Great story, Spritle! Made me giggle.
Mangetout, I’m wondering if a jar of marshmallow creme would work better for what you’re describing. Light the top & let a nice charcoal layer form. Scrape it off with a spoon & eat. Repeat. Hmm. I may have to experiment this weekend.
I prefer the marshmallows I consume right off the stick to be a deep golden brown…not blackened! However, when it comes to s’mores-making time, the time saved by burning them is a great advantage…
At GingerDope, a flaming marshmallow fell off my stick. About a half-dozen Dopers pointed out that it was still burning as I picked it up, brushed it off, and popped it in my mouth.
Yummm…!
Oh, my goodness, Spritle - I’m cracking up in my office (obviously not doing any work…) reading that one!
Marshmallows must be burned to a crisp. Because, if they aren’t, they taste more like marshmallow.
Properly “toasted” marshmallows are torched. I jam the marshmallowed stick into the flames and watch the bright orange envelop the sugar wad. When the fire “sticks”, I take the stick out of the fire and watch the marshmallow blacken, with a slight halo of blue flame surrounding it. The marshmallow has a wonderful, less-than-paper-thin carbon shell and the interior is warm, ooey, gooey goodness.
'Course, barbequed hot dogs aren’t done properly (to me) unless the skin resembles roof shingles : charred, cracked, and black. 
You need two sticks.
With the first, you set the marshmallow up properly, toasting it over the glowing coals turning it ever so carefully so that it ends up a perfect golden brown. Then you pull off the skin and eat that & repeat (or stick it in a smore - and yes, it does taste very much different than they do when you microwave them).
You use the other stick to burn things. Burnt marshmallows don’t taste good - but they’re fun to watch.
Burn, Baby, Burn!
I come from a family of toasters (philistines!!). Only my sister sympathizes, but she’s a toaster too.
You might call my method a controlled burn. I put mine in the top of the flame, slightly rotating it so I get a larger beginning burn area. The instant I see a flaming 'mallow, I begin to twist the stick around so it burns all over evenly. For some reason it reminds me of glass blowers at work. It also gets lots of “what the hell are you doing’s?” from onlookers, so they get a show with their dinner. I get a smaller flame but an ultra-thin charred layer and consistent warm, tasty goo all the way through. So delicious it ought to be sinful, and probably is. Crush the sucker between your tongue and the roof of your mouth. Marshmallow goodness your whole mouth can enjoy.
I’m having another Sluggy Freelance moment.
"We’re going to eat their mascot! … Their mascot is a marshmallow. … “Alteia” is Portuguese for “marshmallow.” --Torg