The 4th of July is less than a week away, can you believe it? This is my very favorite time of year. We have all adjusted to the more laid back summer state of mind as July approaches. The days are long and hot and full of plenty of friends, imagination and wondrous adventures which just seem to unfold in the summertime months. My eldest daughter came home from one of these adventures with a bag full of goodies that included the biggest marshmallows I had ever seen. Lickity-split, my mind began whirling with ideas of what I could create with these puffs of fluff the size of my palm. I’ve had cake pops on the brain after making cake pop cards not to mention I’ve been lamenting about how to use the pretty red & white paper straws I picked up recently.

* insert sound of fireworks exploding*

And hence, the 4th of July Marshmallow Pops where born.

My girls and their friends OOOoooooh’ed and AAAAaaah’ed as I whipped up a batch the other day, so I knew they’d be my go-to fun treat for all of our 4th of July festivities. Thought I’d share what I did so you could too!

You’ll just need some red & blue candy melts.

Some red & white paper straws. (You could try the plastic ones but I thought that the paper ones seemed more sturdy).

And but of course GINORMOUS marshmallows!

These marshmallows make the straw-to-marshmallow ratio more proportionate than the regular marshmallows. And you know how important straw-to-marshmallow ratio is.

First melt the candy melts according to package instructions.

I experimented with a few different techniques of dipping sequences and I found that pushing the straw (about 3/4 deep) into the marshmallow before dipping it into candy coating was the way to go.

So, first push the straw into the marshmallow and then take the straw out. Next, dip the marshmallow into blue melted coating(and 1/3 of the way) and then tap, tap, tap your hand that is holding the marshmallow to get all of the extra candy coating off. (Learned that trick from Bakerella! Thanks Bakerella!)

Then place the marshmallow on wax paper, dipped side up…

BUT before the coating is dry, insert the straws back into their original hole and let them sit until candy coating is totally dry.

This way there will be no candy-coating-cracking going on, not to mention this helps the straw stay secure.

Once the blue coating has dried all the way,

…it’s time to dip them into the red melted candy coating. I found that holding the marshmallow from the marshmallow rather than the straw worked the best. Then stand the marshmallow pops in a sturdy glass until dry.

I never knew that patriotic could look so cute.

Then taste one to make sure that they are edible for all of your friends and family.

I know, I know. The sacrifices that we have to make.

This is the perfect fun & festive sweet treat. Three ingredients. No mess. No hot oven to contend with in the blazing summer heat.

I’m in.

Happy Red, White & Blue!

~Wenderly

4th of July Marshmallow Pops

(makes 20 pops)

What you’ll need:

1 bag of red candy melts
1 bag of blue candy melts
20 large marshmallows
20 red & white striped paper straws

What you’ll do:

1. Melt red & blue candy melts in separate bowls according to package instructions.
2. Insert a straw 3/4 deep into each marshmallow and take out again. This will leave the hole where the straw will go after dipping marshmallows.
3. Dip the side of the marshmallow with the hole into the melted blue candy coating. Hold marshmallow over bowl after dipping and tap your hand until excess candy coating has been tapped off of the marshmallow.
4. Place marshmallow with the dipped side up and insert straw into each hole. Let dry completely.
5. Once the blue coating is completely dry, hold the marshmallow by the sides (not the straw) and dip into the red melted candy coating. Tap hand to shake off excess candy coating.
6. Place  the marshmallow pop (straw side down) into a heavy glass to dry.

ENJOY!