Serves 10
FOR REASONS STILL UNKNOWN, WHEN I FIRST FOUND THIS MYSTERIOUS, SPARSELY written recipe—a Missouri State Fair winner, no less—I was determined to unpack this Angel Fluff. With no fruit, it doesn’t quite qualify as a “dessert salad.” It’s too sweet to go alongside other savory dishes on a Chinet potluck plate. It’s hard to picture it being served as a stand-alone dessert. It’s too sturdy to be a pudding. What is even happening here?
I talked to myself with a furrowed brow during the entire preparation of the vaguest of formulas. I made a batter reminiscent of a sponge cake, but baked it into a crisp cookie? I quartered marshmallows with kitchen scissors? I bound it all together with unsweetened whipped cream? I was completely prepared for this marshmallowy bowl of crazy to go right into the trash.
Well. That absolutely did not happen. Because after a rest in the fridge, the whole thing transformed. The exposed edges of the marshmallows gave up just enough gelatin to embolden the cream. The crispy cookie bits softened and swelled, lending a custardy, genoise flavor to the whole thing. It ended up being something like a creamy angel food cake. I was captivated. I could not stop swiping spoonfuls straight from the refrigerator over the course of two days. When I did, I could see others in my household were covertly doing the same. There was an uptick of spoons in the sink. So, apparently, “eat randomly, secretly, straight from the fridge” is the category for this recipe. Reserve your judgment, don’t ask too many questions, and just get on in here. You won’t regret it.
2 large eggs
¾ cup/150 g granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract, divided
¼ cup/32 g unbleached all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 (10-ounce/280 g) bag large marshmallows
2 cups/480 g heavy whipping cream, chilled
Position a rack to the center of the oven and preheat it to 325°F/170°C. Line a 12 × 17-inch/30 × 43 cm rimmed baking pan with parchment paper (the paper is a must, to get the baked cookie out of the pan).
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the eggs, sugar, and salt. Beat on high speed until light and tripled in volume, about 5 minutes. Beat in 1 teaspoon of the vanilla. Fold in the flour and baking powder. Scrape the batter onto the prepared baking sheet and smooth it into a thin layer, nearly filling the pan. Bake until golden and crisp, about 15 minutes. Let cool in the pan set on a wire rack. Wash the bowl and whisk and fit them back onto the mixer.
Meanwhile, use kitchen scissors to snip the marshmallows into quarters (tedious but worth it—the exposed edges of the marshmallows help the fluff bind together better than mini marshmallows would). Pour the cold cream into the bowl of the mixer. Add the remaining vanilla. Whip the cream to stiff peaks.
Crumble the cookie into small bits into the whipped cream. Add the marshmallows. Fold to blend. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving. Keep any leftovers covered in the fridge for up to 3 days.