Happy Toasted Marshmallow Day ! At Just Ask Josh we love a toasted marshmallow- so much so that we use our GF chocolate chip cookies to make our very own unique S'more!
I personally love to read about the history of food-which, in the case of the marshmallow, is a surprising one! There is actually a plant called the marsh-mallow. The sap from the marsh-mallow plant was used medicinally for sore throats. But the use of marshmallow to make a sweet dates back to ancient Egypt where the recipe called for extracting sap from the marsh-mallow plant and mixing it with nuts and honey. Confectioners in early 19th century France made the innovation of whipping up the marshmallow sap and sweetening it, to make a confection similar to modern marshmallow. The confection was made locally, however, by the owners of small sweet shops. They would extract the sap from the mallow plant's root, and whip it themselves.
I personally love to read about the history of food-which, in the case of the marshmallow, is a surprising one! There is actually a plant called the marsh-mallow. The sap from the marsh-mallow plant was used medicinally for sore throats. But the use of marshmallow to make a sweet dates back to ancient Egypt where the recipe called for extracting sap from the marsh-mallow plant and mixing it with nuts and honey. Confectioners in early 19th century France made the innovation of whipping up the marshmallow sap and sweetening it, to make a confection similar to modern marshmallow. The confection was made locally, however, by the owners of small sweet shops. They would extract the sap from the mallow plant's root, and whip it themselves.
The candy was very popular, but its manufacture was labour-intensive. Fast forward to 1948 when American Alex Doumak invented a technique that allowed marshmallows to be manufactured in a fully automated way. This method produced the cylindrical shape that is now associated with marshmallows.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Homemade-Marshmallows-242701
For those of you who choose a simpler road and want to head out to the stores make sure your store-bought marshmallows are gluten-free. In the U.S. the marshmallow industry is dominated by two main companies: Kraft Foods Inc. and Doumak Inc. The good news is, both manufacture only gluten-free marshmallows. Kraft makes Jet Puffed marshmallows in sizes ranging from mini through jumbo (ideal for roasting over a campfire). Kraft marshmallows are widely available in stores . Kraft will disclose all gluten-containing ingredients on its labels, and while it doesn't label its marshmallows specifically "gluten-free" or test them for trace gluten, they're not subject to gluten cross-contamination in production. Doumak, meanwhile, makes only marshmallows, and all of its products are gluten-free. Campfire brand marshmallows are made by Doumak, and the company also makes marshmallows for private store brands, including Walmart's store brand and CVS Brand, according to a customer service representative.
Now you are ready to celebrate National Toasted Marshmallow Day- grab the kids, start a fire and enjoy!
Share your marshmallow recipes with us in the comments section below! We want to hear from you.
