This homemade meringue tastes like marshmallow creme! It comes together quickly and easily with 4 basic ingredients. Made without all the preservatives and high fructose corn syrup of the store-bought version, this extra creamy and sweet topping/frosting will quickly become your new favorite.
Have you ever had a fluffernutter sandwich? Eaten marshmallows straight out of the bag? Roast campfire s’mores just to eat the gooey toasted marshmallow? Enjoyed marshmallow fluff right out of the jar? If any of these describe you, continue on.
PS: A fluffernutter sandwich is peanut butter and marshmallow creme on bread. Don’t knock it ’til you try it, trust me.
This is Meringue, But Tastes Like Homemade Fluff
Today we’re making homemade fluff aka marshmallow creme. I’ve actually taught you how to make it several times before:
- No Bake S’mores Cake
- Brownie Baked Alaska
- S’mores Chocolate Mousse
- Chocolate Mousse Pie
- S’mores Brownie Cupcakes
- Ultimate Birthday Cupcakes
- Chai Pumpkin Meringue Pie
It’s basically Swiss Meringue Buttercream, just without the butter. But don’t let the word “meringue” frighten you. This is an astonishingly simple mixture that you can use as a frosting, filling, or topping on MANY different confections. You only need 4 ingredients, a stovetop, and a mixer. It’s similar to traditional “7 minute frosting”, but doesn’t contain corn syrup or water.
What Does Marshmallow Creme Taste Like?
Marshmallow creme is everything we love about marshmallows, but in semi-liquified form. It’s extra creamy, soft, and sweet and pairs wonderfully with a variety of flavors like chocolate, peanut butter, banana, pumpkin, spice, lemon, etc. When toasted, it tastes like a marshmallow roasted over a campfire!
Unlike store-bought marshmallow fluff, this makes an excellent frosting because it can be piped. (Store-bought isn’t stable enough.) It doesn’t hold any intricate shapes, but pipes beautifully with a large round tip like Ateco 808, pictured above on chocolate cupcakes and below on S’mores Brownie Cupcakes.
Just 4 Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make homemade marshmallow creme. Though the written recipe is below, I want to walk through these ingredients so you understand the importance of each.
- Egg Whites: Egg whites and sugar form the structure. For best success, I recommend using fresh eggs instead of carton egg whites. (Using an egg separator is really handy!) Here are all my recipes using leftover egg yolks. Success tip: Eggs separate much easier when they’re cold.
- Granulated Sugar: Use regular granulated sugar, not confectioners’ sugar.
- Cream of Tartar: If you’ve made our French macarons, you’ll remember that cream of tartar stabilizes the egg whites and helps the mixture hold its stiff peaks. It does the same job here—certainly an imperative ingredient. Sometimes lemon juice can be used as a substitute, but I don’t recommend it here. For best results, you need cream of tartar.
- Vanilla Extract: Pure vanilla extract adds wonderful flavor.
How to Make Homemade Marshmallow Creme & Video Tutorial
While it certainly looks fancy, homemade marshmallow creme couldn’t be easier to make. This is a simple 4 ingredient mixture cooked on the stovetop, then beaten into stiff peaks.
Begin by whisking the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar together in a double boiler or heat-proof bowl over a small pot of simmering water. Continue whisking until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture has thinned out. Remove from heat, add vanilla extract, then use your mixer and whip on high speed until stiff glossy peaks form. Whipping is where the magic happens. It’s fun to watch the mixture transform from a thin liquid to voluminous fluff—literally a big puffy cloud.
You can toast homemade fluff using a kitchen torch (affiliate link– this is the torch I own and love) like I do in my no-bake s’mores cake, bourbon sweet potato pie, brownie baked Alaska, s’mores brownie cupcakes, and s’mores chocolate mousse.
Uses for Homemade Marshmallow Fluff
- topping for banana cream pie or pumpkin pie
- as a filling for crepes
- frosted on chocolate cupcakes or peanut butter cupcakes
- piped & toasted on coconut cake or red velvet cake
- swirled on pumpkin cupcakes or lemon cupcakes
- between two graham crackers
- spread & toasted on homemade brownies
- as the filling for oatmeal creme pies
- in s’mores cookie bars
- as the filling for cream-filled chocolate cupcakes
- as a completely homemade option for topping pumpkin cupcakes with marshmallow frosting
- wherever you would use marshmallow fluff!
It’s excellent as a filling for cupcakes, but I find it squishes easily between layers of cake. I don’t recommend using it as a filling for cake, but you could certainly use it to frost the outside of a cake.
Print
Homemade Marshmallow Creme (Frosting)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 cups
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Made without all the preservatives and high fructose corn syrup of the store-bought version, this extra creamy and sweet homemade marshmallow creme will quickly become your new favorite. So many uses!
Ingredients
- 4 large egg whites
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a heatproof bowl. Set bowl over a saucepan filled with two inches of simmering water. Do not let it touch the water. (You can use a double boiler if you have one.)
- Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved and mixture has thinned out, about 4 minutes. The mixture will be thick and tacky at first, then thin out and appear frothy on top. To test that it’s ready, you can use your finger or an instant read thermometer. Lightly and quickly dip your finger (it’s very hot, be careful) and rub the mixture between your thumb and finger. You shouldn’t feel any sugar granules. If using a thermometer, the temperature should read 160°F (71°C).
- Remove from heat. (No need to let it cool down before continuing.) Add the vanilla extract, then using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat on high speed until stiff glossy peaks form, about 5 minutes.
- Meringue can be spread, piped, or swirled onto cakes, cupcakes, and other confections. Serve immediately OR torch it with a kitchen torch for a delicious toasted marshmallow topping. (Do not place in the oven under the broiler—it will melt.)
- Cover and store leftovers for up to 2 days in the refrigerator. Baked goods topped with this marshmallow meringue can be left at room temperature for up to 6-8 hours. After that, it’s best to refrigerate or else the topping will begin to wilt. For best taste, texture, and appearance, I do not recommend freezing this.
Notes
- Smaller or larger batch: Recipe may easily be halved, 1.5x, or doubled. Less volume will cook quicker on the stove and beat into stiff peaks quicker. More volume will take a little longer in both steps.
- Eggs: For best success, I recommend using fresh eggs instead of carton egg whites. Here are all my recipes using leftover egg yolks. Success tip: Eggs separate much easier when they’re cold.
Keywords: homemade marshmallow cream, homemade fluff
Is it possible to flavor this? Possibly with ground freeze dried strawberries?
Hi LR, I haven’t tested it but you can certainly try adding some ground freeze-dried strawberries.
Hi Sally! What would you recommend as a good substitute for cream of tartar, since there isn’t any where I am?
Hi Dawi, unfortunately, cream of tartar is an imperative ingredient. Lemon juice can work as a substitution in some recipes, but it doesn’t work as well here.
I had the same issue as others above….I followed every step with no luck getting any peaks, just yummy goo as stated before! Def tastes yummy and I will def use this as my new “fluffernutter” go to!
I used this recipe to top the Thanksgiving sweet potato casserole. I’m pretty busy with promoting a new book (Our Silent Voice: Break the Silence/Amazon) in the middle of this season. So I piped it on the casserole, got my handy torch out and dazzled my teenage grandsons! They love it and I loved the wide eyed compliments from my tall fans!
★★★★★
Hi, you think I can add cream cheese to some of it? Trying to make red velvet cupcakes topped with the torches marshmallow creme wondering if I can flavor it to go with the cupcake
Hi Grace, We have never tried adding cream cheese to this but fear that it would deflate and not torch properly. But let us know if you try anything!
This worked pretty well for me when I tried making a smores cake (the cake recipe I used didn’t come out so well, so this meringue was definitely the best part of the whole thing). It is, however, very sweet–not too sweet for me, but too sweet for most of my friends. I’m wondering if it will affect the structure of the meringue if I halve the sugar? Please let me know if you have any recommendations for reducing the sugar in this recipe. Thank you!
★★★★
Hi Elizabeth! Sugar makes up moisture and structure in this marshmallow creme as well as taste. We don’t recommend reducing the sugar.
This was my very first attempt at a meringue and I’m impressed by how easy and delicious it is! It tastes just like marshmallow and it was so fun to pipe it onto cookie sandwiches. I put some in fridge for 2 days and it was still very fluffy.
I’ve always wanted to make a lemon meringue pie and this has finally inspired me to do it.
★★★★★
Can this marshmallow fluff recipe be used as the filling for your chocolate Whoopi pie recipe?
Definitely!
Would this recipe be enough to fill and ice a 4-layer cake? (Using two 8″ pans and splitting each into 2 layers.) Or should I double the recipe?
Hi Theresa, this recipe yields about 4 cups. Depending on how heavily you’d like to frost the cake, you can 1.5x or double the recipe. Note that we don’t recommend using it as a filling for cake (it can easily squish out the sides), but you could certainly use it to frost the outside of a cake.
Yep super easy and tastes like marshmallows! It took a few minutes longer for me to get those stiff peaks but I enjoyed making something right the first time around! I made chocolate chip cookie sandwiches. My son told me I’m the best baker in the whole world lol. Thank you for the recipe!
★★★★★
I have some of this leftover and I want to use it as whoopie pie filling but it’s too loose. Do you think I could whip it with some powdered sugar to make it thicker?
★★★★★
Hi Chris, We haven’t tried it but you can certainly try. Be careful to mix gently so that you don’t deflate the meringue.
Hi Sally,
Made this for a friend for the first time and she loved it. I really love your recipes!! They are amazing! She requested a chocolate marshmallow icing how would I incorporate this into the recipe would I use melted chocolate or cocoa powder ?
★★★★★
Hi Alia, We haven’t tested it but you can try gently folding in some melted and completely cooled pure baking chocolate (the kind sold as bars, not chocolate chips). Let us know if you give it a try!
Hello, this tasted good but no amount of whipping resulted in anything I could pipe. Well, I did pipe it but it didn’t hold. Any suggestions?
Hi Allison, this meringue frosting will not hold any intricate piping. I just use a large round tip. Was the sugar completely dissolved when removing from heat? Did you alter anything in the recipe or process? How long did you whip because if cooked correctly, it should eventually form stiff peaks.
Hi,
So I use marshmallow fluff when I make rice crispy treats. Would this work in the same way? I would love to do it homemade without all the preservatives.
Hi Theresa, we’ve always made rice crispy treats with regular marshmallows and not fluff, so we’re unsure of how this would hold up in your recipe. Let us know if you give anything a try.
Hey Sally,
When I’m going to venture into unknown baking territory it is always you that I turn to…your recipes always work and you read comments and answer questions…
We are enjoying an unstoppable autumn up here in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Canada and the kids want a special campfire with friends and I suggested homemade marshmallows for roasting. Here’s the thing, I have read many recipes for marshmallows but I have never made them! So this morning I opened my browser thinking let’s see what Sally has to say about making marshmallows…to my dismay I found nothing.
I’ll wing something and figure it out but if you ever get bit by the homemade marshmallows bug… I’ll be waiting… and if I might put one more bug in your ear how about homemade Rice Krispie squares with home made marshmallows…just a thought.
Have a fabulous morning,
Melissa
Hi Melissa, thank you so much for the kind note and for making and trusting our recipes. We really appreciate it! This recipe doesn’t set up like marshmallows do, so it would be better to use a recipe specifically for making marshmallows. If you have a copy, Sally’s recipe for homemade marshmallows is published in Sally’s Candy Addiction. Thanks again!
Does this still work with meringue powder instead of raw egg whites?
Hi Karen, we recommend sticking with eggs whites for this recipe!
Hi,
Do you think this can be frozen? I love filling my lemon curd macarons with this, but I need to make it ahead if possible.
Hi Stephanie, for best taste, texture, and appearance, we do not recommend freezing homemade marshmallow creme. The topping can be made ahead up to two days in advance and stored in the refrigerator if needed.
Without a stand mixer, is this possible?
I have tried a few times with my handheld electric mixer (that has two smaller whisk attachments) and can never get it to peak. Not sure if its the mixer, or some other factor.
Hi Prath, It is possible, but it will take longer to reach glossy peaks with a handheld mixer. If you want to try again before you begin, wipe all tools that will touch the meringue with a little lemon juice or white vinegar (bowl and whisk!). Grease or fat residue left on surfaces prevents your meringue from setting up. Also be sure that you don’t have even a drop of yolk mixed in with the whites.
This was my very first attempt at a meringue and I’m impressed by how easy and delicious it is! It tastes just like marshmallow and it was so fun to pipe it onto cookie sandwiches. I put some in fridge for 2 days and it was still very fluffy.
I’ve always wanted to make a lemon meringue pie and this has finally inspired me to do it.
★★★★★
Heavenly!! I’ll never go back to plain old whipped meringue. I made your recipe for Creamy Lemon Pie & topped it with this and Oh. My. Goodness. it was incredible!!
★★★★★
This looked great and piped beautifully. We torched it and then put it in yhe fridge but after 3 hours it started melting and dripping down the sides. What do you think would have caused that?
★★★
Hi Nil, It’s best to torch this frosting right before you eat it. You can store it in the refrigerator and then torch before serving.
Hi Sally!
I made this last week and it was amazing!! I’m wondering if I can use brown sugar instead of white sugar – sort of like 7 minute boiled frosting?
Thanks!
★★★★★
Hi Marie, You could definitely try brown sugar. The marshmallow meringue may take a lot longer to whip into stiff peaks from the extra moisture. You’ll also lose that traditional marshmallow flavor.
Hi, Can you colour this with gel paste?
Hi Jules! A couple drop of gel food coloring wouldn’t hurt. Add it when you add the vanilla.
I so appreciate homemade recipes for store staples! I made this for Sally’s s’mores cookie bars, and though I accidentally dropped a little bit of egg yolk into the mixture, was able to get it to whip by adding on some extra time. We hope to use the leftovers with chocolate chips and graham cracker crumbs to top pancakes.
★★★★★
Hi Sally! I’ve made this frosting multiple times before (and loved it every time!), however this time I was thinking of mixing in some crushed Oreos for cookies and cream cupcakes. Would the frosting be able to hold them? I’m not worried about piping because I have done the same with buttercream, I’m just worried the frosting won’t be able to support the Oreos.
★★★★★
Hi Isabel! We haven’t added Oreos to this frosting but it sounds like a delicious addition. Make sure they are finely crushed up and not overly large chunks of cookie, which should help them to hold up in the piping. We’d love to know how it goes for you!
Hi,
Just wondering approximately how many cupcakes this recipe will cover. Aiming to make 12 so should the recipe cover that or be halved?
Hi Lara, it depends on how high you pipe the meringue, but you should be able to cover about 2 dozen cupcakes. You can halve it for fewer cupcakes if desired.
This recipe worked for me despite the humidity in my area during this time of year. It took quite long to get stiff and beautiful but it was worth it! Although I let my mixture cool completely before whipping it, worked great! I used it as cake topping and blowtorched it for a great effect. High-speed mixer setting and lots of patience did it. Thanks for this!
Hi! Do you think the marshmallow crème would be stable enough to use as the coating for cake pops instead of candy/chocolate? I’m fine with it not setting or hardening perfectly – I just want to try something different for the coating! Or if I were to add a little bit of white chocolate to this recipe to add more stability, would that ruin the meringue?
Hi Shannon, I don’t recommend using this as a coating for anything. It’s thin and gooey like store bought marshmallow creme (“Fluff”). Best as a filling or simple topping for a cupcake. To add stability, I wouldn’t add white chocolate. Instead, you might want to try this Swiss Meringue Buttercream recipe.
Unfortunately I couldn’t get this to work. 40 mins of whipping and no peaks, just yummy goo.
Not humid and used a thermometer to reach appropriate temp.
★
Thank you
★★★★★
Hi Sally, how long would this last in the fridge once blow torched? I just made it to put on a s’mores cheesecake and am planning to give it to someone 3 days from now. Would the marshmallow go bad?
Hi Sarah, we usually recommend leaving it in the fridge no longer than 2 days before consuming. Much longer than that, and it will start to wilt.
Hi! I’m wondering if this could be used when making peanut butter fudge that calls for marshmallow fluff.