Yes. They brown, they melt, they even fluff if you burn them. You won't be able to tell the difference in the campfire.
How do they freeze? I'm thinking of making Rocky Road ice cream.
They freeze great. You will not detect any difference in the texture of the marshmallow when it is frozen. It will simply be colder. They do not harden if frozen.
Can I make marshmallow fluff with a version of this recipe?
Absolutely.
Seriously, what do I need to do to make marshmallow fluff?
I have no idea. I haven't tried yet. Hopefully, I will have a recipe soon! ;-) My best guess is to add more water to the sugar syrup and/or cook the sugar syrup less. I would start by using 1 cup of water in the sugar syrup rather than 1/2 cup. I would also cook it to probably 220 degrees, not 230.
Can I use vital wheat gluten instead of soy protein isolate?
I attempted to make the fluff part of the recipe with vital wheat gluten. The result was about 75% as firm as using soy protein isolate. My best guess is that it would produce a marshmallow somewhere between marshmallow fluff and a firm marshmallow. I wouldn't recommend using gluten as your protein source, but if you're jonesing for a marshmallow and that's all you got, go for it!
How did you develop this recipe?
A ton of trial and error. I also did extensive research on molecular gastronomy, hydrocolloids, and gelatin-based marshmallows. I documented most of my process primarily at Bryanna Clark Grogan's Vegan Feast Open Cooking Forum and the Post Punk Kitchen Forum. I also participated in other molecular gastronomy forums. Many thanks to all of them and to the dozens of kind vegans and molecular gastronomy experts who offered their ideas and support.
Why is it open-source?
My hope is that others will contribute their ideas on how to make basic marshmallow recipe even better.
You have a copyright on your variations of the basic recipe. Why?
I wanted all vegans to have access to a basic marshmallow recipe that works. Someone needed to establish the science of making a vegan marshmallow for all to see. Variations beyond that come from my ideas and creativity. That's the art of cooking that I believe is my own. Do I smell a cookbook in the works? You never know...
