Have you ever had grand plans (and made huge promises) for making a recipe only to realize you forgot to buy a crucial (yet frustratingly uncommon) ingredient and suddenly you have to choose between staying in your pajamas or going all the way back to the store just to retrieve this one item?
Oh, who am I kidding, of course you’ve experienced this.
We’ve all experienced this, if not multiple times.
I’m not even sure why an old friend of mine still lets me grocery shop because I always forget something.
And usually, what I forget is something he wanted me to pick up.
But this was the predicament I found myself in yesterday, when my grand plans to bake an elaborate cake for our friends came crashing down when I realized I forgot to buy the marshmallow fluff.
Because of all the things I could forget, it just had to be the marshmallow fluff, with it’s bright and colorful label that only seemed to taunt me as I pictured it in the store, sitting on a shelf way above eye level, as if it was just daring me to forget it. And I just stood there for a moment as the realization sunk in, half way through a recipe, trying to rein in my frustration at the marshmallow fluff because this was really all my fault and I really didn’t want to change out of my pajamas to go fix it.
So instead, I did the next best thing:
I googled if there was an easy way to make marshmallow fluff, and turns out, there is.
And thankfully, even though I forgot to pick up the marshmallow fluff I did remember to restock my light corn syrup, which meant I had everything I needed to make my own marshmallow fluff.
So at least there’s a happy ending somewhere in all of this.
Although, now I need to remember to buy more light corn syrup.
In the end, I was able to finish my uber cake recipe (which should be on the blog next week), but for now, I figured it’d be good karma to pass this recipe along so another poor forgetful soul can avoid putting on pants and driving down to the grocery store. Because you, too, can stay in your pajamas all day if you really put your mind to it.
This recipe not only saved my dessert extravaganza, but I’m pretty sure it probably saved me about $10, since this recipe makes about 5-6 cups of marshmallow fluff (which would mean buying 3-4 tubs).
I only needed about a cup and a half for my recipe, so I guess you can expect a few more marshmallow fluff themed desserts from me in the coming weeks.
But that’s kind of a win-win for everyone, amirite?
Recipe Details
Homemade Marshmallow Fluff
Ingredients
Instructions
Before you begin, submerge eggs in a bowl of lukewarm water for at least 5 minutes to bring them to room temperature.
Using a stand mixer (or a hand mixer + large bowl), add egg whites, corn syrup, and salt. Set mixer speed to high and whisk for 5 minutes, until mixture is thick and doubled in size.
Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add in powdered sugar, mixing until any clumps have disappeared. Finish by adding vanilla extract and whisking until thoroughly incorporated.
- Marshmallow fluff can be used immediately or stored in a seal container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Recipe Notes
Recipe from What's Cooking America.
Alisa @ Go Dairy Free says
I bet this tastes WAY better than store-bought – it sure looks better. This is one of those recipes that always sounds like too much of a pain to bother. I had no idea it was so easy – and economical to boot!
Des @ Life's Ambrosia says
Who knew you could make this stuff at home?!? I LOVE that idea. I too never have it when I actually need it!
Amber | Caleigh's Kitchen says
I’ve certainly had that dilemma a few times, way to make lemons out of lemonade! This looks way better than the stuff in a jar. Would be a great addition to anything!
Julia says
Such a fun idea…brings back memories of fluff and PB as a kid. Love that you made it at home & controlled the ingredients. I might have to try this for my son!
Lynne says
This sounds so yummy, but I’m nervous about using raw eggs. You don’t cook them at all right? Is that safe?
Chrisy says
Hey Lynne! For the raw egg whites, you’d have to make your own judgment on what you’re comfortable with. A lot of the time, the risk of raw eggs comes down to the quality of the egg being used. You can read more about that here: http://empoweredsustenance.com/raw-eggs-safe/ That being said, when I make this recipe, I use most of it immediately, refrigerate the remaining, and toss it after a few days.
Mrsdubya says
Using the stand mixer, it says “beat” which means (according to instruction book beat=paddle -most common one used-, and wisk=wire wisk) using the paddle attachment but I assumed one would use the wisk attachment for fluffiness and I see a wisk pictured….so just wondering which attachment you used or which is recommended for the desired result for this recipe. Thanks in advance 🙂
Chrisy says
Hey! Sorry for the confusion! Yes, it should read “whisk” since you’d be using the whisk attachment 😀
MB says
I just tried this recipe and mine came out too runny. It was fine until I added the vanilla. A tablespoon seems like a lot. So, is that an error or would it be because the eggs whites were still too cool?
Chrisy says
Hey MB! Sorry you ran into trouble! It’s been a little bit since I made this recipe, but from my memory, 1 tablespoon should be correct. However, this recipe is also made to more fluid than what you’d normally expect from store-bought marshmallow fluff. How runny did it become? Did whipping it more beyond that point help any? You could also try refrigerating the fluff to see if that helped bring it to the consistency you want.