Artisan Marshmallows & Giveaway

A friend of your Chocolate Priestess gave me some artisan marshmallows from an Indiana company called 240sweet back at the end of September.  She gave me the Chocolate Chocolate Chip kind and they are huge.  So  I contacted the company to let them know that one of my readers recommended them.  They responded  by not only sending me three samples but also offering my readers a gift.  We'll get to the giveaway in a moment.

My friend, Razzle, gave me the first threesome.  All the marshmallows come in hot sealed bags and they can be found in some stores around Indiana or you can go directly to 240sweet in Columbus, Indiana, to find them.  I think Razzle said she got these at our local co-op, Bloomingfoods, where I have a membership, too, but I've never seen these in there.

240sweet sent me these three flavors: Caramel Swirl with Chocolate Chips, Chocolate Chipotle, and Chocolate Caramel Swirl.  On their website they mention that the swirls are only available November through February of each year.  Of the four flavors I'm going to reveal to you, they are all large but vary widely in size.  The Caramel was the largest in terms of width and height while the Chocolate Caramel Swirl the shortest.  Since these are handmade and small batch made the size may vary so I don't want to give exact dimensions that might mislead you, Sisters and Brothers.  They are all much bigger than the average store bought, every day marshmallow.

The Caramel Swirl with Chocolate Chips stuck to the seal plastic wrapper a bit after I cut it open but they came out in one piece.  There was a light caramel and sugar scent to them and they were not sticky at all to my fingertips but seemed lighted dusted.  They were easy to separate and with three of us about to make smores with them, we decided to try different ways.  One of us cut his into three pieces and laid them on three graham crackers and put them in the microwave for about 30 seconds.  As you can see they melted too much.



The next one of us just cut the marshmallow into two pieces and placed them on graham crackers.  After microwaving for 10 seconds they looked good and the report was that they tasted very much like caramel and sugar with a crunch and a charge of chocolate when the eater got to the chips.


I did a more traditional smore by cutting my marshmallow in half and then placing it on top of a chocolate bar.  Then I microwaved at 15 seconds, more matter to go through means more time for the radiation to work, and they turned out great.  Now the marshmallows were so thick that with one half I had to watch it as it tended to squish out around the edges.  Overall a very nice change of pace for the smores.



The Chocolate Chipotle came out of it's package more easily since it was a bit smaller the Caramel Swirl.  It has a strong scent of chipotle and a light chocolate scent.  If you looked at it however you'd see only a cocoa color to the marshmallows.  We decided to add these to hot cocoa in an attempt to make a Mexican or spicy version. The intense scent should have been our clue that one marshmallow per cup would be too much for me but about right for the Milk Chocolate Acolyte.  I used sugar free cocoa mix so that any sweetness would come from the marshmallows and not the cocoa.  When I first took a sip, it tasted just like decent hot cocoa, nothing I'd cross the street for but that I'd buy in bulk for home use everyday.  Then when I swallowed my eyes went wide.  That's when the heat hit.  I tried holding a sip in my mouth and no heat reaction until I swallowed.  The heat lasted for minutes and minutes.  Now, different parts of our tongues and mouths react to different sensations and flavors so I think this is what happened here.  Let me clear: If you don't like a lot of heat, cut your chipotle marshmallow in half or less to use in hot chocolate.

The Chocolate Caramel Swirl marshmallows were sampled in two ways.  The first two we toasted, or attempted to toast, over the flame on the top of our gas stove.  Warning: Just like regular white marshmallows you can find in any store these will catch on fire but fastest because I think the sugar in the caramel caught on fire for me.  No, no pictures of the fire, it was just a corner.  The caramel started to melt but the body of the marshmallow didn't puff up like the traditional ones can over a camp fire.  The result was a very gooey and warm treat. The last marshmallow I just ate as it was in the bag and I really like that too. Definitely sweet but it clearly had the bitterness of the cocoa and the tang of the caramel as well.  Overall the scent was mostly the caramel and again they were dusted so my fingers didn't stick until I toasted one.


That leaves us with the flavor that Razzle gave me for my birthday: Chocolate Chocolate Chip. I was all ready to try these in the sugar free hot cocoa plus a smore when I cut open this bag marked "Best by: 12-9-10".  I tried this yesterday but I received about six weeks back.  On them were signs of fuzzy green mold that made me cry.  These looked so good with a chocolate marshmallow and mini chocolate chips.  Let this be a lesson, Sisters and Brothers: Eat these quickly!

The artisan marshmallows I could try were very tasty, clearly head and shoulders above any other marshmallow I've ever had.  You can use them in a variety of ways but just make sure you consume them with a week or two please.  The result is a worthy Sacrament for those of you who like a sugar rush with your cocoa buzz.

The good folks at 240sweet are offering one lucky reader a $15 gift pack of artisan marshmallows that they can either have sent directly to them or as a gift to someone else.  With several winter holidays right around the corner, I think you'd be crazy to not want to get this gift.   Here is how you can get a chance to win, the steps will look very familiar to you all.  Sorry, only people in the continental USA can win.

1.  You must be a public follower of The Chocolate Cult because I will check.  Three ways to follow -- blogspot itself, Facebook, or Networked Blogs. You can find these three ways on the right hand bar at the top.  Also make sure you have an email set so I can contact you if you should win.

2. Leave a comment telling me what flavor of 240sweet marshmallow looks the best and the most questionable to you.  You can find that list here.

3.  You must leave your comment and be a public follower by midnight on Friday, November 26, 2010.  The winner will be contacted by email.



Spread the word about the giveaway please and keep reading and commenting on our posts.  Your appreciation gives us all the energy to keep bringing you reviews and news about chocolate. Thanks you 240sweet for entrusting us to reveal your products to the world and for offering this giveaway.

Comments

Anonymous said…
As the original 240Sweet fan, I'm so glad you got to cover the marshmallows! I'm sad, however, that you didn't get to try them *toasted*. I know it's complicated if you don't have a fireplace or gas stove handy, but I heartily recommend a mini butane torch for easy and uniform kitchen marshmallow toasting. ^.^

Toasting these - in my opinion - really brings out the flavors. Coffee chocolate chip is my favorite! When toasted you get a rich scent and taste of coffee layered with the melted chocolate over the sweetness. The crisp exterior gained from toasting makes them completes the textural experience. I love being a great big kid with my toasted gourmet marshmallows.

I'm most curious about the Thai chili flavor. It sounds amazing but I just can't imagine it with a marshmallow texture! Someday I'll have to try it.

Keep on toastin'!
Anonymous said…
Ack! You did toast the swirl, just not a chip-topped flavor! This is what I get for posting PreCoffee. XD
mavido79 said…
Most questionable is a toss up. Beef, Chicken, Avacado/Lime & Bacon/Maple/Toffee all seem pretty far out there to me. Best is also difficult as there are so many that look yummy but I think I'd go for the Chocolate Chip Coconut
240sweet said…
Thank you for the great review. We're glad you enjoyed our marshmallows. You'll be excited to learn that we have upgraded our packaging with the debut of our new logo. This should rectify any issues with mold. Customer satisfaction is importantto us, so please let us know if you have any problems. Have a sweet day!
The Prosey Rose said…
Ok..I'm torn by the vanilla rose and chocolate chocolate chip for best. Most questionable would be the beef. If you are going to go on a pilgrimage to 240 sweet..would love to go with you.

SR

PS Ha! I remembered to enter this week!
I always crave for something sweet whenever I visit your blog!! And how nice of the company to offer your readers a lovely gift!
Anonymous said…
Okay. most questionable for me would be the chicken...And best sounds like the Elephant Ear. Although i wouldn't hesitate o try them all!
briarrose said…
Wow....amazing looking marshmallows. I don't think there would ever be a problem to eat them quickly. ;)
Torviewtoronto said…
lovely review delicious smores
PC is a brand in Canada :) they might have similar products I guess
see you soon
regards
Anonymous said…
Praline for the most promising, beef for most questionable.
liquidj said…
OK so right off the bat I'm drawn to listings for Dark Chocolate and Peppermint, both sound really good, and IMHO would compliment the sweetness of a marshmellow. On the other hand, flavors that I would find questionable in complimenting that sweetness, would be either Thai Chilli, or Turkey Sage.