Light and fluffy marshmallow frosting. Delicious to eat and easy to make!
Growing up, my mother used to wax poetic about the amazing marshmallow frosting she liked to make as a girl. And now ages and ages later, I’m finally giving it a try.
Okay, this isn’t my mom’s recipe–part of the mystique of her frosting is that the recipe was lost to time–but according to her, this one turned out very similar, so win!
This frosting is so much fun. Watching egg whites and sugar go from clear, eggy liquid to light and billowy clouds of marshmallow deliciousness is like watching a magic trick.
I’ll be using this frosting next in a recipe next week and since cooked frosting always intimidated me when I first started baking, I thought I’d give this one its own post before then and walk through it step-by-step.
You will Need:
Heat-proof glass bowl* or stand mixer bowl
Stand mixer* or handheld electric mixer*
Whisk
Medium to large saucepan for boiling water
First, you’re going to whisk eggs, sugar, cream of tarter, and salt in a large heat-proof bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Heat an inch of water (fill the pot up to your first knuckle) in a large pot until simmering and place bowl of egg whites over the water. Make sure the bottom of the bowl is not touching the boiling water.
Stir eggs over simmering water until they reach 120°F. This will take about 3 to 5 minutes. If you don’t have an instant-read thermometer, one, you should get one*, it will change your life. Two, at 120°F, your mixture will feel hot to the touch, just past the point of comfortable.
Remove bowl from heat and use your stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer to beat the egg whites on high for another 3 to 6 minutes. They should become bright white and fluffy. They won’t be able to form stiff peaks because they are so sticky, but when you lift the beaters out of the mixture, the peaks should stand pretty tall before flopping over.
Transfer to a piping bag or use a large plastic bag with the tip cut off to pipe onto some delicious cupcakes, like maybe my Gooey Chocolate S’mores Cupcakes…
Then very carefully brown under your broiler for a couple of minutes or toast with a kitchen torch. And done!
Like this post? Want to get recipes delivered to your inbox weekly? Subscribe to my newsletter and get a free mini e-cookbook, “A Week of Easy Meals for Two!”
Easy Marshmallow Frosting
Ingredients
- 4 large egg whites room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- Pinch of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract optional
Instructions
- Fill a medium to large pot with 1 inch of water and bring to a simmer.
- In a large heat-proof bowl (or the bowl of your stand mixer), whisk together egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar, and salt.
- Place bowl over the simmering water on the stove, making sure the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water. Heat, whisking constantly until eggs reach 120°F.
- Remove bowl from heat and use your hand mixer or electric mixer to beat the egg whites on high for 5 minutes or until light and fluffy with peaks that mostly hold their shape.
- If desired, add vanilla extract and beat for another 30 seconds until well-mixed.
- Transfer immediately to a piping bag or use a large plastic bag with the tip cut off to pipe onto cupcakes.
- Very carefully brown under your broiler or toast with a kitchen torch. This step is optional, but the frosting is quite sticky until toasted.
Recipe Notes
This makes about 5 cups of frosting, enough to generously frost 12 cupcakes.
Nutritional Information
Adapted From ChowHound
*This post may contain affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission if you make a purchase using one of them. There is absolutely no additional cost to you and it helps keep the lights on around here/pay my student loans. 😉
