If you haven’t yet heard of Sweet & Sara vegan marshmallows, then you are either not vegan or foodie-oriented, or you live under a rock. Sorry to break it to those who might still be residing in the stone age, but these incredible confections have been the most exciting product to hit the marketplace since Soyatoo. Currently, they’re the only brand of marshmallow suitable for vegans, so they hardly need any extra buzz to pump up sales… Of course, for the purposes of scientific research, I felt it was my duty to see for myself what the hype was all about. It’s all for the benefit of vegan-kind, you see!
Two high and low points are immediately obvious about this product before we even leave the store: They cost one serious chunk of change in comparison to the standard factory-made marshmallow, and can be rather difficult to obtain locally if you aren’t lucky enough to live near a Whole Foods (unless you’re dead set on getting your mallow on, in which case they can be ordered online.) These points seem only like negatives, but trust me, if those barriers didn’t exists, I don’t know how I would convince myself to eat anything other than those sugary white pillows.
For this simple taste test, I only purchased the standard vanilla variety, but they also come in toasted coconut, and are even used to create some devilishly decadent pre-packaged s’mores, things that clearly need further investigation in the future. Biting into one plain, cold mallow, you might not expect much of a taste sensation, but these babies were in a whole different league than the standard: Soft, creamy, and just a tad chewy, it was like biting into a vanilla-scented cloud. While I had imagined that eating them straight would be tooth-achingly sweet, they actually proved to have a relatively balanced sugar content, which made them dangerously munchable. Admitedly, I can’t say that they truly struck me as being “fluffy”, but trust me, these aren’t just full of air like the traditional “jet-puffed” mallows; These are confections of substance!
Before I had the chance to mow through the package as is, I decided to roast one over an “open flame” (read: my gas stove) and see how it stacked up. Sure enough, the edges began to brown and bubble in no time, yielded a saccharine, gooey ecstacy, far better than any campfire treat that I could remember. Even cut into pieces and drowned in a cup of hot chocolate, they still held their own, refusing to melt before the bulk of the drink had been imbibed, and lent a delicious added sweetness to the whole beverage. Truly, I don’t think that you can go wrong with these, no matter how you choose to indulge with them.
now you know I’m not vegan but I do draw the line at eating so many animal products in sweets. I love the sound of these and I’ve not heard of them in the UK at all. But then as i’ve not been looking I suppose my head is under that rock. These do look wonderful and next time I hit a UK wholefood store I’ll be looking out for them.
I’m not a big marshmallow fan, myself, but if you can use these to make rice crispy bar type of treats, then I’m all for them. ;)
these are what I used in the Vegan Marshmallow Fudge Brownies that I made for my parents’ wedding anniversary!!! I’m SO happy that you FINALLY got to try them!!! :0D
Though I have heard quite a bit about these marshmallows, now I cannot see how I’ve lived without trying them! Wow, they sound so much better than the real thing! I love love love hot chocolate, so these would be perfect.
I got your cookbook on Tuesday. I was so excited! Thank your wonderfulness!
Dipped in chocolate could be quite nice, too. I can see you coming up with fabulous dessert recipes with these soon.
I have heard of these, but I hadn’t heard or read any reviews before today. This is amazing! I was never a huge marshmellow fan, but I did like them in my cocoa and for some reason I’ve been craving s’mores even though I don’t think I’ve ever had a single one in my life.
I’m so glad Whole Foods supplies them. For a while I thought I was gonna have to go with Rice Mellow, but this is a whole new brand of goodness!
Hmmm, now I have more ideas of what to do with them. And THAT is where I saw them before. I saw them at Whole Foods. I thought they looked familiar. LOL. Everyone here has great ideas on how to use them. I can’t believe I forgot all about S’mores! Now I want some. Great. ;)
I’ve had my eye on them for awhile, but I just can’t justify such a decadent splurge right now. The boyfriend and I are the types to take down a box of cookies or a pint of ice cream in one sitting… so, pricey treats just aren’t worth it. (Should I have just admitted that?)
Still, though. The idea of toasted marshmallows/s’mores is tempting.
I *love* toasting them over my gas stove flame! Sometimes I put a spoonful of peanut butter or chocolate in my mouth before eating the toasted marshmallow & it’s heavenly!
So glad you got to try Sweet and Sara’s marshmallows!! I ordered some online this summer (beware: the vanilla ones can melt in heat!), and was not disappointed. Would definitely recommend trying the toasted coconut ones.. I love them dipped in chocolate fondue, mmmmmm.
I haven’t seen these at Whole Foods before, but Follow Your Heart carries them and I bought them online in the past before they were at FYH. The toasted coconut variety is so good! They used to also make a Mexican chocolate flavor, as well, and they were fantastic. I didn’t realize you could roast them over a flame; I’ll have to try that. I didn’t realize that the VeganSweets marshmallows were unavailable until I read your review. I guess Sweet & Sara made them want to reformulate their version. Thanks for another beautifully-written review. :)
Just checked the Sweet & Sara website to find that CA Whole Foods don’t carry these lovely marshmallows (yet, I hope). I guess that’s why I haven’t seen them there! Thank goodness for Follow Your Heart!
Ahh! Now you’re making me feel like I must have them! I wonder if I can find them in Canada.
I suppose I’m crawling out from under my rock now because I’ve never heard of these. They sound fantastic, though. If they can be used to make rice cereal treats, I’m a fan for like. Now I’m on a mission. Thanks for the review.
Suddenly my delightful black bean salad has lost its appeal…Im still in the stone age here, so I havent heard of these until now. I will have to order some and research them with you!
I have indeed tried these! A friend bought them for us not too long ago. I thought they were delicious.
Hello there!
Just found your blog, though I have been hearing about your dessert book through everyone who has made your yummy desserts in blogland. My boyfriend’s sister who lives in your neck of the woods bought your book which you so kindly autographed- the book is gorgeous and I am really looking forward to making a ton of sweets!
And I am truly loving some Sweet & Sara’s goodies too.
Now that I’m out from under my rock I’m anxious to crank up the gas stove and have a marshmallow toast up here in snow-covered Wisconsin. Hope I can find these at whole Foods in Madison. I better get my boots and go out to hunt for some marshmallow toasting twigs, just in case. I really hope I can find these (the marshmallows not the twigs) – haven’t had a gooey toasty marshmallow in years.
I love marshmallows too……….made so many before Christmas that I’m on a break right now. I’ve found it is soooo easy to make them from scratch, I’ll probably never buy them again. I’m not a vegan (although my diet mostly appears that way), however the next batch I make will be with vegan gelatin! Thanks for the info on these!
Here is another brand of vegan marshmallows: http://www.veganstore.com/850.html
It looks like they aren’t in stock but I got them not too long ago and they worked great for rice krispie treats! :)
I would have thought eating them plain would have been “tooth-achingly sweet” too! They sound heavenly!
I actually got two containers of these for Christmas along with one of the Smores. I liked the Smore a lot, but it was too sweet for me so I wrapped it up and ate in 3 sittings. I do love the Marshmallows, but I was kinda sad that they didn’t melt when I put them into my hot chocolate. Granted, they did keep looking cute sitting on top, but I like them being all melty. If only I had a gas stove! I’d totally roast them!
oh man, I was just in boston this weekend and went to whole foods to “stock up” and I completely forgot to get some of these. Since I’m cheap and won’t pay for shipping, I’ll have to wait until april to get some. Grrrr! But glad to know they are awesome.
hannah,
i’m living vicariously through you on this one! i used to make marshmallows before the emes debacle, and it really broke my heart when i found out they weren’t veg. the whole foods here don’t stock these, so i’m gonna have to wait to try them…in the meantime, think of me next time you take a bite!
xo
kittee
i adore your blog.
not the only vegan ones on the market, but the most appetizing ones we’ve seen…I say seen because neither of us feels an overwhelming loss of sugar in our lives to the point where we desire marshmallows, vegan or otherwise
Sweet & Sara > VeganSweets
(saw your more recent post about the Angel Food kit–my co-workers and I thank you for sharing!)