Turmeric Hot Cocoa & Maple Marshmallows

This season I have seen tons of delightful posts of homemade marshmallows that look beautiful, pillowy, and delicious.  I wanted to make some to add to my cocoa but found that they are essentially refined sugar and corn syrup.  Not wanting to be left out of the fun, I decided to see if there was a way to make them with a healthier sweetener.  I thought honey would be too intense and so I decided to experiment with maple.  The results were a huge success: Fluffy caramel colored marshmallows that melt beautifully into cocoa.

I am by no means a marshmallow expert, so I took most of my cues from Martha Stewart as far as the how-to and simply switched the ingredients to be more "Naked Figgy." I also did use some refined sugar (organic powdered sugar) in making these because the marshmallows need to be rolled in something powdery to keep them from being too sticky.  If you want to completely avoid the sugar, try rolling them in cinnamon or cacao.

Adding turmeric to my cocoa is one of my favorite winter treats.  Its flavorful and full of superfoods.  For more info on the health benefits of turmeric check out my Turmeric and Fig Shake.  For more info on the benefits of maca look at my Raw Avocado Tart recipe.  The cocoa mix makes a great little gift in a small mason jar.  Pair it with some homemade marshmallows for a last minute gift.

Turmeric Hot Cocoa:

2 1/2 tbsp raw cacao

2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp maca powder

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Put all ingredients in a jar.  Heat 1 cup of milk or plant milk and whisk in 2 teaspoons cocoa mix.  Sweeten with maple syrup, honey, or coconut sugar to taste.

Maple Marshmallows:

3 packets gelatin

1 cup cold water (split into two half cups)

1 cup maple syrup

1/4 tsp salt

2 tsp organic vanilla extract

oil for brushing

organic powdered sugar for coating

Pour gelatin into standing mixer and add 1/2 cup of water.  Let this sit for at least 5 minutes.  Meanwhile, put maple syrup, salt, and the remaining 1/2 cup of water in a small saucepan on medium-high heat.  Martha Stewart says to heat until syrup reaches 238 degrees.  I do not have a candy thermometer so I just heated it for 9 minutes.

At a low speed, begin pouring hot syrup into the stand mixer.  Be careful because it will burn if it splashes on you.  Slowly turn the mixer up to high and leave it mixing for 12 minutes, adding vanilla extract in the last minute. At this point the mixture should look like marshmallow fluff and will come off of a spoon in ribbons.

During the twelve minutes, line a baking dish with parchment paper and brush the paper with oil.  When the marshmallow mixture is ready, pour it into the dish and allow it to firm up for about 4 hours.

When the marshmallows are firm, turn them out of the dish and onto a sheet of parchment paper coated with powdered sugar.  Coat a knife with oil and slice the marshmallows into 1.5 inch cubes.  Toss each marshmallow in the powdered sugar to coat.

Store marshmallows in an airtight container for 3-4 days.  Homemade marshmallows do not stand up to flames well so use caution when roasting because they melt fast.  I still managed to brown them a bit though.  Enjoy!

Happy Solstice and Merry Christmas!