I think snowman marshmallows might be my favorite ever marshmallows. Especially if they’re mint flavored and homemade. These mint snowman marshmallows are so incredibly festive and cute; they never fail to get me into the holiday mood.
If you’ve never had homemade marshmallows and you’re a fan of marshmallows in general, you need to make marshmallows from scratch. They’re like a whole other species: super soft, fluffy and plush. They just melt in your mouth. Honestly, I think clouds probably taste like super puffy marshmallows.
Homemade marshmallows probably seem a bit intimidating, but they’re actually pretty simple. The only caveat is that you need a stand mixer because the marshmallow mixture is whipped for over 20 minutes and it gets super thick and fluffy which will basically make your arm fall off if you try to do it by hand.
How to make homemade marshmallows
- Prep your pan. Butter and use powdered sugar to lightly dust a pan or glass baking dish.
- Bloom the gelatin. Add the gelatin to some cold water in the bowl of your stand mixer and let sit/bloom.
- Heat up sugar, corn syrup, and water to 240°-245°F, the firm ball candy stage. If you have a candy thermometer, clip it into your pan, making sure the bulb isn’t touching the base, otherwise it’ll get a false reading.
- Slowly add the hot sugar to the gelatin in the bowl of the stand mixer. Then whip until fluffy and marshmallow-y.
- After you have marshmallow fluff, it’s time to spread it in the pan and let it cure until firm.
- After that, you can cut it out and decorate it. You did it, you made marshmallows!
Marshmallow ingredients
- Sugar – regular granulated white sugar is the bulk of this recipe
- Corn syrup – this helps prevent the sugar from crystallizing and keeps your marshmallows super soft
- Gelatin – gelatin is what’s going to set the marshmallows
- Mint extract – these guys are mint marshmallows and a little bit of mint extract is what gives them that coolminty flavor. These marshmallows are amazing in hot chocolate! If you’re not a fan of mint, feel free to use the extract of your choice
Do I need a stand mixer to make homemade marshmallows?
Unfortunately, yes. The hot sugar and gelatin mixture takes about 20 minutes to whip up on high and the fluffier it gets, the stickier and more difficult it is to whip. Our current mixer is the KitchenAid Artisan Mini and it’s awesome, but sold out everywhere as of this writing. There are some available on amazon still, although refurbished.
Why make snowman marshmallows
- You love projects and you’re tired of making sourdough
- You’ve never made candy before – this is a great first candy to make!
- You love marshmallows and these are pure melt in your mouth fluffiness
- You want to see little snowman faces melting away in your hot chocolate
What if i don’t have time to make homemade marshmallows?
You can make these snowmen with store bought marshmallows!
- Cut jumbo marshmallows in half with a pair of scissors.
- Dip the sticky sides into icing sugar, then shake off the excess.
- Decorate with melted orange candy melts noses and melted dark chocolate eyes and mouths.
How to store homemade marshmallows
There’s no denying it, these guys have a lot of sugar in them. But, because they’re most all all sugar, they keep for a really long time. Make sure they’re in an air tight container and keep them at room temp – they’ll stay soft and squishy for up to 3 weeks.
I hope you have a chance to make these little guys! They are so worth it as a pick-me up on a random winter afternoon. Their little faces melting will definitely make you squee with the cuteness.
More fun holiday projects
- Super Simple Cut-Out Gingerbread Cookies
- Mini Gingerbread Houses
- Pull Apart Christmas Bread
- Peppermint Bark Crepe Cake Recipe
- Peppermint Bark Cookies
- Festive Caramel Corn and Rice Krispie Mix
- Small Batch Cookies – 1 Egg to 4 Cookies: Snickerdoodle, Chocolate Chip, Sugar, and Ginger
- Dark Chocolatey Drizzled Flaky Sea Salt Kettle Corn
- Gingerbread Corgi Cookies
melty snowman marshmallows forever!
xoxo
steph
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp gelatin 1 envelope
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp corn syrup
- 1 pinch salt
- 1/4 tsp mint extract
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup candy melts orange
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate chopped
Special Equipment
- stand mixer
Instructions
Prep
- Bloom the gelatin: In the bowl of your stand mixer, pour in 1/4 cup of cold water. Sprinkle the gelatin on top and mix to moisten. Pan: lightly butter an 8x8 inch pan, then dust with icing sugar. If desired, line with parchment paper. Tools: Lightly butter a spatula and an offset spatula.
Marshmallows
- In a pot, mix together the sugar, corn syrup and 1/4 cup water. Stir until the sugar is incorporated and wet, then bring to a gentle boil over medium high heat, swirling occasionally to distribute the heat. Heat until the mixture reaches 240°-245°F. When the sugar mix comes to temp, remove it from the heat and let the bubbles subside. Sprinkle in a bit of salt and add the mint extract to the gelatin. Carefully pour the sugar into the bowl of the stand mixer.
- With the whisk attachment, turn the stand mixer to low and beat for 2 minutes. Increase the speed to high and whip until the marshmallows double to triple in size and are fluffy and white, about 10-15 minutes.
- When the marshmallows are full and white and fluffy, use your buttered spatula to help pour them into the prepared 8x8 pan. Smooth out with the buttered offset spatula and lightly dust the tops with powdered sugar. Let cure in the pan for 3-6 hours.
- Remove the marshmallows from the pan and place on an icing sugar dusting cutting board. Lightly butter a 1 inch round cutter and cut out snowmen heads.
- Dust with powdered sugar and use melted orange candy melts and dark chocolate to pipe on eyes, mouths, and noses. Let set then enjoy as is or in hot chocolate!
these are adorable! i made a pan of plain cubed marshmallows once, and they didn’t excite me. but after seeing these and hearing about all the amazing ways you can flavor them, i’m going to have to try them out again (: and i bet these would be super impressive for a gift with a side of homemade hot chocolate mix!
That looks so cute!! :)
Whaaaa?? This is so gorgeous!! And creative girl. Love, love, love!
so cute!!
This is the cutest thing ever!
These are the CUTEST THINGS I’ve ever ever EVER seen. EVER!! Ahhhhh I’m so in love with them. (Also, omg hand-whisked marshmallows?! my arms are getting tired just typing those words!! you are superwoman.)
cuuuuuttttteeeee.
These are seriously the cutest things I’ve ever seen! You have such a creative soul! I love it
Well these are basically the cutest thing I’ve ever seen!
these are unbelievably cute! I’ve never made homemade marshmallows but you may have just inspired me to try :) I love their little faces so much!
dear. god. i can’t handle this cuteness!!!! DYING!!!!
I love these! Definitely going to make them. I’m wondering about storing the extras. Would you recommend eating them the day of, or can you store them in an airtight container for a few days with them still tasting good?
they’re best the day of, but you can put them in an airtight container for a couple of days! they’ve never lasted longer for me, so i’m not sure how long up to they will be soft for :)
Wow! Omg! That’s such a great idea! They look amazing!
Haha these marshmallows make me laugh! These are just so adorable and so creative. I’m not courageous enough to make my own marshmallows but I really should just do it to cross if off my bucket list!
Those are ridiculously cute.
AH! So cute. I can barely handle it.
These pictures are amazing! Too cute! I am looking to start my own food blog, an was wondering do you recommend spending the money on a logo and website design when your first starting out??
These are so adorable. Happy Holidays! x
So cute and looks yummy!
Ahh! I don’t know if I’d be able to eat them, they’re too cute! Love the peppermint flavoring too – I bet it tasted great in hot chocolate :)
I’m dying. These are adorable!!! Do you think a hand held electric mixer/beater thing work just as well?
a handheld will work, just make sure you beat it long enough!
olaf noooooo.
the melting little snowman faces are the best.
These are quite possibly the most unbelievably adorable thing I’ve seen for the holidays! I am love love loving them!! :) x
Such adorable little marshmallows! Almost too cute to eat :P Homemade marshmallows are definitely on my culinary bucket list, they sound so delicious :)
Would these be difficult to package up individually for presents?
i think they would package up nicely! if you’re concerned about the freshness of the marshmallows, i recommend using store bought, cut in half with the sticky side lightly dusted with icing sugar. store bought marshmallows tend to stay soft for a lot longer than homemade. hope that helps!
Jam having trouble getting chocolate to stick to marshmallows due to the icing sugar… Ideas?
maybe there’s too much icing sugar on the surface of the marshmallows? it should be just a light dusting, you should barely be able to feel it, it’s just to take the stickiness off.
And here I thought cocoa with marshmallows couldn’t get any better. So glad I stumbled upon your easy-to-follow, beautifully designed blog… And make marshmallows later today! Might do some devilish ones for cocoa friends on the naughty list
holy CRAP these are freaking cute, Steph!!!! i have still never made marshmallows. what is my deal?? but these are way too hilariously cute. i love how you just punch out those fluffy shapes. hmm, so many ideas and options for marshy shapes!!! XO
PS SMART CALL on orange candy melts as noses!!
Adorable! These are perfect for kids AND adults!
These are so cute! The way it is shown, it looks easy! I’m sure I might struggle to make the little snowman faces, but it definitely seems worth it. Next time I plan to make something, I’ll definitely consider this recipe!
These are so adorable! I still haven’t tried making homemade marshmallows but it’s on my long list of things I want to make for the holidays :)
I am very excited to try this recipe this coming winter months!
Favorite Christmas and/or memory? Newly married, husband and I visited my aunt and uncle in NY on Christmas Eve. Uncle was dying (even ill, he’d taken me up the altar past May wedding), aunt was elderly, and they had no tree up. My aunt said it was too much trouble to put up, and esp. take down.
Husband and I went looking for a tree later that night, and finally found a somewhat ragged one selling for a pittance. We decorated that eve, had a lovely Christmas, and took it down before we left for home.
My uncle died soon thereafter. I think often of that 1976 Christmas.
These are almost too cute to eat – almost :)
Great idea! Saw this on Pinterest but didn’t know it was you who created the marshmallows. Gonna give this a shot. Kids will be delighted. Super photos.
How stinkin CUTE !!!! Can’t wait to make these over the holidays. MERRY CHRISTMAS !!!!
Yummy
Just in time for the holidays! The orange nose is so cuteeeeee!
My favorite Christmas memory is from every Christmas morning of my childhood. At our house Santa put ALL the gifts under the tree, ones from family members were wrapped of course and the one from Santa was unwrapped. We went to bed on Christmas eve and there wasn’t a gift in sight but when we came down on Christmas morning gifts were spilling out in to the living room…it was magical! I still love that sight when I come down on Christmas morning in my own home!
Whoa. Crazy mad props to you for hand whisking your first marshmallows! I can barely whisk whipped cream by hand. Will def try your marshmallow recipe because you don’t use corn syrup. Curious to see how the texture or taste is different from what I’ve been doing. Thanks for the inspiration & recipe.
Cute hot chocolate snowmen! Can u make marshmallows without gelatin for vegetarians?
i haven’t tried – i have had store bought vegetarian marshmallows and they aren’t quite the same, but you could buy veggie ones and decorate them!
So freaking cute!!
These are so cute! Your photography is beautiful!
omg these mint snowman marshmallows look soo adorable!! I have to test them out soon!! Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Wow these are so cute and probably very tasty! Plus they seem pretty simple. Like you said just a few ingredients and you can make your own homemade candy. I’ll definitely be trying these out in some delicious hot chocolate. I can’t wait to see how they come out. Thanks for the great recipe!
I had no idea that you could make your own marshmallows! I know what I’m doing this weekend! I don’t think my kids will have any complaints ;)
Help! I need detailed instructions on how to make the snowmen faces. Thanks!
melt your chocolate and put into a piping bag or ziplock bag. cut off the tip, you only want a very small hole. pipe on dots for eyes and dots for a smile. melt the orange candy melts and put into a piping bag or ziplock bag. cut off the tip and pipe out orange triangles. hope that helps!
Will these freeze? I have a Christmas party on Sunday and only have time to make them tonight!
hi stephanie,
they won’t freeze, but will keep at room temp until sunday! just the same as regular marshmallows :)
For Mexican Cocoa I will use peppercorns for the smile and eyes and incorporate a little cinnamon into the mallow! So excited to share this…:) Yummm
OoOoOoOoO~ I made an entire batch and they tasted AMAZING
And im really late to reply ;w;
so late
What a cute idea! These are adorable and would be fun to serve after the kids come in from playing in the snow.