Homemade Marshmallows without Corn Syrup (How to Make)

If you want to learn how to make homemade marshmallows, this is a great recipe for you!

With only 3 simple ingredients, this homemade marshmallows recipe is all you need. It's simple, quick and easy. You can use this basic marshmallow recipe to color and flavor your homemade marshmallow as you like!

I first learned how to make marshmallows many years ago. It was just a one-time try to make my own marshmallows, and they turned out great. 

Making your own marshmallows is quite easy. For basic marshmallows (without corn syrup), you only need 3 main ingredients, i.e. sugar, water, and gelatin and you can make your own fresh batch of homemade marshmallows in no time at all.

The process starts by soaking gelatin in some water. While waiting for the gelatin to bloom and dissolve, the sugar is cooked until it reaches a soft-ball stage. It is then added to gelatin that was already soaked in water and the mixture is whipped until it turns all white, fluffy, and thick. The sugar mixture is poured into a well-greased and dusted mold and let to set at least overnight at room temperature until it is ready to be cut and served.

Some homemade marshmallows recipes call for the use of corn syrup and that is simply to avoid the sugar from crystallizing. I always make mine without corn syrup and it works fine all the time.

You will also notice as you read on that making homemade marshmallows can be quite a sticky affair. However, this can be easily managed with proper greasing of the molds (tins used to pour the marshmallow mixture into) and the knife that is used to cut the marshmallows.

Also, dusting the homemade marshmallows well with sugar-cornstarch mix will ensure the marshmallows do not stick to one another after cutting.

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How to Make

Ingredients

Though one might think that homemade marshmallows are hard to make, they are in fact quite easy.  And if you were to look at the ingredients list, they are very minimal with only 3 main ingredients and even those are pretty basic ones that are easy to find:

• Granulated sugar
• Gelatin (unflavored)
• Hot water

For dusting the finished marshmallows, you would need:

• Icing sugar (powdered sugar or confectioners sugar)
• Cornstarch

And my recipe does not use corn syrup so if you are looking for a marshmallows recipe without corn syrup, this is just for you. 

The other optional ingredients are:

• Flavoring
• Coloring

Though these are optional, they do make a difference to the marshmallows especially the flavoring.

Making the marshmallows (without corn syrup)

1. The process of making homemade marshmallows starts by preparing the molds. It is normally poured into a large dish and then cut up into small pieces once it has set. Any dish is fine for marshmallows, and I often only use my cake tin. An important point to note in preparing the pan or mold is to make sure it is really well-greased and lined. I grease the bottom and side of the pan with butter (you can also use vegetable oil), line it with parchment paper and then grease it again. And right before pouring my marshmallow into it, I dust it with icing sugar – corn starch mix. Making marshmallows can be a really sticky affair so you need to really do this step properly to avoid all the mess.
2. Next is the gelatin powder. Measure it into your mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.
3. Add in half of the hot water and stir to mix.
4. And while waiting for the gelatin to bloom and dissolve, measure the sugar into a small pan and add the remaining hot water to it.
5. Heat the syrup on low heat, and stir until the sugar dissolves.
6. Once it has all dissolved, remove the spoon and let it simmer until it reaches a soft ball stage or between 235 to 240 degrees Fahrenheit or between 112 to 116 degrees Celsius on a candy or sugar thermometer.

What is soft ball stage?

• Soft ball stage is a test used to check on the readiness of syrup. You do this by pouring a few drops of the solution into a saucer filled with cold water. And then you try pushing it with your finger. If the syrup dissolves immediately, the syrup is not ready. Boil it a little longer and test again.
• At soft ball stage, the solution can be molded into a very soft ball with your fingers. An easier way to determine the soft ball stage is by using a thermometer. Soft ball stage is when the solution reaches between 235 to 240 degrees Fahrenheit or between 112 to 116 degrees Celsius.

Mixing the syrup and gelatin

1. Once the syrup is ready, pour it into the gelatin. Stir until the gelatin mixture it is completely dissolved in the hot sugar solution.
2. The next step is whipping up the homemade marshmallow solution. Let the mixture cool down for about 2 minutes, and then whisk it (with a whisk attachment) until it becomes thick and foamy. This would take a good 12 to 15 minutes on medium-high speed.
3. The marshmallow is done when it has increased in volume and has reached a soft peak stage. The peaks will be very soft and they don’t stand stiff. Add vanilla and mix for another minute.
4. To set the homemade marshmallow, pour it into the prepared pan or mold and leave it in a cool place overnight to set completely. 

Cutting the marshmallows

• If you had greased your dish well, removing the marshmallow block from it and paper lining should be an easy process.
• To cut the homemade marshmallows, use a sharp knife. Grease your knife well and dust it with the icing sugar-cornstarch dusting. Keep dusting the knife after each slicing to avoid the marshmallow from sticking to the knife.
• Lift the marshmallow block off the tin and place it on a cutting board. Peel off the sides. Dust the top of the marshmallows generously with the icing sugar-cornstarch dusting. Cut the marshmallows into about 1-inch squares, dusting the knife often.
• Toss the cut marshmallows into more icing sugar – cornstarch mixture mix until they are all well coated. You can put them into a container and gently shake the container to dust the cut marshmallows. Keep them in an airtight container. 

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Notes

Why is lining the tin an important step?

• As you can see above, I have lined my tin with parchment paper and have also thoroughly greased it. This is extremely important because the marshmallow mix is super sticky.
• It remains sticky even after you rest it for a minimum of 8 hours. So if you do not line your mold well, you will end up with your marshmallow sticking miserably to it.
• The parchment lining helps to ease lifting the marshmallow out of the tin. The greasing helps release it from the parchment paper.

Gelatin

• The gelatin I use in this homemade recipe is the powdered one and it's unflavored. And because of this, it sometimes has a pretty strong smell, so the flavoring is quite important. Plain vanilla extract is sufficient to make homemade vanilla marshmallows, but if you want something fancier, you can use any fruit flavors, or coffee flavor or anything else that suits your liking.

Coloring

• Coloring is optional, but then again, if you are planning on matching your homemade marshmallows with the flavoring you’ve added to it, tinting your marshmallows in a matching food coloring can make a whole lot of difference too.

Like this easy recipe? Here are my other posts you might want to check out

• Marshmallow Fondant Recipe
• Almond Chocolate Marshmallow Cupcakes
• Homemade Fondant Recipe
• How to Line a Cake Tin
• Homemade Fried Dough Recipe
• Marshmallow Ghost Treats - Easy Halloween Treats Idea
• Coconut Candy Recipe - With Fresh Grated Coconut
• Butter Mints Candy - Easy Homemade Recipe
• Candied Lemon Peel - How to Make

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Recipe (Printable)

Here is the full printable version of my homemade marshmallow recipe without corn syrup: 

And that is pretty much my sharing on how to make homemade marshmallows without corn syrup. Hope your find this useful.

Enjoy 🙂