Create the perfect sweet treat with this recipe for Cotton Candy Marshmallows. You can enjoy them by themselves or add them to your favorite things, such as hot chocolate and ice cream!
Homemade Marshmallows Recipe
If you buy marshmallows at the store, you should try making them at home! This easy dessert recipe uses simple ingredients, such as gelatin, light corn syrup, and sugar!
These Cotton Candy Marshmallows are sweet, flavorful, and perfect to eat as a quick snack. Not only will you love them, but so will your children!
Why You’ll Love this Cotton Candy Marshmallow Recipe:
- Better than store bought. These marshmallows are fresh and flavorful! They taste better than any marshmallows you can buy at the store.
- Customizable. You can customize the colors of your marshmallows!
- Quick recipe. It doesn’t take much effort or time to make the Cotton Candy Marshmallows. You can make them in no time.
How to Make Cotton Candy Marshmallows from Scratch
Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!
- Bloom your gelatin in a bowl of the stand mixer.
- Let your mixture sit for up to 10 minutes. In the meantime, whisk the rest of your water
- with the sugar, corn syrup, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
- Let it simmer for up to eight minutes while whisking it constantly.
- Remove from the heat when the mixture becomes clear.
- Using your whisk attachment, set the mixer to low speed and pour in your sugar mixture.
- After incorporating these ingredients, increase the speed to high for 10 minutes until it becomes fluffy and white.
- Add your cotton candy flavoring, whisk for another two minutes, and then divide the mixture into two bowls. Color one bowl pink and one bowl blue.
- Dust your 9×13 pan with powdered sugar to keep your marshmallows from sticking.
- Spoon them into the pan while alternating the colors.
- Use a rubber spatula to smooth the top and then add more powdered sugar on top.
- Cover with plastic wrap and let the ingredients set for up to 12 hours.
Cotton candy comes predominantly in two flavors: blue raspberry and pink vanilla. The base for both is a compound that tastes like caramelized fruit and sugar mixed with vanilla. Pink vanilla cotton candy is then infused with strawberry flavoring, and blue raspberry is infused with raspberry flavoring. For this recipe, any cotton candy flavoring or extract will produce that familiar fair flavor. I recommend LorAnn.
Marshmallows do not need to be baked. Instead, the gelatin must be allowed to set in order to produce firm, squishy marshmallows. These are a great no-bake treat!
This recipe calls for packets of powdered gelatin. You can also use gelatin sheets, substituting 4 sheets per tablespoon of gelatin powder. One packet of gelatin is 2½ teaspoons, so for this recipe, use 2½ tablespoons of powder or 10 sheets of gelatin.
These cotton candy marshmallows use corn syrup to prevent sugar crystallization, which would lead to grainy marshmallows with a harder, less fluffy texture more akin to Circus Peanuts.
Store leftover marshmallows in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 month or freeze them for up to 3 months.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- After letting your marshmallows set, you can dust off any excess powdered sugar.
- Cut the marshmallows into 1-inch squares or use a cookie cutter to make them into fun shapes.
- You can use different food coloring if you want to make your marshmallows a different color, such as green, red, or orange.
Cotton candy marshmallows are as sweet as they sound! These treats are easy to prepare and everyone will love them. Make a batch of these marshmallows today!
If you make this recipe be sure to leave us a comment or rating. Enjoy!
Cotton Candy Marshmallows Recipe
Ingredients
- 2½ tablespoons powdered gelatin 21 grams (3 standard packets)
- 1 cup cold water 227 grams, divided (50°F)
- 1½ cups granulated sugar 297 grams
- ¾ cup light corn syrup 234 grams
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons cotton candy flavoring 8 grams (2 fl drams)
- Pink and blue food coloring
- ¾ cup powdered sugar 85 grams
Equipment
- Kitchen Scale (optional)
Instructions
- Bloom the gelatin in the bowl of a stand mixer by whisking the gelatin and half of the water. Let stand for 8-10 minutes.2½ tablespoons powdered gelatin, 1 cup cold water
- While the gelatin is blooming, whisk the remaining water, sugar, corn syrup and salt together in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Allow to simmer for 6-8 minutes, whisking constantly. The mixture will start to become clear. Remove from the heat.1½ cups granulated sugar, ¾ cup light corn syrup, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Using a whisk attachment, turn the mixer to low speed and slowly pour in the sugar mixture. Once incorporated, continue to whisk for another minute. Increase speed to high for 10 minutes or until a fluffy, white, marshmallow mixture has formed.
- Add in the cotton candy flavoring and whisk for another minute. Divide marshmallow mixture into two separate bowls. Color each of them pink and blue.2 teaspoons cotton candy flavoring, Pink and blue food coloring
- Dust a 9×13-inch pan with powdered sugar to prevent the marshmallows from sticking. Spoon the marshmallow into the pan in alternating colors. Using a rubber spatula, smooth the top. Dust with the remaining powdered sugar. Cover with plastic wrap and let set for 8-12 hours.¾ cup powdered sugar
- Once set, remove the marshmallow slab from the pan and place it onto a cutting board. Dust off any excess powdered sugar. Cut the marshmallows into 1-inch squares. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- After letting your marshmallows set, you can dust off any excess powdered sugar.
- Cut the marshmallows into 1-inch squares or use a cookie cutter to make them into fun shapes.
- You can use different food coloring if you want to make your marshmallows a different color, such as green, red, or orange.
I think that I needed to whip the mixture longer than the 10 minutes. They came out okay and very pretty, but they were more shiny and wet, more like jello than marshmallows.
I’m sorry to hear this recipe didn’t quite work out as planned, Susan!