Made with a handful of basic pantry staples, and flavoured with fruit purée, my delicious vegan marshmallows are based on a Russian confection, called zefir.
Place 250g (8oz) blackberries into a medium-sized saucepan, along with 100g (½ cup) sugar and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
Bring to a gentle boil, mash the berries, then reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the fruit is soft.
Strain through a sieve, pushing as much of the purée through as possible. You'll need about 125g (half a cup).
Set aside to cool, rinse out the saucepan.
Once cooled, add the purée and 2 tablespoon aquafaba to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the balloon whisk attachment.
Whisk on the highest setting for 10 minutes or so, until the mixture is stiff enough to form peaks (essentially, you're making a meringue).
Line a cookie sheet with baking parchment.
Syrup
While the purée and AF are whisking, in your saucepan, mix together ⅓ cup (75ml) water with 2 teaspoon agar-agar and 200g (1 cup) sugar.
Bring to the boil over a medium heat, then turn down to low, and - whisking all the time - cook on a gentle rolling boil for 5-6 minutes, until the syrup is has thickened. Turn off the heat.
Marshmallow
Turn the mixer down to its lowest speed, give the syrup one last stir, and carefully pour it in a thin stream into the meringue. Try not to get it on the whisk or sides of the bowl because it will set almost immediately, and won't mix in.
Whisk for a few seconds, then use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Set the mixer going again on its highest speed, and whisk the marshmallow for another 3-5 minutes, until once again, it forms stiff peaks.
As soon as the marshmallow is ready, transfer it to a piping bag fitted with a large rose or open star tip, twist the end to get rid of any air, and pipe 24 roughly equal-sized marshmallows.
Set aside, uncovered, at room temperature for 8-12 hours (or overnight) to properly set and dry out, then take two marshmallows, and press their bases together to form one large one.
Finishing
Dredge with icing sugar, and shake off any excess.
At this point, the marshmallows (zefir) can be eaten or stored in a lidded container at room temperature. However, if you prefer a more chewy texture, they can be left out, uncovered, for a further 24-48 hours (depending on how you like them).
Apple zefir
Place 150g (6oz) prepared apples into a medium-sized saucepan, along with 100g (½ cup) sugar and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
Bring to a gentle boil, mash the apple, then reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 10 minutes or so, until the fruit is soft.
Blend to a smooth purée, and set aside to cool.
Once cooled, add the purée and 2 tablespoon aquafaba to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the balloon whisk attachment.
Whisk on the highest setting for around 10 minutes , until the mixture is stiff enough to form peaks.