If you’ve been reading a while, you know that Ina Garten is a love in our house. We have her books, we record her shows. Jeffrey LOVES Ina. We looked for her when we were in the Hamptons last Spring, Jeffrey loves her voice. We love her dishes.

One episode a few weeks ago was homemade marshmallows. Who actually MAKES marshmallows? Seems like a lot of hassle for something you buy at the store. But for the same reason you make challah or a homemade pie, we made marshmallows.

Ina did make it look simple. There were few ingredients, and the bulk of the time was inactive rest. They don’t bake in the oven. It was a simple process. It was our first time cooking with gelatin (in the baking aisle with pre-packaged Jell-o if you’re looking), and using a candy thermometer ($4 at the grocery store.)

Homemade Coconut Marshmallows

Ingredients

• 7 ounces sweetened shredded coconut, toasted
• 1 recipe Homemade Marshmallow batter, recipe follows
• Confectioners’ sugar

Directions

On the stovetop, add coconut to a skillet with no Pam or butter. Mix around for about 15 minutes until it starts to brown. Remove before burning.

Sprinkle half the toasted coconut in an 8 by 12-inch nonmetal pan (not greased either). Pour in the marshmallow batter and smooth the top of the mixture with damp hands or spatula. Sprinkle on the remaining toasted coconut. Allow to dry uncovered at room temperature overnight.

Remove the marshmallows from the pan and cut into squares. Roll the sides of each piece carefully in confectioners’ sugar. Store uncovered at room temperature.

Homemade Marshmallows

Ingredients:

• 3 packages unflavored gelatin
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Instructions:

• Combine the gelatin and 1/2 cup of cold water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and allow to sit while you make the syrup. Don’t whisk, just let it sit.
• Meanwhile, combine the sugar, corn syrup, salt, and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Raise the heat to high and cook until the syrup reaches 240 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Remove from the heat.
• With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour the sugar syrup into the dissolved gelatin. Put the mixer on high speed and whip until the mixture is very thick, about 15 minutes. Add the vanilla and mix thoroughly.

The process was actually very simple, didn’t dirty many bowls, and the batter whipped up to a white and fluffy mix. The long part was letting it sit out. We started this on a Sunday at about 11 a.m., and let it sit all afternoon.