Homemade Sugar-free Marshmallows

These Sugar-free Marshmallows are fluffy, light, low-carb, and super fun to make. Plus you can easily vary the sweeteners for whatever your dietary needs are.

I’m all for fun treats for my kiddos (and for me too), but I’m not for all the sugar in store-bought marshmallows.

And did you know that most marshmallows have added food coloring in them? No joke. Well, now you can enjoy sugar-free keto marshmallows without the sugar and minus the food coloring as well.

This Homemade Sugar-free Marshmallow recipe is one of our all-time favorites. We used to make them with sugar, but now that we’ve gone low-carb, those days are over. But you can substitute the low-carb sweetener with a regular one if you’d like.

I first made these homemade marshmallows with my son. What fun to see water, sweetener, and gelatin turn into white fluffiness in a bowl, and then seeing them turn into marshmallows that tasted much better than anything I’d ever bought in a bag.

Why Make Homemade Marshmallows

• Avoid food coloring: The blue food coloring is in store-bought mallows to make the white look brighter. Sheesh. I mean, you really really want to have brighter marshmallows, use a tad of this natural blue food coloring instead.)
• Avoid corn syrup: First of all, I want to avoid corn syrup due to almost all corn being GMO these days, but also because a lot of corn syrup has mercury in it due to the method of processing.
• Avoid Sugar: Sugar is just a huge problem, according to TONS of info on the web these days. And if you have candida, like I do, then sugar is a complete no-no. Sucanat, coconut sugar, honey, and others are better than white sugar, but still don’t work well for people who need to avoid the carbs.
• Fun with kids: Even if you don’t have kids, making these marshmallows is super fun for adults too!
• Save Money: Sugar-free marshmallows cost a small fortune. I just saw a measly 2.7 oz bag of sugar-free marshmallows for $1.99. Eek!!

We made these in August with some Grain-Free Graham Crackers and my Homemade Chocolate Chips and made our own sugar-free, grain-free S’mores. They were great! We shared them with a special visitor from Australia. She didn’t know what S’mores were, prior to coming to the US, but she does now and clearly they were a hit.

FAQs

Will These Sugar-free Marshmallows Roast?

Homemade sugar-free marshmallows simply don’t roast well. However, if you’d like to try it, you can let them dry for a few days before roasting and use just quick bursts of heat.

I haven’t tried this yet, but I read this should work so I’ll have to give it a run. It’s likely that allulose will work best for this.

Can You Make Marshmallow Shapes with These Marshmallows?

This recipe should work great in silicone molds. Just spray the molds with a (preferably healthy) cooking spray or coat the molds with a small amount of vegetable oil.

These molds would be SO much fun to use for Easter!

You can spoon the marshmallow mixture into a plastic bag, snip off the ends, and pump the mixture into molds more easily.

Can You Use Other Sweeteners?

Yes, in general, you can use any sweetener you’d like. If you’d like to switch the glycerin for another sweetener, a 1:1 ratio of water to sweetener, so it looks like that will work too. I haven’t tried it well, however.

One reader commented that she tried this recipe using only erythritol and it didn’t work out well. I haven’t tried this, but if you are going to, please try a small batch first or at least be prepared that it might not work out.

What Kind of Gelatin Is Best to Use?

One great company is Great Lakes – it’s made from pastured cows without antibiotics in their feed. There are a number of other good ones like Vital Proteins and Trim Healthy Mama.

Substitutions for Special Diets

• Vegan Option: For a vegan marshmallow option, use agar powder in a 1:1 substitution for the gelatin. I personally haven’t done this but it is supposed to work out just fine. Enjoy!
  If you are attempting to make a vegan option, be aware that you might have varying results. You do need to let the agar sit on the water for about 1 hour before using it. Also, the results with agar can be variable, so please be aware. I am going to try to do some experimenting to see if I can figure out what makes them work vs. not work.
• Xylitol: Any other healthy sweetener can be used instead of xylitol, but if using erythritol use 1/3 more. If using a liquid sweetener, you may need to use a different amount, so read How to Substitute Sweeteners first. Approx. 12 scoops (3/8 of a teaspoon) of stevia (see How to Use Stevia) will work. Use honey, maple syrup (read this post for help choosing maple syrup), coconut sugar, or sucanat for AIP.
• Glycerine: You can also substitute any healthy sweetener for glycerine. Again, though, if using a granulated sweetener a different amount may need to be used. If you’re on the THM diet, use xylitol or erythritol – again, use 1/3 more if using erythritol.

More Homemade Healthy Pantry Recipes

If you like this recipe, you’ll likely enjoy these recipes too!

– Powdered Sugar / Powdered Sugar Substitute
– Powdered Egg-Replacer (like Ener-G)
– Homemade Taco Seasoning
– Soft Pumpkin Cookies (these taste amazingly like Enjoy Life)
– Homemade No Bake Almond Joy Bars 

Sugar-free Marshmallows

These Homemade Sugar-Free Marshmallows are super fun to make and have no artificial flavors or colors. Make them sugar free for a low carb treat.

4.64 from 11 votes

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Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: AIP, Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free, Keto, Low-Carb, Paleo, THM:S, Vegan

Keyword: keto marshmallows, Sugar-free Marshmallows

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 9 dozen of marshmallows approximately

Calories: 8kcal

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons gelatin
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1 1/2 cups allulose or xylitol (See Recipe Notes for alternatives)
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup vegetable glycerine (functions as a sweetener in this recipe. See Recipe Notes for Alternatives)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

• In a medium to large-sized bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water. Allow to sit for at least 5 minutes.
• In a heavy bottom sauce pan, stir sweeteners and remaining (hot) water.
• Heat sweeteners and water over high heat until the mixture reaches 240 – 245 °F, or the soft ball stage.
• Gradually (and carefully :-)!), while mixing constantly, add the hot mixture to the water and gelatin mixture.
• Slowly add the vanilla to the mixture while beating.
• Beat on high until the mixture form stiff peaks (almost like beaten egg whites).
• Pour into a lightly greased 8×8 pan. You can use whatever size pan you like to make either thick or thin marshmallows. The 8×8 pan will make pretty nice-sized thick marshmallows.
• Allow marshmallow to set. Then cut into desired sized. This can take 6-24 hours (I’ve never had it take that long), but you can put them in the freezer to speed it up — just don’t forget they’re in there :).
• If desired, coat with cocoa, raw or toasted coconut, ground up nuts – have fun with your toppings!
• Store in an airtight container and try to keep your kiddos out of them!

Notes

• Vegan Option: For a vegan marshmallow option, use agar powder in a 1:1 substitution for the gelatin. 
  If you are attempting to make a vegan option, be aware that you might have varying results. You do need to let the agar sit on the water for about 1 hour before using it. Also, the results with agar can be variable so please be aware. I am going to try to do some experimenting to see if I can figure out what makes them work vs. not work.
• Xylitol: Any other healthy sweetener can be used instead of xylitol, but if using erythritol use 1/3 more. If using a liquid sweetener, you may need to use a different amount, so read How to Substitute Sweeteners first. Approx. 12 scoops (3/8 of a teaspoon) of stevia (see How to Use Stevia) will work. Use honey, maple syrup (read this post for help choosing maple syrup), coconut sugar, or sucanat for AIP.
• Glycerine: You can also substitute any healthy sweetener for glycerine. Again, though, if using a granulated sweetener a different amount may need to be used. If you’re on the THM diet, use xylitol or erythritol – again, use 1/3 more if using erythritol.
• Roasting Tips: Homemade sugar-free marshmallows simply don’t roast well. However, if you’d like to try it, you can let them dry for a few days before roasting and use just quick bursts of heat. I haven’t tried this yet but I read it should work. It’s likely that allulose will work best for this.

Nutrition

Serving: 1dozen | Calories: 8kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 4mg | Potassium: 2mg | Sugar: 1g | Calcium: 2mg | Iron: 1mg | Net Carbs: 1g

Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is merely an approximation. Optional ingredients are not included and when there is an alternative, the primary ingredient is typically used. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts since they have been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.

Are you a S’more or marshmallow lover too?

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