As February approaches, my cravings always gravitate towards two irresistible delights, both united by a common love—chocolate! The dynamic duo in question? Hot chocolate and chocolate-covered strawberries. Enter Piper and Leaf, where we've crafted a heavenly concoction that seamlessly merges my two absolute favorites: Velvet Bliss.
Velvet Bliss, a blissful black tea that transports your taste buds to the sublime realm of a chocolate-covered strawberry. Can it get any better than that? But wait, there's more to add to this delightful equation—marshmallows! Because let's be honest, what's hot chocolate without its fluffy companions?
Now, envision taking all the delectable goodness of hot chocolate-covered strawberries—aka Velvet Bliss—and transforming it into the form of a marshmallow. Yes, you heard it right. Velvet Bliss Marshmallows. It's an unbeatable combination that promises to elevate your hot chocolate experience to new heights.
So, here we are, eager to share the magic of Velvet Bliss marshmallows with you. May your chocolate be piping hot, and your marshmallows, oh so velvety. Here's to happy sipping and indulging in sweet wonders! Cheers!
Velvet Bliss Marshmallows
Materials:
1 stand mixer & 1 handheld mixer
2 bowls
1 med. Pot
Candy thermometer
1 oiled & sugar dusted knife
1 9x13 glass pan (YES GLASS)
1 whisk
1 oiled & sugar dusted spatula
Ingredients:
1-2 cups powdered sugar (only for dusting literally, everything)
1 tablespoon oil (any kind)
1 cup cold Velvet Bliss tea concentrate* split into ½ cup and ½ cup
4 packets unflavored gelatin (equal to 2 tbspn + 2.5 tspn)
2 cups refined/caster sugar
½ cup light corn syrup
¼ tsp. salt
2 large farm fresh egg whites
1 tsp. vanilla
½ tsp. beet root powder or 5 drops red food coloring (ONLY IF you want pink marshmallows.)
Directions:
1. First, make your Velvet Bliss Concentrate*, and chill in the refrigerator
2. Then, take your glass pan and wipe the oil over the bottom and sides generously. Now, shake ¼-½ cup powdered sugar and coat the glass oiled pan on bottom and sides. Make sure the sugar is everywhere…. Even on your hands, the counter, your kid…. Oops! Set that aside. Disregard the mess. It gets even more fun!!
3. In the stand mixer bowl, add 4 packets of gelatin, then pour over top of gelatin ½ cup cold Velvet Bliss tea concentrate. Let this sit while you do some other prep.
4. In a medium pot place 2 cups sugar, ½ cup cold Velvet Bliss tea concentrate, ½ cup light corn syrup and ¼ tsp. salt. Put this on low heat and whisk until the liquid is clear, and the granulated sugar has melted. Then, raise the heat to med-high, and bring to a boil for about 12 minutes. Pop in your candy thermometer, and let the temperature reach 240º.
5. While that boils away, put your 2 large farm fresh egg whites and vanilla into a large glass bowl, and use that hand mixer to whip those into stiff peaks. This should take about 2-3 minutes. Set that aside and check on your boiling candy.
6. When the boiled candy reaches 240⁰, pour the hot candy into the stand mixing bowl, over top of the gelatin. Stir the mixture around to melt the gelatin just a bit. Now is the time to add coloring if you wish. Use a small amount of beet root powder for natural food coloring, or a few drops of food coloring. Set your timer for 6 minutes. Turn your mixer on med high, and let this whip until it triples in size! Don’t worry – it will stay in the bowl!!
7. *WARNING* This step produces a very odd odor to the air. If you are sensitive, step away while this whips up. The odor can be overwhelming! It is the bonding of the gelatin with the tea and sugar that creates this. Your marshmallows are NOT going bad, and they will NOT taste like what you smell!! Trust me. Please.
8. When your timer sounds, Gentle fold your egg whites into the whipped gelatin/candy mixture. Use an easy, “Chop, Scoop, Flip, Turn” method. Take your spatula and chop the egg whites down, then scoop some of the whipped candy from the bottom of the bowl, flip that on top of the egg whites, then turn the bowl and half turn and do it again! Don’t over mix it, or your marshmallows will be not bouncy and fluffy. (If you need more assistance, check out Joe Pastry)
9. Now you are ready to pour that stickiness into your oiled & sugared glass pan! Oil & sugar your spatula, and slowly & carefully spread mixture in the pan. DO NOT SQUISH IT DOWN IN THE PAN. Just push it around enough to fill the in the edges, like you would do with brownie mix. When it’s flat and smoothed, dust the top with ¼-½ cup powdered sugar. Place pan in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours, but no more than 24 hours.
10. When the marshmallow block has settled for 8-12 hours, get a sharp knife, oiled & sugared, and take pan out of the refrigerator. Use the knife to run around the edges of the marshmallow and lift up from the pan. Put the whole slab on a glass cutting board, or a lightly sugared countertop. Shake ½ cup powdered sugar into the glass pan for dusting the single squares. Using your knife, cut strips 1 inch in thickness. Trim off the edges that touched the edges of the pan so the marshmallows will be straight, and sugar roll both “cut” sides. With each strip, cut the marshmallows in 1 inch sections. Then roll each side in the sugar, so they will not stick to each other. Repeat this until you have cut the whole slab into strips, and the strips into squares.
11. Keep the marshmallows in a tightly sealed container.
12. They will last up to 1 week.
Enjoy!
