Chocolate ale marshmallow

Ingredients:

• vegetable oil, for greasing
• icing sugar
• 240ml cold pale ale
• 25g powdered gelatin
• 450g granulated sugar
• 175g runny honey
• 2 large free-range egg whites
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 400g dark chocolate (70% cocao solids)
• 8 hard caramel sweets

Method:

1. Lightly oil a 20cm x 30cm baking tin. Dush with icing sugar to coat, then set aside.

2. Pour the ale into a large bowl and whisk vigorously to get rid of most of the bubbles.

3. Tip half into a small one-stick pan and put the rest into the bowl of a free stranding mixer with the gelatin. Gently whisk to combine, then set aside. 

4. Add the sugar, honey and 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt to the pan of ale. Place over a low heat, swirling the pan gently, for 10 to 15 minutes,or until the sugar has dissloved.

5. Turn up the heat to medium and bring the mixture to the boil. Pop your sugar thermometer in the pan and leave the syrup to gently boil for 10 minutes,or until it reaches 115ºC and is a light brown colour (don't worry of the gelatin has set in the bowl, the hot sugar will re-melt it.)

6. Take it off the heat and gently pour the mixture over the gelatine, with the mixer on a low speed. 

7. Once all the syrup has been added, turn up the mixer to high and beat for 7 to 8 minutes,until fluffy.

8. In a separate bowl,whisk the egg whites with an electric whisk to stiff peaks then fold them into the ale mixture, along with the vanilla, until combined. 

9. Spoon the mixture into the prepare tin. Lightly grease a palette knife with oil and use it to smooth out the marshmallow mixture.

10. Dust with a thin layer of icing sugar and leaves it to set at room temperature for 5 h or overnight.

11. When you are ready to finish off your marshmallows, place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water and melt it over a medium low heat. Remove and set aside.

12. Pop the marshmallow block onto a chopping board and it into even-sized pieces. Using a toothpick, dip them in the chocolate and leaves to set on a tray.

13. Crush and mix in the caramels with a pinch of sea salt. Just before the marshmallows have set, sprinkle some on top,leaves to set fully at room temperature, then enjoy.