All mallowed out

COOK UP A BATCH OF OH-SO SWEET CALAMITY JANES.

These are the bouncy marshmallow, strawberry-hearted, chocolate-coated pucks of my baking dreams! Snappy cinnamon wholemeal cookies sandwich squares of lemony marshmallow, with zippy strawberry jewels in the centre. The recipe is an homage to the Wagon Wheel, but the name pays tribute to Doris Day’s singin’, dancin’, pistol-packin’ portrayal of Calamity Jane. Whip, (chocolate) crack away!

INGREDIENTS

For the lemon zest marshmallows:

650g caster sugar

40g light corn syrup or glucose (or honey) 1/2 vanilla bean, split

500ml cold water

25g gelatine powder

2g (1/2 tsp) sea salt flakes cooking oil spray zest of two lemons, finely grated

For the strawberry jewels:

500g best fresh strawberries

150g caster sugar

30ml lemon or lime juice (from approx. 1 small lemon or 1-2 limes) 40ml cold water

1 vanilla bean, split (optional – if you’re feeling fancy)

For the cookies:

110g unsalted butter, cool and pliable 60g light muscovado (or soft brown) sugar 40g honey

120g plain (all-purpose) flour

30g wholemeal flour

2g (1/4 tsp) fine sea salt

2g (1 tsp) freshly ground cinnamon

For the chocolate dip:

600g milk chocolate (30%-plus cocoa)

10g freeze-dried strawberries, to garnish (optional)

This recipe is a minor quest, but well worth it! I recommend making the mallow, jam and cookie dough the day before, then baking the cookies and assembling the next day. They'll keep for up to 5 days refrigerated.

HOW TO

Making the lemon zest marshmallows

NB: You’ll only use half the batch here. The rest can be cut into squares and scoffed!

Begin the syrup by combining the sugar, corn syrup, vanilla bean and 300ml of the cold water in a 20cm-wide saucepan over a high heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved.

As soon as the syrup comes to a rolling boil, whisk the gelatine powder and the remaining 200ml of cold water together in the bowl of an electric stand mixer. Leave at room temperature. As it ‘blooms’ (aka takes in the liquid), the powder will thicken into what looks like jellied sea foam.

Boil the syrup until it reaches 120°C – this will take about 10 minutes. The syrup should look like bubbly, clear liquid plastic. A fast boil will prevent crystallisation, so keep the heat high.

Carefully pour and scrape all the syrup onto the gelatine in the mixer bowl and stir with a balloon whisk until well mixed. To be honest, it’s going to smell a bit weird at this stage, but that will dissipate and I promise it won’t taste like that at the end.

Using tongs, remove the vanilla bean, then stir in the salt and allow to cool for 5 minutes, but no longer. You want to start whisking while the syrup is warm – around 75°C.

Place the bowl on the stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whip on speed 8 (under high) for 5 minutes. The mix may spatter a little at the start, so drape a tea towel over the top until it subsides, but don’t keep it on the whole time – the hot air needs a way out of the mallow syrup to allow it to cool.

After 5 minutes, you should start to hear a thrumming sound of the thickening mallow slapping against the side of the bowl. Drop the speed down and whip on speed 4 (medium) for another 5 minutes.

While the mallow is whipping, spray a 20cm x 35cm cake tin with a generous coat of cooking oil spray. The mallow is ready when it’s airy, creamy and sticky. With the mixer off, stir in the lemon zest, then quickly scrape the mix into the prepared tin, smoothing the top with an offset spatula. Cover the top with more cooking oil spray and lay a piece of plastic wrap on top. Smooth the marshmallow out with your hands, using a moderate degree of pressure to even it out.

Chill for at least 2 hours until set, then flip the marshmallow out onto a cutting board. It will keep for up to 2 weeks refrigerated and airtight. This is a soft marshmallow, so keep it chilled.

Preparing the strawberry jewels

NB: You will only need half the amount, so slather the rest on yummy croissants.

Start the berry preserve by removing the green tops from the strawberries, chopping them into halves or quarters (depending on the size, but keeping it chunky) and placing them in a small, non-reactive saucepan.