Like most modern marshmallows, Stuffed Puffs® marshmallows don’t contain any actual marshmallow root. The mallow plant (Althaea officinalis) is a finicky herb with a slightly earthy flavor, making it a rare choice for use in modern candy. Ancient Egyptians made candy by combining marshmallow root with nuts and honey, and in the 1800s French candy stores painstakingly hand-whipped sap from the mallow root into the first version of the chewy marshmallow candies we know today. But making marshmallows out of marshmallow root was so tricky and time-consuming that candy makers had already shifted to a new marshmallow recipe method by the late 1800s. That method—which involves heating and whipping sugar syrups, then adding gelatin and flavors like vanilla extract—is still used to make the marshmallows we know and love today.