Being Geek Chic is a blog about one woman navigating the male-dominated industries of production and tech. It's written by Elizabeth Giorgi, Founder, CEO and Director of Mighteor - one of the world's first internet video production companies. Learn more about Mighteor here.
So Halloween is upon us and I’ve been sucking down Caramel Apple Pops like I got hired to check out the evenness of the caramel to apple ratio. In fact, I am not being paid. I just have a problem. Or an obsession. Whatever. Point is, you don’t have to go the candy route! You can totally go DIY on your Halloween costume AND your treats.
Here’s some really fun ones:
Make Veronica Mars themed Marshmallow treats! Add some food coloring to make them a little more festive if you like. Or don’t. White is fun too. Recipe here!
Make Star Wars themed Death Star Popcorn Balls! I love me a popcorn ball. And while they were a hot item on the grocery shelves during my trick or treating years, they are much more uncommon now. So, you’ll just have go get the kernels and the butter and the syrup and do it yourself. So worth it. Recipe here!
Cook up Harry Potter’s favorite pumpkin desert! Everyone loves Harry Potter, even the newest readers of the series. I love the pasties because they are so good fresh, but they’re even better cold. Shhh. I know it’s weird. But yum. Recipe here!
Let’s bake some Iron Man Arc Reactor Cookies for all those Marvel themed customed kiddos! I’m expecting to see at least 10 tiny Thors, 6 adorable Hulks and 5 itty bitty Iron Mans on Friday. It only makes sense that I’d delight them with Arc Reactor cookies. Come on now! So cute. Recipe here!
In your best Kristin Bell imitation voice: “But seriously, Marshmallows. This is it.”
Last spring, 91,585 fans of the gone-before-its-time cult classic Veronica Mars made Kickstarter history by donating more than $5 million to fund filming for a continuation of the cancelled series.
It was both the highest-funded film Kickstarter, as well as the fastest project to raise a million dollars. 11 months later, the film is finally hitting theaters this weekend.
Veronica Mars is one of those culty, nerdy things I always knew I would end up liking, but only recently had time to dive into. (I was also super late to loving Chuck) I probably won’t quite wrap up in time to see the movie on opening night – I just started season 3.
However, in honor of a large, rabid, and passionate fanbase, generally referred to as “Marshmallows” – a reference from the pilot episode, here is the Veronica Mars Marshmallow recipe.
Veronica Mars Marshmallows (Adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe):
NOTE: Unlike most of our BGC recipes, you do need a stand mixer for this one. I tried once to make them with a cheapie hand mixer and ended up with a strange puddle of goo.
Ingredients:
Special equipment: Stand mixer, one 9x9 square pan, plastic wrap, parchment paper, and a large rubber band.
Now, Make them Mallows! Step by Step:
1. Pour the half cup of water into the bowl of your stand mixer and sprinkle all three packets of gelatin over the top. Allow it to stand for 10 minutes while you prepare the pan and sugar syrup.
2. Line the bottom of the pan with plastic wrap, and spray the plastic with cooking oil. There should be a generous amount of plastic hanging over on each side.
3. In a medium saucepan, bring the remaining quarter cup of water, sugar and corn syrup to a boil over medium high heat. Stir gently and be cautious - this kind of candy syrup hurts like no other if it splatters on your skin. When the mixture starts to boil, keep stirring and continue to boil for at least one minute.
4. If 10 minutes have not passed since you first added the water and gelatin, remove the sugar syrup from heat and allow to cool slightly. Add a pinch of salt.
5. Start your mixer on a medium speed and slowly start pouring the sugar mixture. Once it’s all been added, turn the mixer up to a higher speed.
6. Allow the mixer to continue on high for 10-12 minutes. In the final minute, add the vanilla extract. The mixture will expand and resemble marshmallow fluff when it’s finished.
7. Spoon the mixture into your prepared pan and smooth the top of it. Spritz the parchment paper with cooking oil, and press it oil side down on top of the marshmallows. Use the rubber band to make the seal airtight.
8. Allow the marshmallows to sit for at least two hours, but up to overnight. Turn the marshmallows out on a cutting board and blot any excess cooking spray with a paper towel.
9. Pour half a cup of powdered sugar into a shallow bowl.
10. Coat a sharp knife with cooking oil and cut the marshmallows into squares. You’ll get up to 16 very large marshmallows or 20-24 smaller ones. Toss each marshmallow in the powdered sugar to coat the sticky sides. Enjoy!
Recipe by Emma Carew Grovum. She is the web and social media editor for Foreign Policy magazine and uses her newsroom colleagues as taste testers. Emma has previously worked for the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Webbmedia Group, The Cooking Club of America and the Minneapolis Star Tribune. She loves Star Wars, pandas and all things Joss Whedon. Find her on twitter at @emmacarew.
