Marshmallows originally derive their name from a tall pink flowering mallow plant which thrived in the salty marshes of Egypt along the Nile delta. In ancient times these Marsh- mallow plants were harvested for their root sap which when added to honey produced a light fluffy sweet delicacy.

These marshmallow sweets were considered by the Egyptians to be so delicious and exclusive that only, the Nobility, Pharaohs and the Gods were able to enjoy them. The Marshmallows were also used as a cure for sore throats and other aches and pains too. By the mid Nineteenth Century the French began to replace the experiment with Marshmallow root sap by adding egg whites and whipping up the mixture into a fluffy sweet, eventually replacing the expensive Marshmallow root sap with cheaper gelatin and corn starch.

This was the beginning of Marshmallows as we know them today!

By the early twentieth Century a new industrial manufacturing process was developed to produce Marshmallows much quicker and cheaper making them no longer a special treat or delicacy but an everyday sweet.

Today marshmallows continue to be made from gelatin, glucose syrup or sugar with flavourings and colours usually pink and white.

Mini Marshmallows

Haribo mini Marshmallows are produced in Belgium using natural colourings and flavourings, and are very popular with baristas as a topping for hot chocolate drinks, cappuccinos, lattes and mochaccinos.

It is estimated that during the summer months nearly 50% of large marshmallows are toasted over an open fire!