This butterscotch swirl marshmallow with red velvet hot chocolate is a recipe that wears many hats! Creamy, decadent holiday drink? Check. Warm, cozy, delicious drink on a cold wintry night? Check. Halloween drink with a “googly-eye” twist that kids will love? Check. Perfect holiday gift? Check.
Make your own creamy hot chocolate or red velvet hot chocolate at home and top it with regular or flavored homemade marshmallow for a treat that you won’t soon forget!
What is it about Halloween that brings out the kid in all of us? Ok, most of us? Fine, some of us?
I have no clue, because I didn’t even celebrate it growing up, because it just wasn’t a thing in New Zealand. Or Sri Lanka. Or maybe that’s just it!
Maybe I’m making up for all the lost years and memories and candy with all the spooky Halloween recipes now. Halloween was one of the things that excited me about moving to the US (I know!), and as a food blogger, it gives me even more chance to geek out now! 🙂
Butterscotch swirl marshmallows
I know this is a little early, but I’ve got one kick ass, decadent, delicious recipe for you guys today that’s perfect for Halloween. But it works just as well on any cold wintry night (or day), or any day of the year for that matter!
Because seriously, how often are you going to say no to a Butterscotch Swirl Marshmallow with Red Velvet Hot Chocolate? It’s a marriage of delicious desserts and cozy winter recipes.
I don’t know about you guys, but I’m loving that halloween candy has already made its way to shelves in all of the supermarkets!
Maybe it’s all in the marketing, maybe it’s all in our heads like someone wise once said, but I feel like there’s just something a little special about candy that’s dressed up and comes out just for that brief time every year. Makes those sweets a little sweeter.
And the treats I’ve used here were plenty special! M&M “boo-terscotch” white chocolate candies and Dove Milk Chocolate Ghosts from Target. As soon as I heard about them, I knew I had to get my hands on some.
I ended up getting my hands on even more, because thanks to my impulsiveness – that age old enemy of every shopper in the world! I even made these Butterscotch Puffed Rice Cookies using these treats!
I decided to give in to my inner-child and make some eye-popping, decadent treat for Halloween by making “googly-eye” butterscotch swirl marshmallows with Dove milk chocolate ghosts or M&M boo-terscotch candies, in a cup of hot, spiced, creamy, delicious and “bloody” red velvet hot chocolate using my homemade hot chocolate mix! 🙂
Hot chocolate and marshmallows
You can use any hot chocolate mix you prefer here, but I have my own hot chocolate mix that’s just infinitely better than anything I can get at the store, and I also show you here how you could create your own creamy red velvet hot chocolate using that same mix!
I have a soft spot for marshmallows, because I grew up watching my grandmother make marshmallows, killing it without fancy sugar thermometers and all.
My mother and aunt would help her out by checking the stages of cooked sugar with a little saucer and some water. She made the whole process look so effortless, like it was some witchcraft that mere mortals like my younger self could never understand.
Which is why I love making marshmallows now. I’ve shared several recipes over the years, like this vanilla marshmallows, chocolate marshmallows, peppermint marshmallows, tahini marshmallows, orange blossom marshmallows etc.
I love making these treats so much, I even shared a candy temperature chart to show how I determined cooked sugar stages.
Homemade marshmallows are so much better than store-bought
Let me just say that homemade marshmallows are nothing like store-bought marshmallows. The flavor and texture are quite unique, and you can add your own beautiful flavors that will no doubt taste heaps better than the artificially flavored ones in the store.
If you wanted to treat yourself to some homemade marshmallow decadence, you can’t do much better than butterscotch swirl marshmallows studded with chocolate! And I also have a recipe for butterscotch marshmallows (buttered rum marshmallows), so you know that’s a flavor combo that I can’t resist!
Can you imagine how great these marshmallows would be in S’mores (or s’mores cookies even!)? Or in a hot chocolate like this Parisian hot chocolate or peanut butter hot chocolate?
Melting away in that deliciously hot, thick, creamy, hot chocolate, infusing it with butterscotch flavor, while softening that Dove milk chocolate in the centre which also then dissolves into the drink?
Well, imagine no more, I got you covered. Here’s the recipe! 🙂
I personally prefer to toast the butterscotch swirled marshmallow with chocolate before I add it to my red velvet hot chocolate, because then the “googly-eye” is more visible, plus the marshmallow tastes even better then with that burnt/toasted flavor.
Imagine a toasted, caramelized butterscotch swirl marshmallow on a stick? Holy s’mores, that’s good!
But even if you’re not a fan of toasted marshmallows, these ones here are better than regular ones any day! Ripples of butterscotch that create beautiful layers of flavor, like you had butterscotch toffee inside pillowy soft marshmallows. Mmmmm….
These marshmallows are also great as Christmas treats and holiday gifts! Gourmet butterscotch swirl marshmallow with studded chocolate – who wouldn’t love that??
And since there are no egg whites in these butterscotch swirl marshmallows, they will keep for a long time in an air-tight container as well.
So just bottle ’em up, along with a bottle of “bloody” red velvet hot chocolate mix and you’ve got one glorious Halloween/Christmas/Holiday gift!
Recipe video
Recipe
Butterscotch Swirl Marshmallows
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results whenever available.
Common Measurement ConversionsIngredients:
Butterscotch Toffee Syrup
- 100 g brown sugar ½ cup packed
- 45 ml corn syrup 3 tbsp
- 30 mL water 2 tbsp
- 30 g unsalted softened butter about 2 tbsp
- 45 mL heavy cream (35% fat) warm. 3 tbsp
- 10 mL vanilla extract 2 tsp
- ½ tsp sea salt use less if you don't like sweet and salty
Marshmallow Base
- 79 g water ⅓ cup,
- 22 g powdered gelatin 3 tbsp – about 3 packets
- 400 g white sugar 2 cups
- 105 g corn syrup about ⅓ cup
- 120 mL water ½ cup
- Generous pinch of salt
- 10 ml vanilla 2 tsp
- 1 bag of Dove Milk Chocolate Ghosts optional
Marshmallow Dusting Powder
- ½ cup powdered sugar confectioner’s sugar
- ½ cup cornstarch
Instructions:
Butterscotch Toffee Syrup
- Place the brown sugar, corn syrup, water and salt in a saucepan.100 g brown sugar, 45 ml corn syrup, 30 mL water, ½ tsp sea salt
- Heat over medium heat until the brown sugar melts (shake the pan gently to help the brown sugar melt).
- Increase the heat to medium high, clip a sugar thermometer to the side and heat the sugar syrup until it reaches 276°F/136°C.
- Remove the syrup from the heat, and add the butter, warm cream and vanilla. Stir to melt and return to the stove.30 g unsalted softened butter, 45 mL heavy cream (35% fat), 10 mL vanilla extract
- Heat over medium high heat and mix to completely dissolve and to mix in the cream, butter and vanilla. Clip the thermometer and heat the mix until it reaches 250°F/121°C (hard ball stage).
- Remove from the heat and set it aside until you prepare the marshmallow base.
- Before adding this to the marshmallows, ensure it is warm. Place the butterscotch on low heat in the last few minutes of the marshmallow is being whisked, so it'll be warm and easier to mix with the marshmallows.
Marshmallow Dusting Powder
- Sift the cornstarch and confectioner’s sugar together and mix well. Set aside until needed.½ cup cornstarch, ½ cup powdered sugar
Marshmallow Base
- Lightly grease a quarter sheet pan (9 x 13 inches) with butter or coconut oil. OPTIONAL – Line the bottom with parchment paper and dust the side generously with cornstarch. Set aside.
- Place the first measure of water in a mixing bowl and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Mix until the gelatin is mixed. Set aside for the gelatin to bloom until the sugar syrup is ready.22 g powdered gelatin, 79 g water
- Place the sugar, corn syrup, water and salt in a saucepan. Heat the mix over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and comes to a boil. Shake the pan gently to help the sugar dissolve. Brush the sides of the pan with cold water and a pastry brush to wash down any sugar crystals once the mix has come to a boil.400 g white sugar, 105 g corn syrup, 120 mL water, Generous pinch of salt
- Once the sugar has dissolved, clip a thermometer to the side of the saucepan and increase the heat to medium high. Cook the sugar until it reaches 242 – 245°F. DO NOT STIR.
- Attach a whisk attachment to your mixer and whisk the gelatin on low-medium speed. Pour the hot sugar syrup along the side of the bowl into the gelatin mix (don’t pour the sugar mix straight into the gelatin, as the high heat will damage gelatin properties).
- Once all the sugar syrup has been added, increase the mix speed to medium high (8-9) and whisk until the marshmallow is almost tripled in volume. Add the vanilla and whisk it in during the last 2 minutes of whisking time The marshmallow is ready when you see the mix stretching out “in ropes” while being whisked. (Note – warm up the butterscotch toffee syrup at this point if it's not already warm).10 ml vanilla
- This is the point where you have to work quickly. Lightly oil any utensils (spoons, spatulas) you will be using to mix, and scrape out the marshmallow. Place about ¼ – ⅓ of the marshmallow with the warm butterscotch syrup. Mix to combine.
- Transfer the butterscotch-marshmallow mix back to the rest of the marshmallow mix and stir/fold it in a “figure 8” pattern to create swirls, with a spatula.
- Scrape as much of the marshmallow mix into the prepared pan sheet. Use a lightly oiled offset spatula (or lightly oiled hands) to spread the marshmallow and smooth it out. While the marshmallow is still warm, embed the Dove Milk Chocolates into the marshmallow.1 bag of Dove Milk Chocolate Ghosts
- Generously coat the top with the dusting powder. Let it set for at least 6 hours – up to overnight.
- Gently turn out the marshmallow onto a work bench that has been dusted with marshmallow dusting sugar. Peel the parchment paper off.
- Coat the marshmallow with dusting sugar and cut into squares using a clean, greased knife for every cut. You can cut the marshmallows into any shape that you like – I prefer cutting into 6 x 8 for about 48 small marshmallows.
- Store cut marshmallows in an air tight container.
Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
What spooky treats will you be making this Halloween? I will be making my fan favorite witch’s heart Halloween cocktail as usual, and pair these with some Halloween monster cookies! 🙂
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