The St. Patrick’s Day recipes continue! And besides GREEN, what says St. Patrick’s Day? Beer! Yes, the marshmallows are made with beer. I made mine with a home brewed chocolaty, coffee flavored stout, but a good old Guinness would work well too.
The beer flavor in these marshmallows isn’t over-powering, but you can definitely taste and smell it. The chocolate dip isn’t necessary, but it adds a little something to the marshmallows and pairs especially well with the crunchy, salty pretzels. They’re a unique treat that’s a big hit at parties! If you’ve never made marshmallows from scratch, don’t worry, it’s not as hard as it sounds. I’ve made marshmallows countless times now, and they’ve always turned out good. You will want a candy thermometer on hand to get them just right though. The flavor possibilities are endless with marshmallows, so don’t stop yourself at beer. If you’re looking for more ideas, check out this book dedicated to marshmallows!
Chocolate Stout Marshmallows, adapted from how sweet it is
makes one 9 x 13 pan of marshmallows
- 3 1/2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
- 1 cup cold, flat beer, divided in two
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups dark chocolate morsels
- chopped pretzels
To flatten the beer, take the cap off the bottle and leave open overnight, or pour beer into a bowl and whisk vigorously to remove some carbonation.
Oil a 9 x 13 baking pan and sprinkle on powdered sugar to cover and coat. Set aside. In the bowl of your electric mixer (a whisk attachment is best), pour 1/2 cup cold beer and 3 1/2 packs of gelatin. I gently mixed with a spoon once, then let sit while you make the sugar mixture.
In a medium pot combine sugar, remaining beer, syrup and salt. Heat over low heat and whisk until sugar is dissolved, about 3-5 minutes. Turn heat up to medium and let sugar come to a boil. It will bubbly up so keep yours eye on it so it does not overflow. Let it boil for 8-12 minutes, until it reaches 240 degrees F (measure with a candy thermometer).
Once mixture is at 240 degrees F, turn off heat and gently pour it in the mixer over the gelatin with the mixer on low speed. Once all of the sugar has been added, turn the mixer to high and beat for for 6-8 minutes. It should grow in size and be white and fluffy. About 3-4 minutes in, add the egg whites to a separate bowl and beat with a hand mixer until stiff peaks form. Once stiff peaks are formed, add the egg whites and vanilla extract to the sugar/gelatin mixture and beat until just combined.
Pour marshmallow mix into the 9 x 13 pan. Dust powdered sugar on top and let sit to firm up for 3-5 hours.
Once firm, turn the pan upside down on a cutting board to release marshmallow rectangle. Cut them into pieces of whatever size you like.
Melt chocolate chips. Chop pretzels. Using a fork, toothpick or fondue pick, coat marshmallows in chocolate then sprinkle with or roll in pretzel crumbs. Let sit at room temperature until chocolate hardens. Marshmallows can be stored in an airtight container for about 1 week.
