Homemade Marshmallows and Crockpot Hot Chocolates

It has been a particularly wintry winter in our neck of the woods!  Even before Thanksgiving it was cold and snowy. By Christmas, I definitely thought hot chocolate should be on the menu. Planning ahead, I decided to make marshmallows. I always thought, "why would anyone even want to do that?" I understood why they were worth making after my daughter-in-law made them a few years ago and I fell in  L-O-V-E with them.   They are just so much better than what is in the bag.  Eating them on their own is good but melting them in a big mug of hot chocolate is even better. I know you are all thinking of that wonderful mass of melty marshmallow right now!  They are not difficult to make,  just a little messy and time consuming. Worth it? Absolutely.  I used Alton Brown's recipe because I trust him with recipes that use things like a thermometer!  I don't trust every recipe I see online anymore.  Here is the recipe for Alton Brown's Homemade Marshmallows. 

I don't even own a stand mixer so I popped my whisk beaters on my hand-held mixer and it worked just fine. I beat it a little less than what the recipe said and I worried.  Turns out, there was no need to. Each one was a perfect little one cubic inch of white fluffiness when it was all done. 

Since I made my own marshmallows it seemed wrong to open a package of powdered hot chocolate mix to toss my little poufs in.  I decided to make a recipe of crockpot white hot chocolate for the family non-chocoholics. Yes, there are two of them.  I also wanted to make a hot chocolate that had less milk for those with some lactose intolerance. We have a couple of them too.  I liked a combination of the two recipes in my mug the best, but really, I was in it for the marshmallows.

CROCKPOT WHITE HOT CHOCOLATE 

2 cups whipping cream

6 cups milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1(12 oz..) bag white chocolate chips

Place all ingredients in a crockpot and cook on low for 2 1/2 hours or until chips melt.

CROCKPOT HOT CHOCOLATE

12 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

7 1/2 cups water

1/2 cup dry cocoa powder

1/8 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Place all ingredients in a crockpot and cook on low for 3 hours. I actually put it on the stovetop on low and it was fine. I don't have 2 crockpots this size.