Marsh mallows. Marshmallows. Know the difference.

A recent post about s'mores got me thinking about marshmallows. Even though they pronounce it "marshmella" in my neck of the woods – the word "mallow" caught my eye some years ago as I was leafing through Durward L. Allen's North American Wildlife.

The upshot: these are marsh mallows . These are marshmallows.

What gives?

Turns out, the plant came before the confection. These days they make marshmallows cheap, using common gelatin, which is a byproduct of meat processing. (It's the reason vegetarians don't eat marshmallows.) But, back in the day, the roots of the marsh mallow were gathered and boiled with sugar to create the puffy candy pillows. It worked because marsh mallow roots are rich in mucilage, a gluey, natural thickener.

And if you're old enough, you'll conjur up this image when you hear the word "mucilage." Remember those weird rubber things from grade school?

Since a variety of health benefits have also been ascribed to marsh mallow, in the old days marshmallows were considered good for you – or at least good for your dyspepsia and catarrh.

Now they're just empty calories, but still – life just wouldn't be the same without them.