Middletown's Newest Business Has Soft, Fluffy And Creamy Marshmallows

MIDDLETOWN, CT – Being in the marshmallow business is something not many people can say, but Michelle Fabricant can say she’s been in the marshmallow business for 10 years.

Fabricant owns The Marshmallow Factory in Middletown, located at 386 Main St.

“We found this place in March 2023,” she said. “We had to do the electrical, the plumbing, infrastructure, air conditioning. It all had to be done before our official opening in May.”

"My husband and I are both from Connecticut, so we decided to move back to our home state, and it just felt right,” she said. “It was the right time.”

Before moving to Middletown, Fabricant said she and her husband had this business in Florida, but her work with marshmallows initially started in Rhode Island.

“In 2013, I started making a few marshmallows in my kitchen,” she said. “My husband and I had various businesses; the last was an ice cream store in Rhode Island, which we ran seasonally.”

When they owned the ice cream shop, Fabricant said they wanted to offer something other than ice cream for people to enjoy.

“People do bonfires and cookouts during the short summer,” she said. “I thought I could make a better marshmallow than what was available.”

Fabricant made a chocolate-chip marshmallow, put it in a Chinese takeout container with some skewers, and sold it.

“People could take it to the beach and not worry about having a candy bar because it was all in there already,” she said. “All they needed to do was find a fire source. That’s how it started.”

From there, the marshmallow business was born and started to grow. However, the COVID-19 pandemic halted their cross-country trip from Florida to Rhode Island, but it didn’t stop her marshmallows.

“I started not being happy with one flavor,” she said. “One flavor led to another and another, and here we are now with about 40 flavors that run seasonally.”

From the start, Fabricant wanted to make her marshmallows as healthy and tasty as possible, so she learned to make sugar cane syrup.

“Corn syrup makes marshmallows sticky and gummy, and they toss it in Confectioners' sugar, which adds to the gumminess, “she said. “The first thing a dentist will tell kids when they have braces is not to eat marshmallows. They can eat mine.”

Because Fabricant uses pure sugar cane sugar, she makes herself in her recipe; she said all her marshmallows are soft, fluffy, and creamy inside and hold up well over a firepit.

“You can put them in your coco. You can make rice crispy treats out of them. You can make all kinds of things with them,” she said. “But this is something I do that’s different from everybody else.”

At the Marshmallow Factory, they have seasonal flavors like peppermint, eggnog and gingerbread for the winter and for the summer. Fabricant said she makes blueberry marshmallows as well as cherry and vanilla flavors.

Having been in Florida for many years, Fabricant says they still have a large clientele there, so they ship many marshmallows to Florida.

“When someone places an order, they are freshly made,” she said. “There’s not much sugar in my marshmallows, which surprises people. I use real raspberries, oranges and key lime to make the marshmallows. So, people are happy to discover it’s not a sugary treat.”

Even though the business is new to Middletown, Fabricant said they have been busy shipping out orders, and their location is excellent for foot traffic.

“Having a location in this Main Street market is key,” she said. “I get a lot more traffic here than if I was a standalone shop on the street. I get all the business from the other business. We all promote each other’s businesses.”

One of the things Fabricant is most proud of is that many people can eat marshmallows, even those with a nut or gluten allergy.

“We are nut-free, gluten-free and corn-free here in this spot,” she said. “So, you can rest assured that if you give someone a gift, they will be ok with it.”

“People are amazed when they find out they can eat my marshmallows,” Fabricant added.