are. I'll post another comment as soon as I give this a try.

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  32. Drop me an email if you need any help! Happy to help. You might also be interested in the ebook if you are looking for a ton of vegan marshmallow recipes.

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  33. Hi can this work with Agar powder? I can't find Genutine but I do have Agar powder. thanks!

    steelcitypr@gmail.com

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  34. Check out Jeanette's agar marshmallow recipe...

    http://www.meatandeggfree.com/vegan-marshmallows.html

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  35. I read the above posts about regular sugar vs vegan sugar, but I'm not sure if regular sugar is vegetarian? Vegetarian Sister eats eggs, honey, etc, but has stayed away from marshmellows because of the geletin. Do you think I have to use vegan sugar? Trying to keep costs down...

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  36. I like the look of yours better. I want to send them to a friend. Do you think they would last two days in the mail?

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  37. Yes as long as they are not going through hot climates. This time of year, they would probably be fine.

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  38. As for regular sugar vs. vegan sugar, that decision is up to you. Raw sugar works fine, avoids most vegetarian objections and isn't that much more expensive. The plain old refined white sugar is what most vegetarians object to.

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  39. Hi! I found the Guar gum and the soy but I cannot find the genutine. Is there another substitute?

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  40. Nevermind! Found it. Everything is in the mail on it's way! I should be making these Saturday! Thanks again! So super excited!

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  41. Okay so I started to make the first batch and the fluff came out fine. But as I made the rest and the temperature approached 230 degrees, it was not doing what it was supposed to. I went back and double checked the recipe. I noticed there were small t's and capital T's by the amounts. Are small t's such as 2t not 2T teaspoons and 5T tablespoons because that could make ALL the difference and needs to be spelled out and abbreviated? These ingredients are extremely expensive and I can't afford to make too many mistakes. Can you let me know if the large capital T's are tablespoons?

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  42. Hi Andrea,

    Sorry for any confusion. These are pretty common abbreviations but for those who haven't seen them before...

    T = Tablespoon
    t = teaspoon

    Hope that helps! Good luck marshmallowing!

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  43. OMG So I made them again. Totally stoked. How long before they are ready to cut? Thanks again! :-) They taste divine.

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  44. Hi! Tanks a lot for this recipe! i was looking for a lot! i'll try to do... but i dont know if i can get the Genutine. But i can try to make variations. I'm from México... also i'm doing a vegetarian society here to expand vegetarianism and veganism. Please help us in any thing if some one can.

    You have some Gummie recipes?
    also some vegan ham or sausage?

    TANKS!!!

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  45. Hello Dave,

    I too have been working to crack the code on vegan marshmallow recipe for the past year, and you definitely beat me to the punch. Thanks for making it open source! I have however run into trouble with the recipe you posted because both batches of marshmallows I made yesterday came out a bit too soft still. I'm in search of marking a firm enough marshmallow so they act like springy pillows rather than soft cubes. Any ideas? I'm going to make them again today but with twice the genutine. Let me know what you think.

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  46. @ Laura:

    I originally set out to make a marshmallow from as many ordinary ingredients as possible so people could do it at home for minimal cost. The marshmallows work fine, but if you're looking for an exact match to the store-brand kind of marshmallows, you'll want to get some VersaWhip 600k. It is soy protein hydrolysate to replace the fluff part of the recipe here. That will give you the perfect consistency you are looking for but it will cost another $25-$30 for the VersaWhip. Just make sure it is VersaWhip 600k. Things like VersaWhip 500 are not vegan. Another trade-off is that the VersaWhip will give you a better consistency but is less forgiving when it comes to altering the recipe if you wanted to add, say, alcohol to your marshmallows.

    Hope that helps!

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  47. @ Vrindavanath:

    Le Sanctuaire will ship to Mexico, I believe. You just need to call instead of placing an order online. Also, if you purchase my marshmallow ebook, you will get 10% off your Genutine order. I have not experimented with gummy foods. As for vegan ham and sausage, check Bryanna Clark Grogan's site. She is a master of the mock meats:

    http://www.bryannaclarkgrogan.com

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  48. Wow these marhmallows were delicious. I also found some cooking tips here that I merged with this recipe:
    http://ask.recipelabs.com/questions/1314/in-need-of-a-vegan-marshmallow-recipe

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  49. I've seen some very tempting looking toasted coconut marshallows but never succumbed due to the gelatin. Now I just might have to make a recipe :-)

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  50. Thank you!
    I can't wait to go home for Christmas (I'm at college now) and eat marshmallows! Being a vegan is kind of constricting when you're at college - at least the treats & snacks part.
    I guess it's healthier, but I sure love eating the baked vegan foods I can make in the kitchen back home. :)

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  51. Can one use Irish Moss in place of the soy protein isolate?

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  52. I don't believe that would work. Irish Moss is the raw form of carrageenan--the main ingredient in Genutine. Also, it has quite a strong seaweed taste which didn't appeal to me as I worked with the recipe. I hope that is helpful info.

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  53. After three attempts, I don't think this recipe is possible to duplicate using a Kitchen-Aid brand stand mixer. The mixer that's shown in the pictures has a stationary whisk in the center of the stand and a splatter shield that protects the join of the whisk and the motor, whereas a Kitchen-Aid has a whisk that orbits the bowl as it spins, making it impossible to add the sugar syrup as directed without having it climb up the whisk. If anyone else has had luck with this, let me know - if trying it for yourself, be prepared to experiment a few times. What kind of mixer was used to prepare these?

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  54. Also - does anybody want my ingredients? Email me individually if you'd like the Genutine, soy protein, and guar gum minus quantities for three recipies. Does $25 plus shipping sound fair?

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  55. I'm not vegan, but I'm in the market for a new marshmallow that isn't going to set off fun food allergies. In that vein, upthread, you mentioned that pea protein might be substituted for soy protein? Has anyone actually tried that? (There is a reason why, despite dairy allergies, I still haven't gone vegan. Soy is my most severe allergy and most commercially vegan things use soy.) Thanks for any possible help.

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  56. I haven't heard back from anyone who has tried it yet. I'll let you know if I do. Also, it's not necessary to include soy in a vegan diet. If you buy a lot of commercially processed products, yes, there's a lot of soy out there. If you stick to whole foods, it's much easier. I'm vegan and include very little soy in my diet. It would be easy to eliminate for me if I was allergic. Just my $.02.

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  57. I followed the non-corn syrup recipe, and they taste delicious. However, not long after cutting into squares & arranging on a plate they stick & meld back together, even after coated in corn starch. Is this related to humidity? Technique? Or just normal?

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  58. Hi Dave,

    Have to thank you for this recipe. My wife and I are vegetarians so I modified your recipe a little but I have to say...I was once a meat-eater and after tweaking your recipe, I dare anyone to tell me these are vegetarian. What I did: I switched out the soy protien to a fat-free whey protein isolate, changed to Xantham gum instead of Guar gum and through in some Versawhip 600 to the improve the peaking effect. Ran your recipe the rest of the way without problems. Your right, making this stuff is like working with glue but clean up with hot water helps. Cooled and cut, dusted with corn/confectioners sugar mixture and these bad boys are spot on to real marshmallows. Excellent job.

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  59. Hey Shovelt700,

    Thanks for the vote of confidence. Glad to hear great results from another food scientist. It took A LOT of flops to figure it out, but it paid off. Enjoy!

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  60. I finally tried this recipe and I must said I'm so glad I did. It took a little while to collect the ingredients, but it's a big hit in my house. Thank you so much for posting it.

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  61. Just a note on using whey protein isolate. It is made from cows milk so is not vegan but it is okay for vegetarians to use.

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  62. Hi! I'm very interested in Jeanette Sutton's agar agar recipe, but the page has been taken down. Do you happen to have it saved somewhere? Couldn't find it with the Wayback Machine either.

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  63. Tara, you can find Jeanette's marshmallow recipe at meatandeggfree.com

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  64. Hi- I am dying to try this recipe- just wondering if you know how long of a shelf life does the Gelutine have.

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  65. Indefinite as far as I can tell. I've had mine about 10 months with no degradation...

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  66. How much cheaper is it to make your own marshmallows versus buying the Angel Food mix and versus buying the already-made Sweet & Sara marshmallows? Any rough estimate will due. I can't tell how many marshmallows the Angel Food mix will make, or how many come in the Sweet & Sara package. Thanks for all the info.

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  67. Your cost savings will be great by making them yourself. Your effort savings will be great buying them off the shelf. If you are a marshmallow fanatic and want them often, I would say make them. If you just want them once a year, buy them off the shelf.

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  68. Hi Dave, first of all thanks for sharing your effort! I am planning on trying this recipe, i'm making it for a lacto-ove vegetarian. I was wondering if I could simply beat egg whites to make the fluff and adding the genutine sugar syrup to that? Do you think this might work?

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  69. Yes, I believe that would work! Good sleuthing!

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  70. Hi, I just wanted to mention that the price for the versawhip 600 is 24.50 per lb at L'epicerie, I like to research prices and they have the best prices on most molecular gastronomy items, hard to find stuff. I will be experimenting soon. Thank you for this beautiful website and the great work you did.

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  71. Hey, I'm from the UK and tried this recipe but with xantham gum and vege gel. It didn't work but formed a kind of goo. Has anyone from the UK tried a recipe using things we can purchase here and has it set into marshmallows? Also we can use a hand held electric whisk right? The difference is minimal right?
    Thanks! Love the site!

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  72. Welcome to the wonderful world of vegan marshmallows! Substitute ingredients are very few and far between. Any veggie gel product will not substitute. Believe me. I've tried tons of them. I would stick to the recipe as close as possible and track down local sources of the same ingredients. Also, you will need a stand mixer. A hand blender will break. It simply does not have the power to stand up to making marshmallows. Good luck and happy marshmallowing!

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  73. For UK try to check out Eddie Shepherd website he is a vegetarian vegan chef and has few website links to obtain ingredients. It might help.

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  74. Hi Dave, i posted a few weeks back asking if egg whites might substitute for the fluff... I thought i'd report that it doesn't work. However i did some research and lots of experimenting and I have a recipe which works. I'm in the UK and decided to use Vege-gel ( it does work as a substitute for genutine as it is a carrageenan and LBG mix as well). The recipe is here for anyone interested:

    http://seventypercentcocoa.wordpress.com/2010/03/23/vegetarian-marshmallows/

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  75. Excellent! Great work! I love the picture too. Congratulations on cracking the recipe overseas! Now many more people will have access to marshmallow deliciousness.

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  76. I too have had the same problem with finding Jeanette Sutton's agar agar recipe. The link you gave is no longer working. I have finally found an updated link to the recipe.

    http://www.meatandeggfree.com/vegan-marshmallows.html

    I also found another site that has reposted her recipe in case it goes down again.

    http://www.vegparadise.com/news84.html

    As a side note i also stumbled upon a vegan meringue using the same principles.

    http://vegyatra.blogspot.com/


    I am very excited to finally try some vegan marshmallows and am very eager to try out both yours and Jennett's. Last time i tried to make them was before soya protein was discovered to work and i ended up with a sticky gooey brown mess.

    Thanks for all your work!

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  77. Wow, thanks! I finally used your recipe after 3 failed attempts of trying other things, and ordered the genutine. I'm in a candy making class and theyre going to make gelatin marshmallows, so I'm ditching in protest and making them at home instead.

    After about 5 minutes of whipping the mixture at the end, I could feel the resistance of it gumming up (I used a hand mixer - if you do, use a deeper bowl than you need or you'll splatter yourself!), so I knew it was working this time.

    Next time I'm going to try replacing some of the water in the syrup mixture with strained strawberries to get strawberry marshmallows.

    Has anyone tried using agave or honey (invert sugars that inhibit crystallization) instead of Karo syrup?

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  78. Check out my recipe for agave marshmallows. Expensive stuff, but it works just fine!

    http://veganmarshmallows.blogspot.com/2009/04/vegan-marshmallow-recipe.html

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  79. Vegan marsmallows sound excellent. Thanks for sharing this recipe.

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  80. Hi, being stupid here but what sort of measurement is a T and how big is a cup. thanks,

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  81. T is a tablespoon. A cup is a standard measuring cup full. Your local kitchen store or department store has measuring cups for cooking. Pick up some measuring cups and measuring spoons and you're good to go!

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  82. Dave--in Martha Stewart's recipe for non-vegan marshmallows, the gelatine is softenned in the mixer bowl with water, the sugar/syrup is cooked to 238, then poured into the bowl and the mixture is whipped for 12 minutes. Will the vegan gelatine work the same way and without the baking powder, soy or guar gum (have you tried this already?)? Also, in making non-vegan marshmallows, as all the syrup is poured in at once before the mixer is turned on, I had no problems using a Kitchen Aid. I am going to get my hands on the vegan gelatine and experiment with my non-vegan recipe. Thanks! Dave!

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  83. Hi Dave,
    I got a sample of Versawhip 500k as I thought it is vegan - it says on teh label that it is an enzyme modified soy protein. I read above though that you said it is not vegan? Are you 100% sure about this and if so what makes it not vegan? Many thanks for reply in advance

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  84. Great question. Enzyme modified soy protein also goes by the name soy protein hydrolysate. The big question is what enzyme do they use? Typically, it is an enzyme from a pig's stomach. VersaWhip 600k is the only one, from my research, that uses a plant-based enzyme. The 500 series supposedly uses the pig enzyme. Someone please correct me if you have other information.

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  85. Hi Dave,
    Thanks for the reply. To update you - I contacted the company who supplied the Versawhip 500K sample and I was assured that it is 100% suitable for vegans. It is completely soya based and the enzymes used are chemical based - some of technical names and words were hard to understand but this is the gist of what I was told! I am still a little nervous using it but am going to have to trust what I was told ...unless you know something else!!

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  86. Great information! Thanks for checking! I think the "K" stands for kosher. I don't believe there was a K-type available in the 500 series before. Now there is! Hooray for progress! So, let it be known that VersaWhip 500K and 600K are both vegan.

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  87. I'm totally trying this. I have to say that you are the woman for writing such an in-depth recipe. I hate that recipes are always wrong about details. Like have you ever made a pie in 40 minutes??
    Making a vegan s'mores. he's going to be so happy

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  88. I was just wondering if anyone has heard of or had a recipe for the original marshmallows made from the marshmallow plant! I have searched and cannot find much information about the plant, but it was the basis for the original marshmallows, and may be still available somewhere.

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  89. Does anyone have any Genutine that I can buy off of them? I am from Canada, so I can't order online and they are not responding to emails or phone calls.

    I really, really want to make marshmallows before the summer is over!

    callmehowey@yahoo.ca

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  90. Hello!

    I'm just wondering, would these work in Rice Krispies Treats? I haven't had a Rice Krispies Treat in 6 years...

    Thank you!

    -Leez

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  91. You bet they do! Good luck trying to keep those around the house. Ours disappear in about 6 minutes flat!

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  92. Hey, so it's quite difficult / expensive to get corn syrup in the UK (from what I can work out) do you know a good substitute? would golden syrup or maybe liquid glucose work the same?

    thanks!

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  93. Yes, any syrup should work fine. Check out the recipe on my blog for agave marshmallows too!

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  94. hi again, so i was wondering what you think to substituting the 1.5C of sugar, for Xylitol? and the corn syrup with Agave? for a slightly cheaper and yet sugar free marshie?

    I will experiment with it, if you haven't already!

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  95. I haven't tried it with Xylitol. The biggest thing is that the Xylitol needs to form a syrup if it is cooked. If it does, it should work. If not, I doubt you will find success. Give us an update on how it goes! That would be a breakthrough...

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  96. This recipe looks promising, but my son is a little autistic & soy is out (gluten & dairy too.) If I can find an acceptable substitute that for the soy protein isolate that will allow for a similar effect in the recipe, I will make this. My daughter has been asking for marshmallows EVERY SINGLE DAY, for more than a week now. I've got to get/make something for her. That's a lot of love, I think, for a 2 year old to wake every morning. Look at me, smile that world brightening smile & say "Mommy, I wants a marshmallow, please?"

    I'm not a chef, but I suspect agave would work similar to corn syrup. It's mild & sweet. It's what I will try first. ooh if I had it I'd definitely use maple syrup! sweet & flavor! but the real deal is expensive & I'm fresh out. I can't imagine a marshmallow not tasting like heaven itself if one used maple.

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  97. Thanks Felicity! Many users have commented that that can find pea protein isolate. I haven't tried it, but it sounds very promising. Also, check out my recipe for agave marshmallows here:

    http://veganmarshmallows.blogspot.com/2009/04/vegan-agave-nectar-marshmallows.html

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  98. you're a genius for coming up with this! just one problem for me - I can't get it to go white and fluffy :-( just a kind of beige sticky stringy constistancy.. any idea where i'm going wrong?! :-(

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  99. Sounds like a possible fluff problem. Are you using a protein isolate that is 90% or are you using something like a protein shake mix? It can make all the difference.

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  100. Oh I just love this post :) thank you all for discussing marshmallows so sincerely and earnestly - it's entertained me for a couple of hours and will no doubt be the cause of much more positivity in the future (especially if I get the recipe right) - love :) xx

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  101. Now if only there were a health-food store nearby, I could try this out... :(

    Still, looks great!!

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  102. So my two best friends are getting married tomorrow. They're both vegan. So I decided, as a wedding present to them, that I would make them vegan marshmallows.

    I text messaged the bride and asked her if she had ever made them. Despite being an avid vegan baker (and an amazing one, at that) she had never made vegan marshmallows.

    After reading all of the posts I was a bit leery about using my KitchenAid mixer for the process. Everyone was talking about messes and splashguards and the stuff creeping up the beater. I asked EVERYONE i knew if they had a mixer. Everyone either had a Kitchenaid or a hand mixer, so I couldn't borrow anyones.

    My genutine showed up yesterday. At about 11 p.m. I threw caution to the wind and started making everything with my KitchenAid. The pan I used for the sugar mix was a bit small, which prevented really vigorous stirring, but other than that everything worked FLAWLESSLY. There was a bit of crawling by the fluff and the gooey marshmallow mixture, but it wasn't uncontained and it never interfered with the mixing process. In fact, the mess was relatively contained.

    I followed the recipe exactly and they turned out wonderfully. Tonight I'm going to make 4-8 more batches (the wedding is potluck-ish). Thank you thank you thank you for all of the work you put into this recipe. I'm a dedicated carnivore and these marshmallows stand up to the best non-vegan marshmallows out there. for serious.

    Logan

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  103. Logan, Thank you so much for the great testimonial! I'm glad it worked for you! I'll probably feature your post on the blog for any who are skeptical. Thanks again!

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  104. dave, does the syrup have to be piping hot when added to the marshmallow, or can it be cooled to around 115 degrees before being added? Or, if I want to use agave, can I add it after the hot gelitin syrup is added, hence not heating the agave too much so that it is still "raw"?

    Thank you.

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  105. Sounds so delicious. Unfortuntelly, I don't know where to get some of the ingredients in Germany. -Alessandra

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  106. Hello Marshmallow Fans.

    Just an FYI that I found out that REDPATH sugar is vegan friendly. No animal byproducts used.

    Beki

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  107. I've made these a few times now...I doubled the sugar because I have an insane sweet tooth. They came out great. I coated one batch in toasted coconut! Thanks for posting this!

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  108. Hi,
    Quick question: "Use a candy thermometer and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it reaches 230 degrees." Is that 230 Fahrenheit?

    I'm in the UK and trying to get together the ingredients for these if anyone knows where I can get them?

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  109. Yes, that is fahrenheit. Some people in th UK use pea protein isolate instead of soy, if that is helpful...

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  110. Cool thanks,
    Its actually the corn syrup and guar gum I'm having the most trouble locating :)
    do you know if Xantham gum is a suitable alternative to Guar?

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  111. Yes! Xanthan gum can replace guar. No problem there. Also, check out my "No Corn Syrup Marshmallow" recipe to get around that problem.

    http://veganmarshmallows.blogspot.com/2009/04/corn-free-vegan-marshmallow-recipe.html

    Happy Marshmallowing!

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  112. A quick search for Carrageenan on wikipedia.org turns up some significant (in my mind) health concerns. Any thoughts on these issues? Are there alternatives to Carrageenan - such as methylcellulose?

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  113. Good question. Here's another response from Eden Organic. I think the jury is still out on carrageenan. Nothing conclusive yet in my mind.

    http://www.edenfoods.com/articles/view.php?articles_id=82

    If you are interested in avoiding it, you will want to experiment with the gel in the sugar syrup part of the recipe and see what does or does not make marshmallows.

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  114. Perhaps hemp protein would work well...

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  115. hi there, I just tried my first attempt at your recipe (which I was soooooooo happy to find) and had very bad results. I thought you might be able to help point out where I went wrong.
    First- My fluff did not fluff at all (after looking at your photo I realized how wrong it was. I used North Coast Naturals Organic Soya Protein Powder & I'm not sure if this is where I went wrong or not.
    Second - I have Genutine 310-C (this is what the company sent me when I explained that I was making vegan marshmallows. When I was making the sugar syrup I used a candy thermometer to bring the temp to 230 ºƒ but it never got as thick as you described in the instructions.
    At the end of the story I ended up with a brownish blob of slime that could of fallen out of a persons nose. HELP!

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  116. Sorry to hear you're having trouble. I'm guessing your biggest issue is with the fluff and likely the protein content of your soy protein. Any protein content less than 90% and your marshmallows go from fluff to snot. :-) Believe me, I made about 40 batches of goo before making a successful marshmallow.

    Soy protein powder is typically in the 50% protein range. Try to find "soy protein isolate." Isolate is 90% protein and should fluff for you.

    Also, I believe you have the correct genutine. You may be in an area of higher or lower altitude than me which might change the temp slightly. Go for a consistency that just begins to be a mass and cleans the bottom of the bowl. It will likely happen at a higher temp for you... likely 235-250.

    I hope that helps. I know your frustration. Hopefully, this will solve your problem.

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  117. Hi,
    I read in an earlier comment that the X-9303 genutine should be purchased over the 400-c. Is this absolutely necessary? I see that the 400-C has locust bean gum in it so I didn't know if that would somehow react with the mixture in a negative way. If the 400-C is used, does the recipe still work?

    Thanks,
    Melinda

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  118. Good question. I don't have any of the 400-c. The only difference may be in the carrageenan. That's just a guess. There are two types. One creates a softer gel than the other.

    There's only one way to find out! Give it a try and let me know how it goes!

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  119. hi there Dave, (DECEMBER 13, 2010 3:14 PM lady here)
    thank you for your help, it turns out I was able to make it just fine once I got the 90% Soya Protein isolate.
    It tastes wonderful! the only thing I'm having issue with now is the texture. My marshmallows are VERY soft and after cutting them into cubes, tossing them very well in the powdered sugar/cornstarch mix and storing them in the refrigerator they keep getting stuck together again. Could this be due to not cooking the Genutine/sugar/corn syrup mix long enough? I took it up to 250ºƒ after your suggestion but not sure if I need to go even higher. (I'm not living in the mountains or anything either, just Toronto Canada)
    I'll keep trying it but if you have any wise words please pass them along.

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  120. Hi there! I've been so tempted to do this, but $42 on the Genutine alone seems like a big investment for marshmallows. About how any batches would the 27oz package of Genutine make?

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  121. 1 oz. is two tablespoons. Each batch requires one tablespoon of Genutine. So, it will make about 54 batches of marshmallows. It works out to less than $1 per batch. That's A LOT of marshmallows! Some people like to share the cost with others since it makes so many.

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  122. Thank you! Sharing sounds like a good idea. :)

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  123. I have tried the fluff as directed and, while I got a lot of volume, I got no "stiff peaks". I am using 90% soy protein isolate, baking powder, guar gum, cold water...in the exact amounts. I am using a kitchenaid mixer. It isn't humid out and I am not sure what I am doing wrong! I have officially tried this 9 times in many alternating ways without success.
    Any suggestions?

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  124. Sounds like you have the right mix. I would keep going with the recipe. As long as you are getting volume, you will likely get marshmallows. There's only one way to find out! Good luck. I think it will be fine. Please report back and let us know how it went.

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  125. Hi Dave, excellent work on these! A vegetarian and marshmellowless for six years, I'm so excited to make these. I went ahead and got the Genutine, a high-quality Xanthan gum (Keltrol; I have done extensive research on to replace the Guar) and VersaWhip 600 as a stabilizer (aaaand some Madagascar vanilla pods for fun).

    Quick question though as I may have overlooked this, can the VersaWhip REPLACE the soy or whey isolate? Or is it just an additive to help stabilize the mixture and make the 'mellows firmer?

    I was hoping to make these today during the Snowpocalypse, but if it can't replace the isolate then it'll have to wait for another day until I can get my hands on some.

    Thanks again for your excellent work on this!
    Amy

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  126. Yes, VersaWhip can replace the entire fluff section of the recipe (which includes the isolate), Have fun! You'll love it!

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  127. Thank you so much for this recipe. I just made it for my vegan roommate's birthday and she was so excited. She hasn't had marshmallows in 7 years!
    Mine came out a little too gooey/soft, which I think may be due to the different vegan gelatin brand that I found at Whole Foods. I'll probably use more next time. They tasted great though so we threw in some Rice Crispies and are now enjoying the awesome results!

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  128. Cara, what brand of gelatin did you use? I was wondering if Natural Desserts or Lieber's would work, and if you would have to adjust the quantity?

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  129. I read about halfway through the comments and came across the concern of what mixer you use. I'm not sure if you ever answered, so I'm asking. Now, I have a vintage regular Sunbeam mixer with normal attachments - nothing like the fancy mixer pictured with a giant single whisk. Should I even bother in attempting to make this? I want to make it for Easter. I'm pretty broke right now so I don't want to waste the money on soy protein isolate, etc. I appreciate any advice!

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  130. A vintage mixer will likely burn out doing this. I would not recommend it if you value your mixer. If you don't care too much, go for it.

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  131. First off thank you soo much for the recipe! I didn't have money to buy the Genutine, but I found a pound of carageenan on ebay for $8. I noticed no body has commented on their results from using the carageenan so I thought I'd share. The first time I made it with 1T carageenan plus 1/4t xanthan gum in the sugar syrup in place of the Genutine and 1/4 xanthan gum in place of the guar gum in the fluff. It made a really delicious marshmallow fluff that I put into chocolates. This time I used about 1 1/2 T carageenan and 1/2 t xanthan gum in the sugar syrup. I added an extra 1/4 t xanthan gum in the fluff. I let the fluff whip for about 20 minutes. I was worried the extra carageenan would give them a seaweed flavor since I could smell it when I was cooking the syrup, so I added an extra 1t of vanilla also. Oh, also I have a kitchen aid mixer. I just turned it off and took the bowl off the stand while I poured the syrup in, then hurried and re-attached it and turned it on high. No mess at all. Anyways, they turned out as the most perfect melt in your mouth marshmallows :D thanks again!

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  132. i didn't know that it was only made out of that recipe

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  133. How can I use Versawhip to replace fluff? I've read all over and can't find a definitive answer. I thought I saw one before buying the versawhip, but now can't locate. Thanks in advance. Have Genutine and experience making non-vegan marshmallows, so just need the VersaWhip key.

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  134. Whip 2T of VersaWhip with 1/4C of water to replace the fluff part of the basic recipe.

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  135. Hi, i am very interested in making the marhmallows.. but i came across several websites stating that soy protein isolate is harmful.. are there any other alternatives?

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  136. David, thanks for the VersaWhip tip! Love the marshmallows gone wild ebook too, BTW!

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  137. Hi Dave--

    I've been happily making this recipe for nearly two years now (I first posted here thanking you for it in October of 2009). I prefer the look of mallows piped and snipped into the traditional shape, which look great in cocoa or on a roasting stick.

    After all this time, I wondered if you could answer a couple of questions for me:

    1)My mallows sometimes come out more firm than other times, is it the temperature of the marshmallow creme before I fill the pastry bag? They always seem to be firmer in the winter (in a much cooler house).

    2)I live at 4,500 feet elevation, and have read that for candy recipes I should decrease the temp 2 degrees for every 1,000 feet, which would suggest that I stop cooking the syrup at 222 degrees. If anything, I find that if I want to get the thicker syrup that pulls away from the bottom of the pan, I have to go to at least 240 degrees. Do you think I'm overcooking the syrup, or should I just go with sight rather than temp?

    I do love your recipe (which I always double and have better fluffiness in my KitchenAid stand mixer), and have made it at least a dozen times in the last two years, which have been enjoyed by my veg and non-veg friends and family. Thanks again!

    Rachael Bush

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  138. did anyone else find that these marshmallows had a slightly off-white/beige color to them? I used Agar Powder in this recipe and found i actually needed to use closer to 3 tbsp likely due to the fact that its summer and hot outside. I made a makeshift splatter guard out of seran wrap and just wrapped it around my mixer although i did not find it made much a mess. My marshmallows ar ein the fridge as we speak :)

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  139. you're amazing! thank you sooo much! :)

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  140. thanks for the awesome recipe...!:)

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  141. Thank you very much for the marshmallow recipe. I crave for marshmallows and the world without it (since I became a vegan) was like a night without a moon (or for my dog, a world without his favorite chew). Sob sob..

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  142. mmm. Marshmallows. :] I'd also like to point out that Geffen also makes a vegan gelatine as well(although it is only marketed as vegetarian or kosher). It comes flavored or unflavored and may be easier to find in the US. I found it at my local Adventist book and food store, but it is available online and maybe in other stores.

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  143. How about a vegan marshmallow that uses actual marshmallow? Althaea officinalis. There must be a reason that this natural plant was originally chosen for the recipe.

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  144. If you can't find Ginutine you can use Agar Agar powder or flakes - same amount. I too had no idea where t find it at first so i simply took the suggestion of everyone else on the internet and walked into a health food store and asked; they were out but the girl named off some other places that sold and now i know where to buy it. The biggest part of this recipe is patience!! it took me many many tries and fails to get it right, there are alot of vegan marshmallow recipes on the net but alot of them have egg whites in them so they aren't actually vegan. this is the best recipe so far.

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  145. According to Wikipedia the marshmallow plant, Althaea officinalis, root was used for flavor in a french recipe called pâte de guimauve (apparently a medicinal confection) which had an eggwhite meringue base and seems to be the predecessor to the modern Marshmallow which no longer contains the plant root (the medicinal part) at all. It doesn't seem to be helpful in setting up vegan marshmallows. Too bad :(

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  146. Heyhey,
    thanks so much for this recipie, it worked quite well with carageenan and xanthan gum. i just had one problem...they didn't get white more like a light-brownish colour...why???
    any ideas??
    Thx Anja

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  147. I made the recipe 2 times first time it was way too runny , it was fluffy but when I put it in the pan it just ran. Second run I added extra Guar made it a bit stiffer but not enough make squares. I actually found the taste to be nice. But this is more of a marshmallow fluff than marshmallows.

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  148. To avoid the sticky mess, even if you don't have a collar for your stand mixer, you can make a sleeve (like a souffle sleeve) out of parchment or foil. No apologies necessary.

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  149. I replaced the genutine directly with agar and it seemed to work just fine for me. I don't know how it would've been with the genutine, but it's good enough for me. I just wanted marshmallows to make rice krispie treats. You can see my photos on my blog: http://www.bambooblossom.co.za/2013/08/making-vegan-marshmallows.html

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  150. I just made meringue with Aqua Faba, my granddaughter thought it tasted like marshmallow, it was hard though not soft like marshmallow. I wonder if you could substitute the soy protein for Aqua Faba, (chickpea, juice, from cooked chickpeas. ) The chickpea juice is supposedly exactly the same chemically as the albumen in eggs, hence, the reason it whips up so well.

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