Origins of Marshmallows

[jjd]

 

MARSHMALLOW

Marshmallow candy was first made by ancient Egyptians over three thousand years ago. The Egyptians made candy from the root of the marshmallow plant (Althea officinalis), a plant that grows in marshes. Today's marshmallows do not contain any mallow root - gelatin is substituted for the sweet, sticky root.

 

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/inventors/indexm.shtml

 

As one of the world's oldest confections, marshmallows date back to ancient Egypt (2000 BC). Some historians claim marshmallows got their name when pharaohs discovered that by squeezing the mallow plant (grown wild in marshes), a sweet, sticky substance surfaced that could be made into a confection. The delicacy was so special, it was reserved for royalty.

 

Marshmallows were introduced in France in the mid-1800s, where owners of small candy stores made them by sweetening, whipping and molding gummy sap from the mallow root. Consumers liked the marshmallow's unique texture and taste so much that candy makers couldn't keep up with the high demand. The candy makers needed to find a new, faster way of making marshmallows. As a result, the "starch mogul" system was developed in the late 1800s. Rather than making marshmallows by hand, the new system let candy makers create marshmallows in molds made of modified cornstarch (like jelly beans, gummies and candy corn are made today). At about the same time, mallow root was replaced by gelatin, providing marshmallows with their "stable" form. Today's marshmallows don't actually include any mallow; they are a delicious combination of corn syrup, modified cornstarch, sugar, and gelatin.

 

In 1948, Alex Doumak, a marshmallow manufacturer, began experimenting with different methods of marshmallow making. Doumak was looking for ways to speed up production and discovered the "extrusion process", which revolutionized marshmallow production. Now, marshmallows can be made by piping the fluffy mixture through long tubes and cutting its tubular shape into equal pieces. While marshmallows are available around the world, they are the most popular with Americans, who purchase more than 90 million pounds annually. The number one selling brand is JET-PUFFED® marshmallows, produced by NABISCO.

 

http://www.kraftfoods.com/jetpuffed/jp_history.html

 

[Dru]

[jjd]

 

[thelawgoddess]

i like toasted golden brown marshmallow skins! mmm!!!