Sweet nothings, light as air

Pale and soft, you'll see them in the shape of fat, powdery pastel cubes tucked into a cellophane bag as a souvenir from Paris. They show up at the fanciest confectioners as long, rectangular spears in pretty taffy colors -- pale yellow, minty green, lilac -- looking almost like flowers displayed in a vase. You almost don't want to eat them. Or they might be pure white, melted into the top of a berry crumble at a Beverly Hills restaurant, the edges browned, melty, a little chewy.

Marshmallows have grown up.

Handmade marshmallows have as little to do with the supermarket variety as a snow cone does with sorbet. Scented faintly with rose or orange blossom, flavored subtly with pistachio or lavender or coconut, these are tender, luscious pillows of sweetness and air. Best of all, the ingredients are pure.

Lately, pastry chefs have been fashioning house-made marshmallows into elegant -- or fun -- desserts.

Dressed-up s'mores have been showing up all over town. At One Pico at Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica, marshmallows are skewered and sandwiched between graham crackers and roasted to just this side of meltiness, ready for dipping in hot fudge or caramel sauce.

But they also can go much more elegant: At Maple Drive, they appear in a wild berry gratin with marshmallow meringue. And at Lucques, for Valentine's Day, pastry chef Roxana Jullapat will be serving ginger marshmallow candy -- ginger-flavored hearts flecked with crystallized ginger.

Technically, marshmallows are candy. All that's involved is sugar, corn syrup, powdered gelatin and, if you like, a flavoring and color.

To make them, just combine sugar, corn syrup and water and cook until the mixture reaches a temperature of 235 degrees -- the "soft ball stage." (If you don't have a candy thermometer, spoon a little of the hot mixture into a bowl of cold water. If you can gather it into a soft ball with your fingers, you're there.) Take it off the heat and add more corn syrup to prevent the sugar from overcooking and congealing. Meanwhile, soften powdered gelatin in water.

Next, whip the sugar syrup into the gelatin so that the liquid cools slowly as air is incorporated. This causes the marshmallows to change from a dull gray-brown to a shiny snow white. As the color changes dramatically, the texture changes too, until it's transformed from a thin syrup into a fluffy, pillow-like froth.