Rocky road are one of my favourite things to make, so I decided to make some rocky road shortbread! I topped crumbly shortbread biscuits with mini marshmallows, chocolate and glace cherries, dusted with icing sugar to give a magical touch.
From a historical perspective this made me start to think about when marshmallows first came to the UK. I assumed it was probably from the USA, but decided to find out.
It seems that marshmallows originate from Ancient Egypt. The sap from the plants would thicken the mixture of egg whites, sugar and sometimes nuts or honey. The doctors from this time used the marshmallow for medicinal purposes, to soothe sore throats in children.
By the mid 1880's, marshmallows were becoming increasingly popular, which led to the development of faster and more efficient manufacturing techniques. The sap from the marshmallow was replaced by gelatine to create a more stable form, which also meant that the positive medicinal properties also went.
In the late 1880's the method changed again in search of greater efficiency. Instead of being made by hand, they were put into moulds made of corn starch (like jelly babies are today).
By 1948 methods had improved further and Alex Doumak, French marshmallow maker, was one of the first to experiment with marshmallow making. Using the 'extrusion process' he was able to pipe the mixture through long tubes and then cut the shape into small, equal pieces. Thus saving time, money and effort.
In recent times marshmallows are made into a wide variety of shapes, patterns and colours, as well as being made into various products. It seems that the story of the marshmallow is longer and more interesting than I first assumed. It's just a shame that they seem to have lost their medicinal properties, as it would be a good excuse to have the odd pack or two of gooey, fluffy marshmallows.
(Information on marshmallows from 'Freya Smith, History of the Marshmallow, http://www.gfw.co.uk/stop-article.cfm?ArticleID=644, accessed 29th September 2015)
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