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I am so excited to share the recipe for these Chocolate Covered Strawberry Marshmallow Cookies. They are so yummy and I've laid out the recipe with detailed steps so you'll be successful making them at home.
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The first time I had freshly made marshmallows at a chocolate shop I thought they were good and was intrigued by the idea of making your own marshmallows. Several years later I made marshmallows at home and it was a game-changer. I couldn't believe how good they were. Light and airy, the taste and texture was nothing like the bagged treat that I grew up with. So I'm excited to partner with Karo Syrup to make these delicious treats, because I really like using it. Karo Syrup gives me consistently good results and I use it for a lot of my Christmas baking.
This marshmallow treat is a hazelnut cookie topped with homemade strawberry marshmallow and then topped with a creamy chocolate glaze. Read on to learn how to make this yummy treat and if you want to be notified of future recipes please sign up for my newsletter.
I grew up eating marshmallows. First and foremost in Rice Krispie treats, then in hot chocolate, toasted marshmallows over a campfire and then sometimes we would play by pulling it with our fingers creating a sticky marshmallow-taffy like treat that we liked off our fingers.
How to Make the Hazelnut Sablee Cookie
I first made this cookie when I was a contestant on The Great American Baking Show season 4. It's a soft, slightly crumbly cookie with a delicious nutty hazelnut flavor. If you have an allergy nut, leave out the hazelnut flour and replace it with an equal amount of all-purpose flour.
Despite the fancy name this is an easy cookie to make and can be flavored in any way you want. The ingredients are:
- All-purpose Flour
- Hazelnut Flour
- Egg Yolks
- Kosher Salt
- Unsalted Butter
Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least an hour or in the freezer for 30 minutes. It can sit in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for one month. When you're ready to roll the dough, let the dough sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes so it is soft enough to roll without cracking the dough, but still firm enough to hold its shape as you roll and cut it.
After cutting out the cookies, chill the dough for at least 30 minutes before baking so the cookies maintain their shape.
Bake the cookies and allow them to completely cool before making the strawberry marshmallow filling. Once the marshmallow is made you have to quickly pipe it onto the cookies before it starts to set up and become too stiff to pipe.
My Cookies Didn't Hold Their Shape
If the cookies spread too much and didn't hold their shape when baking it is most likely because you didn't use enough flour. Weighing your flour is the best way I know to guarantee that you are using the right amount.
How to Make the Strawberry Marshmallow
Homemade marshmallows are so good and this is a great treat to make with your kids. These marshmallows have 5 basic ingredients:
- Egg Whites. Eggs whites are the base of the marshmallows and provide structure.
- Granulated Sugar. The combination of the sugar, Karo Syrup, and water create a syrup that cooks the egg whites and create a stable marshmallow.
- Karo Syrup. The Karo Syrup is needed to create a smooth syrup that won't recrystallize and introduce hard bits on sugar into the candy.
- Gelatin. The gelatin creates that springy texture that we associate with marshmallows.
- Freeze-Dried Strawberries. These add an all-natural slightly tart flavor that is a nice contrast to the sweetness of the marshmallows.
There are some keys steps for success:
- Prep your ingredients in advance. Make sure all the ingredients are measured and prepared.
- Whip the egg whites on medium speed. Beating the egg whites on medium speed will cause the air bubbles to grow slowly and ensure more stable egg whites.
- Pay attention to the temperatures in the recipe. The egg whites should be at room temperature (65-68°F) and the sugar syrup is cooked until it is 242°F. At 242°F the sugar is between the soft-ball and firm-ball stage of candy making. This temperature ensures that your marsmallows will be soft, but still hold their shape.
- Pour the hot sugar syrup down the sides of the mixing bowl. When adding the sugar syrup to the eggs whites slowly pour it down the side of the bowl with the mixer on high. You want to avoid hitting the wire whisk with the syrup and splattering it all over the bowl.
I like using Karo Syrup for this recipe to ensure that the sugar syrup doesn't seize up or turn grainy during cooking or when adding it to the egg whites. It helps maintain a smooth and creamy texture for the marshmallows. The other thing I like to do is weigh the syrup. I prefer weighing the corn syrup because I can add it directly to the other ingredients and eliminate the step of having to scrap it out of another measuring cup or spoon. You always end up leaving a little behind. See the table at the end of this article with weights for various amounts.
Assembling the Cookie
Before making the marshmallows arrange the cookies on a baking sheet ready for piping. Prep an 18-inch pastry bag by cutting off the end and add a 3/8 or 1/2-inch round pastry trip for piping. Use a tall cup or glass jar to support the pastry bag and fold back the top edges.
Once all the hot sugar syrup is added to egg whites continue to beat on high speed until the marshmallow is tripled in volume and the temperature has reduced to 75°F. It should be barely warm to the touch.
Quickly fill the pastry bag about 2/3 full and holding the bag straight over the center of the cookie, pipe a round circle, pull the bag up and then pipe a second smaller circle on top. Repeat until all 36 cookies are done.
If the marshmallow becomes too stiff set the bowl over a pot of simmering water and stir the marshmallow until it has become the consistency of really thick whipped cream. Don't let it get too warm. Refill the piping bag and continue to pipe the marshmallows onto the cookies.
Store leftover marshmallow in a container with a tight lid in the refrigerator. You can use for ice cream topping (warm it for 10 seconds in the microwave) or just eating straight. It is pretty good.
Allow the marshmallows to set for 4 hours or overnight before covering them with the glaze.
How to Make the Chocolate Glaze
This chocolate glaze is just two ingredients:
- Bittersweet Chocolate
- Unsalted Butter
The ratio is 2:1, meaning for every 4 ounces of chocolate there is 2 ounces of butter. This ratio produces a glaze that semi-sweet and flows easily as you spoon it over the marshmallow and cookies.
To make the glaze place the chopped chocolate in a medium-sized bowl and place the bowl over a pan of simmering water. Melt the chocolate until it is about 100 F. Add the room temperature butter 2 tablespoons at a time and whisk until the butter is thoroughly combined with the chocolate.
Remove the chocolate from over the simmering water and check the temperature. It should be between 88-92°F degrees and should flow easily from a spoon.
How to Glaze to the Marshmallow Cookie
To coat the marshmallows, place the marshmallow cookie on a chocolate dipping fork and spoon the melted chocolate over the marshmallow and cookie. When it is complete gently place the chocolate covered strawberry marshmallow cookie on parchment paper. Sprinkle the chocolate with crushed freeze-dried strawberries while it is still wet. Let the chocolate set and then serve.
Because of the sugar in the chocolate, these treats will keep 2 days at room temperature. After that store in the refrigerator. The marshmallows test best within 2-3 days of making them.
Make this marshmallow covered cookie as is or experiment with your own flavor combinations for the marshmallows and cookies. You can also use the Karo Syrup in other desserts, like caramels, pies and sticky buns.
Thank you for making the recipe. I would love to see your pictures and answer any questions you might have. If you are on Instagram you can tag me at @bakesbybrownsugar.
Happy Baking!
Chocolate Covered Strawberry Marshmallow Cookies
Ingredients
Hazelnut Sableé Cookie
- 9 tablespoons (127 grams) unsalted butter room temperature (65-68°F degrees)
- 1 1/2 cups (212 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 cup (28 grams) hazelnut flour
- 2/3 cup (86 grams) powdered sugar
- 3 (60 grams) egg yolks room temperature
Strawberry Marshmallow
- 18 tablespoons (225 grams) granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons (123 grams) Karo corn syrup
- 6 teaspoons (18 grams) powdered gelatin
- 1 1/4 cups water divided
- 3 (90 grams) egg whites room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 cup (1 ounce) freeze-dried strawberries
Chocolate Glaze
- 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate chopped
- 12 tablespoons (172 grams) unsalted butter room temperature
Instructions
Hazelnut Sableé Cookie
- In the bowl of a stand mix combine the butter, all-purpose flour, and salt and beat on medium low speed until the mixture is crumbly. Add the powdered sugar and hazelnut flour and mix on medium-low speed until just combined. With the mixer on medium-low speed add the egg yolks one at a time, waiting for the first yolk to be mixed in before adding the next one.
- Gather the bowl, divide it into two pieces and shape each one in a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least one hour.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let it rest at room temperature for 5 minutes. Letting it rest will make it easier to roll out. Roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness and use a 1.75-inch cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Place the cookies on a cookie sheet and chill them for 20 minutes. Chilling them will ensure that the cookies keep their shape when the bake.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or Silpat.
- If using a half-baking sheet, bake 16 cookies at a time. Even though the cookies don’t spread, if there are too many cookies on the baking sheet, the air won’t circulate properly and the cookies will take longer to brown.
- Bake the cookies for 15-20 minutes until they start to turn brown around the edges. Remove them from the oven and cool to room temperature.
- Before starting the strawberry marshmallow arrange the cookies on a baking tray or cooling rack and have them ready for piping the strawberry marshmallow.
Strawberry Marshmallows
- Add a 3/8 or 1/2-inch tip to an 18-inch pastry bag and stand it up in a tall glass container. Folder over the top to make it easier to add the marshmallow mixture.
- Add 1/2 cup water to a measuring cup and sprinkle 6 teaspoons of gelatin into the water. Stir gently to combine and let the gelatin sit for at least 5 minutes. Combine the sugar, Karo Syrup and 3/4 cup of water in a 2-quart saucepan.
- Place the freeze-dried strawberries in the bowl of food processor and process until it is pulverized. Sift the freeze-dried strawberries to remove the larger pieces. If you do not have a food processor, place the strawberries in a plastic bag and beat it with a rolling pin until the freeze-dried strawberries until pulverized.
- Place the egg whites and the salt to the bowl of stand mixer and beat on medium speed (speed 6 if you are using a Kitchen Aid mixer). Beat the mixture until they have soft peaks. The egg whites may be done before the sugar syrup and that is okay.
- At the same time that you start beating the egg whites, bring the sugar mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Gently stir the ingredients to combine them. Once the mixture comes to a boil, do not stir it. Continue to boil the sugar syrup until it reaches 242°F. It will take about 10 minutes to bring the sugar syrup to temperature. Use a candy thermometer or a Thermoworks instant read thermometer to monitor the temperature.
- When the syrup reaches the temperature of 242°F remove the pan from the heat. Add the gelatin and whisk until the gelatin is completely melted. Increase the mixer speed to high and slowly add the sugar syrup the bowl by pouring it down the side. Once all the sugar syrup is added continue to beat the egg whites until the mixture reaches room temperature which will be 75°F.
- Add the pulverized strawberries and the vanilla extract and mix on high speed until incorporated, about 15 seconds.
- Quickly fill the piping bag about 2/3 full with the marshmallow mixture, twist the top of the bag close. Center the piping tip over the cookie with the bag straight up and down and pipe one round on each cookie than go back and add a second dollop on top of the first one.
- If the marshmallow becomes too thick or rubbery, place the mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water and gently stir it with a silicone spatula until the texture is smooth and feels like it originally did. Continue to pipe the marshmallows.
- Once done, allow the marshmallows to set for 4 hours or overnight.
Chocolate Glaze
- Place the chopped chocolate over a pan of simmering water and allow it to melt undisturbed until there are just a few pieces left unmelted. Stir the chocolate with a whisk. When the remaining pieces of chocolate are melted, add the butter 2 tablespoons at a time and whisk after each addition until the butter is thoroughly combined with the chocolate. For covering the marshmallows keep the chocolate at 92°F. If it cools too much rewarm it over simmering water.
- Line a two half baking sheets with parchment paper. The chocolate covered marshmallows will be placed on these baking sheets to dry.
- To cover the strawberry marshmallow, place the marshmallow cookie on a chocolate dipping fork. Hold it over the bowl of chocolate glaze and spoon the chocolate over the marshmallow until the marshmallow and cookie are completely covered. Gently place it on parchment lined baking tray. Stop occasionally to sprinkle any toppings on the chocolate while it is still wet.
- Let the chocolate set for 2 hours and enjoy. The chocolate covered marshmallows can sit at room temperature for 2 days and be refrigerated for a week.
Renata says
Hi! These look amazing...Iโm scared to try, but if I can I will. Can I use raspberries instead? Thanks,
Cheryl Norris says
Hi Renata
Yes you can use freeze-dried raspberries with these cookies. Please let me know if you have any other questions about making these cookies.
Christina says
Oh my goodness, just made these and they are as good as they sounded when I had my craving earlier this week! Easy if youโve already made marshmallow. My only concern was the amount of time it took for the sugar/Karo/water mixture to come up to temp after it started boiling - mine was more like 12 min and I had to increase the heat to high. It all worked out though and Iโll definitely be making these again!!
Cheryl Norris says
Hi Christina
Thank you for making this recipe. I'm glad you enjoyed them. Isn't homemade marshmallow one of the best things ever?