Gifts for co-workers part II

I cheated a little on the "homemade" part of homemade marshmallows by using this kit from the Barefoot Contessa. Everything was already measured out and the directions seemed fairly simple. In retrospect I should have done a little homework - next time I will oil the baking dish before coating with confectioner's sugar, so that I won't have to pry the marshmallows out of the pan. Annoyingly, the kit didn't mention how to store the marshmallows and how long they last. After some digging online, I wrapped them in parchment paper and stored them in ziploc bags; I'm assuming these go stale rather quickly but I'll have to get back to you on the specifics.

Dissolve gelatin in cold H20:

Combine sugar and corn syrup mixture with water and bring to a boil:

Wait until the mixture reaches 240 deg F ("soft ball" stage):

Add sugar syrup to the gelatin, and beat until it's thick (and sticky beyond belief):

At this point you're supposed to pour the (did I mention extremely sticky) mixture into a glass baking dish covered in powdered sugar. Here's where an oiled pan would have helped, so that the powdered sugar coated not only the bottom of the pan but the sides as well.

The marshmallows sat overnight, and then I cut into squares using kitchen scissors:

I wrapped them in parchment paper and tied with string:

Some of them look a little gimpy but I worked late today and I'm tired!

Next up: Mexican hot chocolate.