Sherbet Lemon Marshmallows, scratch that, Passionfruit Marshmallows with Lemon Sherbet

Things have been pretty sweet this week, I've been taking part in "the sweet swap" organised by Aussie food bloggers Chew Town and Belly Rumbles. It works like this; I parcel up 3 packages of my chosen homemade sweet and post them off to my designated swappers; I then wait, impatiently, for my 3 packages to arrive.

They arrived over a week, on 3 separate days, I didn't open any until the last arrived, I like to prolong the surprise; deferred gratification, in kids it can indicate intelligence... It seems I underestimated the importance of packaging, the parcels I received were gorgeous! That overachieving Amanda at Chew Town even baked her own tags! I loved the contents just as much, 3 of my favourite things; chocolate, nuts and a honeycomb hybrid.  A perfect crunchy, hazelnutty ferrero rocher like chocolate from Julie at I Dream in Chocolate, gorgeous spiced pecan chocolate cups from Nicole at Seeking Victory, and a mad maple comb from Amanda at Chew Town. They were all sweetly delicious, a real treat.

Sherbet lemon marshmallows were my confection of choice, until i realised I'd bought passionfruit instead of lemons, who does that? So, passionfruit marshmallows with lemon sherbet. I love this marshmallow recipe, the texture is amazing, mousse like and spongy, never rubbery. They are super sweet, and paired with a fizzing lemon sherbet are quite something. To make lemon marshmallows, simply substitute the passionfruit juice in the recipe below with freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice. I sent my sherbety, marshmallowy packages off to Sara at Belly Rumbles, Simon at The Heart of Food, and Lucy at Bake Play Smile. I loved the image of the marshmallows Simon posted on instagram, I'd be lying through my teeth if I didn't admit it influenced my own :) thanks Simon!

Passionfruit Marshmallows

180ml strained passionfruit juice (approximately 10 large passion fruit)

20g powdered gelatin

500g caster sugar

2 egg whites

snow sugar* for dusting

• lightly grease a  20cm by 25cm (or similar) cake pan and dust with snow sugar

• combine passionfruit juice and gelatin in a bowl, set aside

• combine caster sugar and 1 cup (250ml) water in a medium sized saucepan and cook over gentle heat, stirring, until sugar dissolves • increase heat to medium and cook until syrup reaches 125ºC on a sugar thermometer, approximately 10 minutes but you need to keep an eye on it • remove from heat, add passionfruit mixture to syrup and stir until gelatin dissolves, the mixture will bubble alarmingly!

• meanwhile, using an electric mixer, whisk egg whites and a pinch of salt until frothy • gradually add passionfruit mixture, whisking continuously on medium speed until mixture has doubled in size • slowly decrease speed and mix until mixture is just warm

• pour into prepared cake pan, spread evenly, then dust top with snow sugar 

• stand at room temperature for around 3 hours or until firm, then release the marshmallow by running a knife around the edge of the tin and tipping it onto a board• using a sharp knife, and a ruler if you have my OCD leanings, cut marshmallow into 4 by 5 cm rectangles and roll in snow sugar to coat • store in an airtight container between sheets of baking paper at room temperature for up to 2 weeks

• when you are ready to serve, arrange on your serving dish, dust liberally with lemon sherbet, and finely zest a lemon over the top, watch them fizz then consume as soon as possible

* in Australia snow sugar is available from The Essential Ingredient but can be substituted with a 50/50 combination of icing sugar and corn flour (or potato starch for a gluten free alternative) 

makes approximately 25 large marshmallows

adapted slightly from Catherine Adams, Rockpool Melbourne

Lemon Sherbet

75g citric acid

95g icing sugar

1 tbsp bicarbonate of soda

1 lemon

• combine the first 3 ingredients in a bowl, pass through a fine sieve 3 times
• store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week

adapted from Lisa Featherby's recipe in the Australian Gourmet Traveller