The inspiration for this BBQ marshmallow ice cream came about during a barbecue with my family in Valle Maggia.
Dad, can you make marshmallow ice cream?
The challenge set by my children immediately intrigued me, and so I began to imagine how to turn marshmallows into an irresistible ice cream. Initially I aimed for a white base in which I replaced most of the sucrose with the marshmallows themselves and flavored with a couple of strawberries to give color and a slight strawberry marshmallow flavor. I also put less neutral since the marshmallows are already loaded with thickeners.
The result was good, but not totally satisfactory, because of the following minor flaws (adjusted in the recipe I give you today):
- The post-ripening marshmallows, along with the neutral combination have thickened too much => therefore, you do not need any neutral in this recipe
- The milk cream covered the taste of the BBQ marshmallow => so I removed some of it
- Strawberries give a bit of color and little taste, but, like cream, they go a bit to cover the taste => so I recommend that you don’t put any fruits
If you are not familiar with “balancing gelato” and are curious to learn, here is a good starting article to get familiar around the world of gelato.
Ingredients (for 1 kg of ice cream)
- 644g Whole Milk
- 63g Cream 35%
- 20g Skim powdered milk
- 63g Dextrose
- 15g Sucrose
- 160g “classic” marshmallows (white, unflavored)
Balancing tips
As explained in the introduction, you don’t need neutral because marshmallows already contain enough starch, gelatin and albumin to thicken and emulsify your mixture on their own.
We stay low with milk cream so as not to overpower the taste of the caramelized marshmallows too much.
I recommend making the recipe “white” so with classic (unflavored) marshmallows and no added fruit. If you still want to give fruit flavor and color, you can blend 40g (per 1 kg of mixture) into the mixture just before whipping.
Steps
We begin by caramelizing the marshmallows with a blowtorch until they have a golden, crispy surface that brings out their sweet, toasty flavor.
In a bowl, we combine the powders (milk powder, dextrose and sucrose).
In a small saucepan, we heat the whole milk and cream to about 40°C. We add the powders by sprinkling them into the milk and cream mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk to obtain a homogeneous solution. We continue to heat the mixture until it reaches 85°C to pasteurize.
Next, we incorporate the caramelized marshmallows by stirring until completely melted. It is important that the marshmallows are well blended to ensure a smooth and creamy texture to the ice cream.
We quickly cool the mixture and let it ripen in the refrigerator for 8 to 12 hours.
We churn for as long as necessary and place back in the freezer to let the ice cream stabilize, ready to for the quenelle!
Caramelized marshmallow ice cream is ready to serve, perhaps garnished with caramelized marshmallow chunks for a crunchy, decorative touch.
How to prepare this recipe with Ninja Creami or Pacojet?
Read my article on the differences between the ice cream maker and the Ninja Creami in which I also explain what to do to rebalance the recipe. If you work with Pacojet instead, you might be interested in my guide to balancing for Pacojet.
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You can find hundreds of recipes like this one inside the Gelato Project, my eBook of ice cream recipes. Gelato Project is an inexhaustible source of inspiration. Each recipe is professionally balanced and suitable for home kitchens as well as catering and commercial ice cream parlors. From classic flavors to innovative creations, the Gelato Project covers a wide range of flavors and techniques.
If, on the other hand, you want to learn how to make ice cream or refine your technique by broadening your horizons to gourmet ice cream, vegan ice cream, lactose-free ice cream, or hypoglycemic ice cream, then my online courses might interest you.
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