Have you ever wondered what it is you are buying at the grocery store and wonder if it wouldn’t be better to just make it yourself?
Mayonnaise is one of those items I have always wondered about. I have tried many and many are just full of chemicals and additives to preserve freshness – but this does nothing to preserve you. The chemicals and additives will actually decrease your life or decrease your health.
Once I got my Vitamix blender last year, I decided I would try the recipe they had in the recipe booklet that came with the machine. I was terribly disappointed that Vitamix suggested I use the highly processed canola oil – it is also highly inflammatory! So i made mine with extra virgin olive oil instead. And I also added a bit of turmeric root and rosemary to make it anti-inflammatory!
Here is what a typical label has on it:
Water, soybean oil (yuk!) or canola oil (yuk!), whole eggs, sugar (why?), modified corn or potato starch (why?), vinegar, salt, lemon juice concentrate (why not real lemon??), sorbic acid (don’t even know what that is!) and calcium disodium EDTA (the preservatives – yuk!), natural flavor (that could be anything – mystery ingredient!) and Oleoresin (again, what is this chemical??)
Here is the recipe I have modified from Vitamix’s recipe book, and I also used eggs from a local farm this last time which give the mayo a really golden color. Real ingredients means you can really enjoy eating it! I wonder if I should try it sometime with flax seed oil to make it more anti inflammatory – to get more Omega-3 vs Omega-6 fatty acids. Hmm
Real Mayonnaise
Ingredients:
3 large eggs (preferably from a local farm)
1 1/4 tsp dry mustard powder
1/2 – 1 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup lemon juice, freshly pressed or raw apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp rosemary (optional)
1/2 inch turmeric root (optional)
You can make this in a food processor as well as the Vitamix blender.
1 – Put eggs, dry mustard, salt and lemon juice (and optional ingredients) into container and attach lid (of blender or processor).
2 – Turn blender onto low and increase to higher speed gradually but not onto highest level of Vitamix, just up to variable 10.
3 – Remove the lid plug of blender, and slowly stream in the olive oil. If using a food processor, use the plunger and fill this with the olive oil. There is a tiny hole in the plunger that is specifically for releasing the oil as a slow stream as the food processor is running.
4 – Stop and stir in any oil sitting on top.
5 – Pour or spoon the mayonnaise into a glass container. Store it in the refrigerator. It should be used within 2-4 weeks. (It will start to mold if you leave it in there too long!)
Feel free to use this on potatoes, sandwiches, in your tuna or chicken salads or steamed broccoli. I have also used it in broccoli salad mixes, too. I sometimes just spoon it on top of a breast of chicken, too that is cold and just out of the fridge.
Let me know if you make it.
And let me know how you like it. For me, I won’t buy anything in the store again. And each batch comes out differently. When I get fresh eggs from my farm, that is when I make my mayo.
Enjoy!