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December 20, 2018

Sugar Free Peppermint Marshmallows – Keto Recipe

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Homemade sugar free marshmallows are easy to make and so fun to eat. These keto friendly treats are perfect in hot chocolate and delicious on their own. And they are almost completely carb free! You’re going to love this keto marshmallow recipe.

Sugar Free Marshmallows in a mug of keto hot chocolate

Why, why, WHY haven’t I tried homemade marshmallows before? Seriously kicking myself. Hard. Ouch! That hurt.

No really, I am absolutely astonished at how easy it is to make sugar free marshmallows, and I can’t believe I waited this long to try my hand at it. Especially since so many of you have been asking me for a recipe for a very long time.

The truth is that I don’t like marshmallows all that much. Let me rephrase that. I don’t like conventional marshmallows all that much and I never have. I find them way too sweet and lacking in any flavor. And the packaged sugar free marshmallows on the market are kind of scary.

Maltitol, and sorbitol, and sucralose, oh my! Causing you to run to the toilet multiple times after eating. I am not kidding.

Homemade peppermint marshmallows top down photo on a blue backdrop

Don’t go there. Just don’t.

But now you don’t have to, because this homemade marshmallow recipe will blow your mind. It’s so easy to make and I have to say, the results are absolutely wonderful. And delicious!. I love them, my kids love them, and I even put them into a fudge I was taking to a Christmas party. It was met with enthusiastic approval by all who tried it.

Seriously, I am just so excited about this. It opens up a whole new world of delicious keto desserts, and I have lots of plans for these homemade marshmallows.

Powdered sweetener being dusted over sugar free marshmallows

Homemade Marshmallow Recipe Inspiration

I don’t know what inspired me to finally give marshmallows a go but once I made up  my mind, I did a fair bit of recipe research. I honestly had little to no idea what marshmallows were even made of, besides copious amounts of sugar.

Turns out that many conventional marshmallows are made with both sugar and corn syrup, which clearly isn’t an option for those of us on a keto diet. But I did come across several recipes that were corn syrup-free. This is the regular marshmallow recipe I decided to follow, in terms of the overall method method. Her instructions were clearly written and easy to comprehend.

A pile of homemade marshmallows on a black plate

Once I realized that marshmallows are basically just gelatin, water, and sweetener, I was eager to try them. I’ve seen some keto recipes that use egg whites and I didn’t want to go that route so I took my chances on the gelatin only version.

However, I did a couple of things differently. I used a bit more gelatin and quite a bit less sweetener than the recipe called for. Conventional marshmallow recipes call for 2 cups of sugar and I used what amounted to 1 1/3 cup of sweetener.

And it worked like a charm! Hooray! I think I liked them so much more than regular marshmallows because they are less tooth-achingly sweet.

Top down photo of sugar free homemade marshmallows in low carb hot chocolate

How To Make Sugar Free Marshmallows

I’ve made these several times already and I learned a few things along the way. So I figured I’d pass these tips on to you.

  1. Combine the gelatin and half of the water and let it “bloom”. Grassfed gelatin brands like Great Lakes or Vital Proteins doesn’t need blooming the way regular gelatin does but in this recipe, it actually helps to allow the gelatin to combine properly with the syrup.
    • Also remember that gelatin and collagen are NOT the same thing. Collagen will not work in this recipe because it does not have the gelling powder of gelatin.
  2. You need a combination of sweeteners for the “sugar” syrup. Erythritol based sweeteners such as Swerve will recrystallize if used on their own. And sweeteners like Bocha Sweet or allulose will leave you with a goopy mess that may not firm up properly. So using them in combination is best. I used half Swerve Confectioner’s and half Bocha Sweet. Although I haven’t tried it, you can probably use allulose or xylitol in place of the Bocha Sweet.
  3. Use a stand mixer for whipping the mixture. This allows you to pour the syrup slowly into the gelatin as you whip. It also needs whipping on medium high speed for quite some time so a stand mixer means you don’t wear out your arms!
  4. Work quickly once your mixture is thick and white. Very quickly pour it into the prepared pan and spread it. If you wait too long, it starts setting and you will get a lumpy glob that you can’t spread or smooth out.
    • I learned this the hard way. The second time I made them, I waited too long, thinking that the mixture needed to be like whipped cream or egg whites and stand at stiff peaks. I ended up with a glob that I had to re-warm to spread out.
    • You CAN actually save it if this happens. I simply re-warmed the whole thing by putting the pan in a 300F oven. Once it began to melt again, I could spread it out more easily.
  5. Even if you line your pan with parchment, grease the parchment. It will help a lot when you go to get the marshmallows out of the pan and cut them up. The bottom will be quite greasy but it dries out overnight.
  6. Conventional marshmallow recipes tell you to dust them with cornstarch and powdered sweetener. But I found that if I just left them exposed to the air overnight, they firmed up and dried out enough so that the surface was no longer tacky at all.
  7. Use whatever flavoring or extract you desire. The peppermint was fabulous but I’ve also made them with vanilla and it was delicious too.

Hand on a mug of hot chocolate with a sugar free marshmallow floating in it.

One more little note: If you care to dip them in chocolate or put them in fudge, freeze them for a few hours first. They won’t freeze rock hard but it does allow you to dip them or combine them with warm chocolate, without having them melt into goo.

I have yet to try roasting them. But just you wait until next summer!

Ready for the best sugar free marshmallow recipe?

A pile of homemade marshmallows on a black plate
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Sugar Free Marshmallows

Homemade sugar free marshmallows are easy to make and so fun to eat. These keto friendly treats are perfect in hot chocolate and delicious on their own. And they are almost completely carb free!
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword marshmallow recipe, sugar free marshmallows
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Resting Time 4 hours
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 10 servings (about 20 marshmallows)
Calories 14kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 cup water , divided
  • 2 1/2 tbsp grassfed gelatin
  • 2/3 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
  • 2/3 cup Bocha Sweet (or xylitol or allulose)
  • 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
  • Pinch salt
  • 1 tsp peppermint extract (or vanilla extract)

Instructions

  • Line an 8x8 pan with parchment or waxed paper and lightly grease the paper. 
  • Attach the whisk attachment to a stand mixer. Pour half of the water into the bowl and sprinkle with the gelatin. Let stand while preparing the syrup.
  • In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the remaining water, the sweeteners, the cream of tartar, and the salt. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sweeteners. 
  • Using a candy thermometer or an instant read thermometer, bring the mixture to 237F to 240F. Remove from heat. 
  • Turn the stand mixer on low and slowly pour the hot syrup down the side of the bowl. Once all of the syrup is mixed in, add the extract. Turn the stand mixer to medium high and beat until the mixture is lukewarm, thickened and white. This can take 5 to 15 minutes. 
  • Working quickly, pour the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Let set for 4 to 6 hours, until the top is no longer tacky to the touch.
  • Flip out onto a cutting board and cut to the desired size. Dust with powdered sweetener, if desired. Let sit for a day exposed to the air to dry out a bit, then store in a covered container. 

Video

Notes

You really need the combination of two sweeteners here. One should be erythritol based, like Swerve or Lakanto. The other should be one of three possibilities: Bocha Sweet, Xylitol, or allulose. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving = 2 marshmallows | Calories: 14kcal | Carbohydrates: 0.1g | Protein: 1.5g

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Filed Under: Dairy Free, Low Carb, Other Desserts Tagged With: grassfed gelatin

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Nutritional Disclaimer

Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.

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Carolyn PortraitLooking for the best low carb recipes? You've come to the right place! I'm Carolyn, a major carnivore and an unrepentant sweet tooth. Here you will find all you need to enjoy the low carb keto lifestyle to the fullest! Read more

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