Homemade vanilla marshmallows

Brush an 8x8 inch dish with vegetable oil and dust it well with powdered sugar.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk, sprinkle 2 packets of gelatin over half a cup of cool water and set aside to bloom.

In a small pot combine half a cup of water, 1 1/2 cups sugar and 1 cup light corn syrup. Stir only until the sugar dissolves, then leave it over medium heat to reach 240F.

Check with a candy thermometer, or drop a little syrup into cold water: a soft ball means ready, dissolving means not yet, a hard ball means too hot.

With the mixer on low, pour the hot syrup slowly into the gelatin, then gradually raise to high and beat a few minutes until thick and glossy and it leaves a trail.

Mix in 2 teaspoons vanilla and a quarter teaspoon salt.

Scrape into the prepared dish with a spatula and smooth to the edges, with the spatula or damp hands. Leave at least 4 hours, until the top is not tacky.

Dust the cutting surface with powdered sugar, pry the slab out with a spatula, and dust it all over, including the sides; sugar your hands too.

Cut straight through with a sharp knife, sugaring the knife after each cut and dusting the cut edges, into pieces of any size.