Marshmallow Monday

I know it's not Monday, but Marshmallow Tuesday just doesn't have the same ring to it.

Some of you, based on a few emails I've received, have been waiting with bated sugary breath for a new marshmallow experiment. For the record, I said I'd try a new one every week or so. To me, this means every 1 - 3 weeks. Any longer than that and it would be every month or so. Thank you for your patience and your fabulous marshmallow ideas.

I had originally planned to make dulce de leche marshmallows but wasn't sure how exactly to do it. Then Carson Park Ranger left a comment about filled churros in Chile that got me inspired. I decided I'd make marshmallows flavored with strong Mexican vanilla, fill them with dulce de leche and coat them in a sugar/cinnamon topping to mimic the churros. So now I give you:

Carson Park Ranger's Dulce de Leche Filled Marshmallows

First you need to make the dulce de leche, which is really easy. All you do is take a can of sweetened condensed milk, remove the label and stick it in a pot of water. Make sure the water covers the can completely. Boil this for 3-4 hours (It will be runny at 3, fairly firm at 4.) You'll need to keep adding water to keep the can covered as it boils off. Let it cool. Open it up and....voila! Yummy, milky, sweet caramel. Some people will tell you that you should poke a hole in the can before boiling it so it doesn't explode. Just ignore this alarmist talk. The hole just makes you have to cook it a lot longer. It'll be fine. Trust me.

Make the regular vanilla marshmallows as described earlier. Pour half of the marshmallow goop in the pan and use a spatula to smooth it out. Then pour on the dulce de leche. Smooth this all over the top of the marshmallow.

Then put the rest of the marshmallow goop on top of that and smooth it out. Then comes your real decision: The marshmallow or the dulce de leche. Which to lick first?

Let the pan sit uncovered for eight hours, then gently flip it over onto your work surface spread with powdered sugar and cornstarch. Cut it into strips and then cut those into cubes.

This picture might give you pause to indulge in a delectable little fantasy about being the dulce de leche filling in a Heraldo/Carson Park Ranger marshmallow. Or maybe that's just me.


Add a little cinnamon to your powdered sugar/cornstarch mixture, stir and coat your marshmallows. They're certainly not the prettiest things in the world, but they totally make up for it in taste.

Here are a few comments from my favorite random taste testers:

Anonymous Taste Tester #1: "Mmmmmmmm. Mmmmmmmmmmmmm."

Blogger Nerd Taste Tester #1: "I think I'm going to go into sugar shock. But I don't care."

Anonymous Taste Tester #2: "These are unbelievable."

Blogger Nerd Taste Tester #2: "I like these marshmallows more than long boring meetings and porn."

Curmudgeonly Work Taste Tester: "These are...interesting." (as she grabs two more and shoves them in her mouth)

Enjoy!