Homemade Marshmallow's

We are headed to Beaver Creek for a week of skiing! Well, actually I am going along as the condo chef. Until a week ago it had been over 30 years since I took to the slopes. So Tina took me to a local ski hill to see if I could get down a bunny hill. I grew up skiing, every single Saturday and Sunday from the time I was five until I headed to college. For years, all though grade school and junior high I took Otto Hollaus ski lessons, a rigorous training that focused on fundamentals. I never imagined how well that training would serve me and took to the hills like I'd been at it all these years. I am not nearly as good anymore. Back in the day I had a nice slalom and picture perfect parallel legs and ski. Today I can't keep the skis together as well but I can still get down any hill. I have my father to thank for my skiing abilities and for the record, at 80 he is still hitting the hills out west. This will be my first trip to real mountains as I also grew up in a sort of twisted sexist home and ski trips out west were "only for the boys".

Anyway, I will ski while I am there, probably just one day. Otherwise I plan to spend my time in the kitchen and at the spa. I am totally intimidated by cooking in the altitude and was completely unwilling to tackle baking so I did all the baking ahead of time. Cinnamon Scones, Blueberry Muffins and Chocolate Chip Banana Bread are just a few of the treats I am taking along. I have worked really hard to create menus and snacks that scream winter ski lodge including these homemade Marshmallows.

I am so not a marshmallow fan but was a total convert after I had my first homemade marshmallow at the Ritz! I wondered why I had never tried to make them myself. Shortly after that my favorite blogger, Katrina who writes the blog Gluten Free Gidget (http://glutenfreegidget.blogspot.com/) posted a recipe for homemade marshmallows. That was it, I wanted to give a try. Of course I had to do a dry run before committing them to the Beaver Creek menu and it was successful.

We are mostly having fresh fruit for desert but a ski trip isn't complete without homemade hot chocolate and marshmallows and of course I have to have S'mores. I had a few extra so I made some marshmallow pops with chocolate and toasted coconut as an airplane treat.