Lately I always seem to remember my dreams. Last night I dreamt that I was driving in a mini with Simon Cowell on the way to Aycliffe Town Centre. He dropped me off at a dog parlour only to find that they had lost my dog?! Random but not as random as the one I had the other night where Joling and I were at a bus stop which was also a bakery. We had to queue with lots of old woman to then put our chosen loaves into an oven!
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Today I woke up at 11am (so bad I know) and the first thing that popped into my mind were the marshmallows I was planning to make.
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This recipe was on the new Rachel Allen show ‘Rachel Allen Home Cooking’ which is on the Good Food channel (249 on sky) weeknights at 9pm.
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I thoroughly enjoyed making these. It was exciting to see the mixture develop into a big cloud of fluffiness!
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Marshmallows Recipe:
Source: Rachel Allen
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Ingredients:
450g caster sugar
2 x 7g sachets powdered gelatine
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp sunflower oil
2 tbsp icing sugar
A few drops of red food colouring
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Method:
1. Pour the sugar and 175ml (6fl oz) cold water into a heavy-based saucepan, place on a medium–high heat and bring to a rolling boil, stirring all the time until the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for about 15–20 minutes without stirring, until a sugar thermometer dipped into the mixture reads 113°C. Alternatively, check that the soft-ball stage has been reached.
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2. Pour the gelatine and 100ml cold water into the bowl of an electric food mixer and leave for about 10 minutes to soften before stirring to loosen up. As soon as the sugar syrup reaches the correct temperature, begin to whisk the gelatine in the food mixer on a very low setting and then carefully pour in the syrup in a slow, steady stream, whisking all until it is fully incorporated. Add the vanilla extract, increase the whisking speed and leave to beat for about 20 minutes until thick, cool and beginning to set.
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3. Meanwhile, grease a 20cm square cake tin with some of the sunflower oil, line with parchment paper and grease again. Toss the icing sugar and cornflour together and place in a sieve. Dust a little into the tin to evenly coat the base and sides, reserving the rest for later.
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4. Pour the creamy marshmallow mixture into the prepared tin, spreading it evenly and smoothing the surface using a palette knife dipped in boiling water. Dust with a little more of the icing sugar and cornflour mixture, cover with cling film and allow to set in a cool, dry place (not the fridge) for 1–2 hours or overnight.
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5. Once the marshmallow mixture has set, dust a clean work surface with the remaining icing sugar and cornflour mixture and turn the marshmallow slab out of the tin. Peel off the parchment paper and cut the marshmallows into about 36 squares. Toss them around to coat evenly in the icing sugar and cornflour. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to three weeks.
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Mrs Hackneys Notes:
* I have a food thermometer so managed to see when it reached the correct stage. I would definitely recommend buying one, they only cost a couple of quid. I got mine off Ebay.
* These would look really lovely packaged up in a little cello bag with a ribbon tied around.
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Yum Yum!
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I also made a pizza for Suey and I to share for breakfast! It was deeeeelicious! I think the tomato sauce tastes much better the day after. I added on mushrooms to make it a bit more ‘breakfasty’!
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My sister-in-law always makes these at Christmas. They really are pretty and you are right; they would look lovely in a cello bag. The pizza looks delicious too!
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