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Healthy Marshmallow Recipe

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healthy homemade marshmallows
Wellness Mama » Blog » Recipes » Healthy Marshmallow Recipe

Candy and sugary desserts are not a food eaten very often by my family. My husband doesn’t have much of a sweet tooth, and we attempt to avoid sugar as much as possible. But occasionally when the kids are craving sweets, or if we’re out somewhere where candy and other junk food are around, I try to find a healthier alternative for them. This healthy, homemade marshmallow recipe came about because of that need.

We actually got the idea when watching a cooking show with the kids, and since I was not going to use the corn syrup and processed sugar that the TV recipe suggested, the healthy marshmallow experimenting began!

It’s a sticky process for sure but really fun for the kids to watch the gelatin turn into fluffy white goo … and with a little practice not much trouble at all. Homemade marshmallows aren’t sickeningly sweet like store-bought marshmallows and have a better texture and flavor too (in my opinion!).

Healthy Marshmallows? Is It Possible?

Maybe you’re wondering … isn’t she always saying how sugar is bad? In a word, yes, and I have a stricter policy for myself on even natural sugars than I used to. For the kids, though, I don’t worry about an occasional treat as long as it meets several qualifications:

  1. All of the ingredients have to come from healthy sources and not be made chemically in any way.
  2. The ingredients should have some health-boosting properties (like gelatin or probiotics, etc.).
  3. It needs to taste good! After all, that’s the point!

With these goals in mind, the kids and I got to work on our experiment. I had a few failed marshmallow batches that luckily still tasted good and could be used as a marshmallow cream. Finally, I found a marshmallow recipe that I was happy with (and so were the kids!).

This recipe contains all GAPS-friendly ingredients, which is great for those trying to reverse food allergies. (We were working on a dairy allergy at the time with my son.) The gelatin and optional probiotics are gut-soothing and supportive of skin, hair, and nail growth. And if you use some of the variations below, you can work in even more health-boosting ingredients.

Marshmallow Variations

  • More on the marshmallow root option – Since I came up with the first marshmallow recipe, I came up with a way to add marshmallow root for additional health benefits. This anti-inflammatory herb is known for its soothing, cooling effects and is great on a sore throat. Using it is entirely optional (I indicate this in the recipe), but if you’re going to have sugar, might as well have anti-inflammatories with it! I also think it makes it a little more authentic.
  • Matcha Marshmallow – Try my matcha marshmallow recipe for a different healthy marshmallow option. I originally came up with this one day when contemplating how to color the marshmallows to make them more festive. Of course, I didn’t want to use artificial food dye, and my eye fell on our powdered matcha tea. Bingo! Delicious, colorful marshmallows with the additional health benefits of matcha tea.
  • Elderberry Marshmallow – No kid will turn down this remedy! Immune-boosting elderberry syrup makes these marshmallows the perfect soothing treat when cold season hits.
  • Marshmallow “fluff” – Reduce the gelatin for a thinner consistency. I got the “fluff” texture when I used around 2 tablespoons of gelatin.
healthy homemade marshmallows

Healthy Marshmallow Recipe

This is a healthy marshmallow recipe made with honey instead of sugar. You can even add probiotics for added health benefits!
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 4 hours 25 minutes
Calories 94kcal
Author Katie Wells

Servings

24

Ingredients

Instructions

  • If using marshmallow root powder, combine 1 cup of warm water with the 1 marshmallow root and set aside for 5 minutes (or as long as overnight in the fridge).
  • Stir well and strain. Make sure that the liquid makes a whole cup. 
  • Pour ½ cup of the prepared marshmallow root mix into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the gelatin. Whisk slightly to incorporate and set aside. If not using marshmallow root simply pour ½ cup warm water into mixing bowl, add gelatin, and whisk slightly and set aside.
  • Pour the other ½ cup of water and 1 cup of honey, and cocoa powder if using, into a small saucepan and whisk to combine.
  • Slowly bring the water and honey mixture to a boil while stirring. If you have a kitchen thermometer (and I recommend it), you want it to reach at least 240°F. If you don’t have a kitchen thermometer, just keep boiling, stirring constantly for 8 minutes.
  • Turn on mixer with water/gelatin mixture to medium speed and whisk while slowly pouring the honey/water mixture into the mixing bowl. 
  • When add honey mix is added, turn the mixer to high and whisk for another 10-15 minutes or until it forms a stiff cream like the consistency of marshmallow cream. It should form soft peaks.
  • Add the probiotics and any flavor ingredients for the last 2 minutes of mixing.
  • Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish with coconut oil or line with parchment paper, leaving some on the sides to be able to pull up.
  • When marshmallows are whipped, pour into the lined/greased dish and smooth evenly.
  • Let rest at least 4 hours (overnight is better).
  • Flip onto a cutting board and cut with a well-oiled pizza cutter or knife.
  • Store in an airtight container on the counter.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Healthy Marshmallow Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 94
% Daily Value*
Carbohydrates 23.3g8%
Fiber 0.3g1%
Sugar 23.2g26%
Protein 2.3g5%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Notes

Do NOT store in the refrigerator as they will melt. Store in an airtight container at room temperature. The probiotics will decrease the shelf life to 3-4 days. Without the probiotics, these will last 2-3 weeks on the counter.

Like this recipe? Check out my new cookbook, or get all my recipes (over 500!) in a personalized weekly meal planner here!

Have you ever made a dessert like this? Will you try these? What flavors would you add? Share below!

Katie Wells Avatar

About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

321 responses to “Healthy Marshmallow Recipe”

  1. Misty Avatar

    Oh man, I made this today and it was a total fail. I’m confused because I followed it exactly; heated it to 240 degrees, gently and gradually poured in the hot mixture while whipping the gelatin. But instead of soft peaks forming, after 3 minutes of mixing it turned into a sticky bouncy mass that wound itself up into the internal workings of the beaters. It looks like others have had great luck and I’m pretty experienced in the kitchen so I just keep going over the recipe to figure out what went wrong.

    1/4 c of gelatin powder seems like an awful lot for 1 cup total liquid. I ended up using 4 packets of Knox gelatin powder. Do you think the brand has anything to do with it? Also, it was super stinky – like something dead – or as my daughter said, like urine. Its supposed to smell, right?

  2. Dani Hyde Avatar
    Dani Hyde

    I am making a raw cow milk yogurt and use it to help thicken up as I don’t want to heat the milk to have all the good bacteria s die and it’s organic milk

  3. Wendy Avatar

    I don’t have mashmallow root, I do have tea, do you think I could make tea with it and use that instead of the water? Would it have the same benefits?

  4. Lauren Avatar
    Lauren

    Can these be used to make marshmallow treats?? Sounds awesome.

  5. Brittany White Avatar
    Brittany White

    I have shredded marshmallow root, can I use that instead some how?

  6. Crystal Avatar

    I’m not sure what happened. I only beat for 5 minutes and it was to sticky and climbing up the beaters. When I put it into the pan it was to sticky and glunky. What did I do wrong. Was it to much gelatin

  7. Shaelynn Avatar
    Shaelynn

    I do not have much experience with herbs and am wondering how many marshmallows my child can eat. She is two and currently experiencing croup any advice would be amazing

  8. Jen Avatar

    3 stars
    I’ve tried this recipe twice now, and neither time had great success. The first time I over whipped and this made it hard to pour into the 9 x 13 pan. As other commenters have mentioned, the mixture does not need to be whipped for as long as the recipe states. They at least spread and tasted good! The second time I tried marshmallow root, and this turned the marshmallows into a big disastrous, brown clump. I imagine they might still taste okay, but they sure don’t look pretty, and they were impossible to spread. Any suggestions? The only thing I can think of is that I used raw honey, which is thicker, so maybe that had something to do with the pourability issues. Such a bummer.

  9. Heather Avatar

    5 stars
    I made mint marshmallows to include with homemade cocoa mix for Christmas gifts. I used all maple syrup and they turned out so delicious and minty. My coworkers think I am a baking genius! Thanks for the recipe.

  10. Brooke Avatar

    Hi. I’ve been making marshmallows over the past couple years. My boys like them but I don’t and I finally realised that I like the flavour of store marshmallows (though I never eat them for obvious reasons). Years and years ago when taking a herbal medicine course my teacher dug up some mallow root and let us smell the root syrup which smelled just liked marshmallows. What I’m getting at is, is there a way to naturally add mallow flavour to the homemade marshmallows? I see you have marshmallow root in your recipe but I get the sense it’s for health reasons, not flavour. Thanks so much!

  11. Mariana Avatar

    Hi! Thanks for sharing this recipe. Does anyone happen to know if it would work to substitute the gelatin with collagen peptides? I read they are pretty similar (same amino acids, just differently processed). Thanks!

  12. Allison Avatar

    5 stars
    I think I over whipped them. I only did it for 6 minutes. They went from smooth to crumbly. I’m putting them on yams and baking so it’s okay of they aren’t pretty. I used vanilla bean powder. They taste great. Will make again.

  13. Nicole Avatar

    I like this recipe but still find it to be too sweet. Have you ever made it with half the honey?

  14. abigail Avatar

    o.k. thanks so much for getting back with me. Would love to hear if anyone happens to come up with a way to make them without any added sugars! 🙂

  15. Jan M Avatar

    Yes the marshmallows work and taste very much like traditional marshmallows with the exception of roasting them on a stick over the campfire.

  16. Iris Avatar

    I have been asked to bring my Mother’s mid century whipped Sweet Potato recipe with crushed Pinapple, orange juice. topped w/ melted Marshmallow. I am torn about adhering to used the traditional unhealthy sugary marshmallows… Will these Marshmallows mimic the traditional behavior, taste& texture of commercial marshmallows? Will they melt and become gooey, if put under the broiler? How will they taste with sweet potato?
    Thank you,
    Iris

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