Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Food & Drink

How to make marshmallows: This recipe is the perfect Easter treat

Marshmallows: The homemade version of this popular Easter candy is easier to make than you think

Lindsay Parrill
Sam Slaughter
By and
Homemade Easter Marshmellow Peeps
McCormick

Marshmallow candies are as much a hallmark of the Easter holiday as chocolate, ham, and drinking Champagne until your burps come out speaking French. Of course, you can always go out and buy the beloved Easter marshmallows we all know and love, but making your own at home is actually a really fun activity for the holiday, especially if you have little ones at home.

We absolutely love this recipe from McCormick. Learn how to make marshmallows this Easter.

Recommended Videos

Easter marshmallow recipe

homemade easter marshmallow sugar dip
McCormick

Ingredients:

For colored sugar:

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • McCormick Assorted NEON! Food Colors & Egg Dye

For marshmallows:

  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup cold water, divided
  • .5 cup light corn syrup
  • 2 envelopes (.25 oz each) unflavored gelatin
  • 1 tablespoon McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract

homemade easter marshmallow sugar

Method:

For the colored sugar:

  1. Place sugar in a large resealable plastic bag. Select your desired Marshmallow Variation in the tips section below and add the designated amount of Food Color with the sugar.
  2. Seal the bag and knead gently until the color is evenly distributed.
  3. Spread colored sugar in a thin layer on a large rimmed baking sheet and break up any large lumps. Allow to dry thoroughly, about 15 to 20 minutes.
  4. Sift or press through the sieve, if needed. Spray 13 x 9-inch baking dish with no-stick cooking spray then coat with some of the colored sugar. Set aside.

For the marshmallows:

  1. Microwave .5 cup of the water, sugar, and corn syrup in a medium microwavable bowl on high for 7 minutes. Stir to dissolve sugar.
  2. Microwave on high for 5 minutes longer. (Mixture will have a slight yellow tint.) Carefully remove the hot bowl from the microwave.
  3. Place the remaining .5 cup water in a large mixer bowl. Sprinkle with gelatin. Let stand 5 minutes.
  4. Gradually beat in hot syrup mixture with a whisk attachment on medium-low speed. Beat 8 minutes. Increase speed to medium-high.
  5. Beat 10 to 12 minutes longer or until the mixture is fluffy, shiny, and has at least tripled in volume. Beat in vanilla.
  6. Spread marshmallow mixture in the prepared dish. Smooth top with a spatula. Sprinkle some more of the colored sugar on top to coat. Let stand at room temperature overnight or refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
  7. Reserve the remaining colored sugar in a large resealable plastic bag or airtight container.
  8. Cut marshmallows with 1- to 2-inch Easter cookie cutters. Add marshmallows in batches to reserved colored sugar in the bag; toss to coat well. Shake off excess. Store marshmallows in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

For marshmallow color variations:

  • Pink: For the colored sugar, add 10 drops of pink color with the sugar.
  • Purple: For the colored sugar, add 5 drops purple color and 8 drops blue color with the sugar.
  • Blue: For the colored sugar, add 15 drops of blue color with the sugar.
homemade easter marshmallow face
McCormick

Note: To prepare marshmallows as seen in the photo, prepare the baking dish as directed, sprinkling the pink, purple, and blue colored sugars in stripes in the bottom of the dish. Prepare marshmallows as directed. Decorate the top of the marshmallows with stripes similar to the bottom. Cut into bunny shapes and sprinkle sides with remaining sugar. Melt chocolate chips as directed on the package and use to paint or pipe on the bunny face, if desired.

Related

To prepare Colored Sugar using McCormick Nature’s Inspiration Food Colors, add .25 teaspoon desired color and 1 teaspoon water to sugar. Continue as directed.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Lindsay Parrill
Lindsay Parrill
Contributor
Lindsay is a graduate of California Culinary Academy, Le Cordon Bleu, San Francisco, from where she holds a degree in…
Your guide to the pescatarian diet for healthier living
If you're considering a new way of eating, this may be the perfect diet for you
Pea puree with fish

Are you thinking of changing your diet? If a healthier you is on the to-do list this year, you might consider the pescatarian diet. At its core, the pescatarian diet eliminates all meat except for fish and seafood. Plenty of research tells us eating red meat increases your chances of heart disease and even death by 3% to 7%. The study even suggests that eating poultry twice a week increases these risks by 4%.

You may have heard of the Blue Zone Diet. If you're not familiar, Blue Zones are areas around the world where people live the longest, healthiest lives. The research was conducted by Dan Buettner, a National Geographic fellow and bestselling author. These zones are located in Japan, Italy, Costa Rica, Greece, and California. There are a number of practices you can put in place to follow the Blue Zone Diet if you wish. However, for our purposes, it's simply important to note that the people living the longest and healthiest lives were neither vegans nor meat-eaters. They're pescatarians.
What is the pescatarian diet?

Read more
Get creative: How to use hibiscus in your cocktails this spring
How to use hibiscus in cocktails
Alcoholic cocktail with pieces of fruit and berries in a bowl

Hibiscus is a great ingredient to incorporate into your cocktail game. Offering radiant color and a unique flavor, the flower is often converted to tea but also can be used as a syrup, lesser-known liqueur, soda, and more. And we especially like it in a good spring cocktail, as hibiscus is both floral and refreshing.

Why hibiscus in a cocktail? Because your mixology game could use a little creativity. There are enough boring cocktails out there made with the same old lineup of ingredients. Those are fine for regulars, but you're a budding cocktail artist.

Read more
How to make the perfect carnitas, according to a chef
Check out these tips and tricks to make chef-worthy carnitas
Pork carnitas tacos

If you’ve ever had street tacos, whether from an actual street vendor or an upscale restaurant, you’ve likely had carnitas — whether you knew it or not. Carnitas grew in popularity through Mexican street tacos, but people use it in various dishes, from nachos to chimichangas. Carnitas are most commonly known to be pork, but it can really be any sort of meat cooked in its own fat (confit). The word carnitas in Spanish translates to "little meats."

You can learn how to make carnitas at home -- it isn't difficult. However, it’s not just a matter of throwing a chunk of pork in a pot, and then it turns into delicious carnitas. There are some crucial steps to cooking the perfect batch of carnitas. That’s why we reached out to an expert in Mexican cuisine.

Read more