How to Make Easy Homemade Marshmallows (Without a Thermometer!)

These Homemade Marshmallows are a fun project for kids and simple to whip up, no candy thermometer needed! A perfect treat for a cold day.

I’m not going to call these “Healthy Homemade Marshmallows”.

They’re MARSHMALLOWS, after all. They’re spongy clouds of sugar. I’m not going to sugarcoat it for you (see what I did there?): There are three different kinds of sugar in this recipe.

So why make them? Because it’s wildly fun and easy to make your own marshmallows, exactly the kind of cold Saturday afternoon project you need to get your kids away from Fortnite.

And homemade marshmallows don’t have synthetic food dyes in them, which is always nice (yes, packaged marshmallows contain Blue 1 dye).

Another perk: This recipe, unlike some others, doesn’t require owning or using a candy thermometer (hooray!). Because I love simple.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix

Ingredients You Need For Homemade Marshmallows

• Cold Water
• Pure vanilla extract: It is pricier, but the flavor will be better if you use pure vanilla versus imitation vanilla
• Unflavored gelatin: This is often sold as a box of small envelopes
• Granulated sugar: Regular white sugar.
• Salt
• Light corn syrup: Such as Karo
• Powdered sugar

How to Make Homemade Marshmallows

First, line a 9×13 dish with plastic wrap, so the wrap comes up all four sides. Spray the bottom and sides of the plastic-lined pan with cooking spray (yes, you’re spraying plastic wrap. Trust me on this; marshmallows are sticky business).

Step 1: Mix water, gelatin, and vanilla.

In the bowl of a standing mixer, place ½ cup cold water and vanilla extract. Sprinkle three packets of unflavored gelatin over the water and vanilla and set aside. Let it stand for at least 10-15 minutes. You will wonder how this turns into marshmallows because this is what it will look like. Keep the faith!

Step 2: Mix sugar, salt, water, and corn syrup.

In a medium saucepan, combine two cups sugar, 1/4 teaspoons salt, ¼ cup water, and ¾ cup light corn syrup.

This is the corn syrup I use. (And yes, it’s corn syrup. If you have issues with corn syrup for whatever reason, this is not the recipe for you.)

Cook this mixture over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until it comes to a full boil. Allow it to boil one minute.

Step 3: Combine sugar and gelatin mixture.

Remove it from the heat and pour the mixture over the gelatin mixture in the mixing bowl. It will look all frothy and foamy like this.

Step 4: Beat marshmallow mixture.

Beat the mixture on high speed for 10 minutes. It will look brown at first, then will get lighter, until it’s eventually very white and glossy. This is a fun transformation for kids to watch!

Step 5: Pour the marshmallow fluff into a dish, let cool.

Pour the marshmallow mixture into the lined and spray-coated 9 x 13 pan.

Smooth the top with a spatula that’s coated with cooking spray. Cover the pan with plastic wrap, but don’t let the plastic wrap touch the surface of the marshmallows, or it will stick. Let it sit for at least 4-6 hours at room temperature. I let this batch sit overnight.

Step 6: Sprinkle the marshmallows with powdered sugar, then cut!

Sprinkle a generous amount of powdered sugar onto a baking sheet, then invert the marshmallow slab from the pan onto the sugar, flipping to coat both sides of the slab with the powdered sugar.

Now the fun part! Cut the slab into whatever sizes and shapes you want. You can go traditional with squares using a knife or scissors. Or break out the cookie cutters. Coat each cut side of the marshmallows with, yes, even more powdered sugar (so they don’t stick together).

Drop them into mugs of hot cocoa. Store extra marshmallows in an airtight container. They’ll last up to a month.

What to do with Homemade Marshmallows

Top a mug of rich, steaming, hot cocoa with them (like this homemade hot cocoa mix).

Or package them in cellophane bags with a ribbon and give as gifts at the holidays!

FAQs about Homemade Marshmallows

Will regular Jell-O work in this recipe?

No, you want to use plain, unflavored gelatin. It’s sold in the baking aisle.

I have a canister of gelatin. How much should I use?

According to the Knox website, 1 pouch is about 2 1/2 teaspoons (7g). If a recipe calls for 1 tablespoon, use 1 pouch of unflavored gelatin. Hope that helps!

How do I store these homemade marshmallows?

Store these marshmallows in an airtight container.

How long do homemade marshmallows last?

These marshmallows will last for about a month. They may become hard after that.