Soft, fluffy, buttery, with a hint of salt – these Butterscotch Marshmallows (or Buttered Rum Marshmallows for adults) are just so decadent and addictive.

Butterscotch marshmallows are great for gift-giving, or to enjoy with a mug of creamy hot chocolate!

These fancy pants Butterscotch Marshmallows are my absolute favorite! That’s saying something considering how much I like to make marshmallows. But these are buttery, sweet, fluffy and all around decadent. They also go by different names…

Buttered rum marshmallows
Butterbeer marshmallows
And of course, butterscotch marshmallows

No matter what you call them though, these are a real treat!

These butterscotch marshmallows are different from the classic marshmallows that I first made, but the basic technique remains largely the same. So I do highly recommend reading that post for all the troubleshooting tips, if you’d like to know more about making homemade marshmallow.

You can make these marshmallows without rum – for regular butterscotch marshmallows, OR add rum or rum extract for awesome buttered rum marshmallows (or butterbeer marshmallows).

These marshmallows have actual butter in them, which is what makes them just so buttery and addictive. I also previously shared a butterscotch swirled marshmallow where I made a butterscotch syrup and swirled it through regular vanilla marshmallows for a lovely soft and chewy texture contrast, but this version is different in that it’s all fluffy and soft marshmallow with butterscotch flavor throughout. So make sure to read the post completely to understand the process of making these marshmallows.

The first step to making butterscotch marshmallows is the sugar syrup.

I use white sugar and brown sugar to make these butterscotch marshmallows. I used a mix because brown sugar alone has more moisture content that can affect the sugar syrup, plus the molassey flavor of brown sugar can be overwhelming in a soft marshmallow. I also used corn syrup because I wanted to make sure that the sugar didn’t crystallize. I only add 1/4 cup of corn syrup. If you’d like to, you can leave out the corn syrup (read my original homemade marshmallows post to learn how to make marshmallows without corn syrup), but I personally haven’t made these buttered rum marshmallows without corn syrup.

The sugar is dissolved in water (or water and rum for buttered rum marshmallows) while being heated over medium – medium high heat. Remember to swirl the pan to get the sugar to dissolve. Then once the sugar is dissolved, and the mix has come to a boil, place the lid over the saucepan and let the sugar syrup simmer over medium low heat for a couple of minutes. The condensation on the bottom of the lid will help wash away any undissolved sugar crystals on the side of the pan back into the syrup so they can fully dissolve.

Then when you take off the lid, clip the sugar thermometer and heat the sugar syrup over medium – medium high heat until it reaches 242 – 245°F. If you’re living in a humid environment, then I recommend heating the sugar up to 245°F.

Again, remember to swirl the pan gently so that you evenly distribute the heat throughout the syrup. Often times there can be hot spots on your saucepan or syrup, which can affect the marshmallow.

While the syrup is cooking, you can get everything else ready. HOWEVER, if this is your first time making marshmallows or you’re not 100% comfortable with the process, then I’d recommend you keeping a close eye on the sugar syrup to prevent it from overcooking.

Melting the butter

Place the unsalted butter in a microwave-proof bowl and melt for just a few seconds until just melted. You don’t want the butter to boil or separate into fat and water. I usually microwave it for 10-15 seconds (room temperature butter), until most of it is melted. Then I remove the bowl from the microwave, and stir it until all the butter has melted in the residual heat. Then set it aside to cool down. The butter shouldn’t be too hot when mixed in with the marshmallow. but it also needs to liquid so that it can mix easily.

Blooming gelatin

While the sugar syrup is cooking, you can get the gelatin ready. Here you’ve got two options,

Bloom the gelatin with water or (for non-alcoholic butterscotch marshmallows)
Replace half of the water with rum (for buttered rum marshmallows)

While the gelatin is blooming, prepare all the utensils and pans that you’ll be using for the marshmallows.

Preparing pans and utensils for butterscotch marshmallows

Making marshmallows is easy. But it’s a sticky business. That’s why it’s important to coat all the utensils you use with a layer of butter. I’m using butter here because these are butterscotch marshmallows after all (or buttered rum marshmallows). But you can use shortening for this purpose too.

Coat an 8 x 8 inch pan or a 9 x 9 inch pan with butter. If you want smaller/thinner marshmallows, you can use a 9 x 13 inch pan as well.

Coat the spatulas and mixing spoons with a thin layer of butter too.

Once the sugar syrup has reached the right temperature, you’re ready to making butterscotch marshmallows!

Add some salt to the bloomed gelatin in the mixer bowl. Don’t forget the salt because it really balances out the sweetness. Not a lot, just a pinch. But if you like SALTED butterscotch marshmallows, then you can add a little more.

Then simply add the sugar syrup, while mixing the gelatin, and keep whisking to make the butterscotch marshmallow base fluffy. Then increase the speed, and keep whisking until you have a lovely fluffy marshmallow mix that has almost tripled in size.

Sugar syrup being added to the bloomed gelatin, and being whisked to mix well, to make buttered beer marshmallows or butterscotch marshmallows

Process of making butterscotch marshmallows - Fully fluffed up, tripled in size marshmallow base for butterscotch / buttered rum marshmallows, after being whisked continuously.

After you whisk in the vanilla, rum extract or extra strength rum, it’s time to add the butter and work quickly! It’s also important to mix some of the marshmallow mix with the butter, BEFORE you add the butter to the rest of the marshmallow mix. This is because butter is mostly fat, and if you add it directly to the marshmallow mix, it’ll deflate a lot. Adding the marshmallow-butter mix into the rest of the marshmallow base will greatly minimize deflating.

You can either fold the butter in to create buttery ripples in the marshmallow (minimum deflation) OR
You can fold the butter in more uniformly to fully mix it in with the marshmallows (there’ll be a little more deflation this way).

Either choice is OK.

Mixing the melted butter with the butterscotch marshmallow base in the glass bowl, before adding back to marshmallows.

Butterscotch marshmallows (or buttered rum marshmallows) spread in a prepared pan to set overnight.

And then pour the marshmallow base into the prepared pan, and let it set overnight. Then they can be cut, dusted or dipped before being devoured!

You can coat these butterscotch marshmallows (butterbeer marshmallows) in chocolate as well (with added pop rocks for some extra popping magic – like the ones pictured here in the post). There’s really no wrong way to enjoy these buttered rum marshmallows – they are incredibly soft and fluffy, buttery with a hint of salt, and just so addictive. Great in hot chocolates, or to make s’mores!

Butterscotch marshmallows dipped in popping candy and melted chocolate!

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