I've heard that there are two groups of people in the world: those that have had salmonella and the other group who have not. My Mom, unfortunately, has been in the first group and is ever cautious about not repeating the experience again.
So. Why would I tempt fate and make home-made mayonnaise which is made from raw eggs?
I could say I have healthy, happy, free-ranging chickens that spend their entire day wandering wherever they please (true). I could say the chickens eat fresh kitchen scraps that have been washed with utmost care (true). I could say a fair amount of the kitchen scraps are organic and all are from our weekly CSA produce box (true). I could say they lay their eggs in a nesting box that gets cleaned daily (true).
And although all the statements above are true the real reason I made my own mayonnaise is because I haven't gone to Costco in quite a while and have run out of the mega-jar of Best Foods Mayonnaise (Hellmann's brand east of the Rockies).
A friend, food blogger Carol, had written a post about making mayonnaise awhile back and I was curious to give it a try.
To start off I went down to the coop and gathered a still warm pinkish egg (either Tandy or Brandy's) from the nesting box. I googled a few recipes and chose the one I had the ingredients for. I didn't want to wash appliances so I used the hand whisk. Big mistake. I got tired of whisking after adding only 1/3 cup of Canola oil and still had another full cup to go. Another near miss mistake, I added 1 tablespoon of fresh squeezed lemon juice before I noticed the recipe called for 4 teaspoons. Had to check my measurement table: 1 tbsp = 3 tsp. Yay, I added another teaspoon.
The Mayo firmed up and emulsified nicely. It was sunny yellow from the bright happy egg yolk. I tasted it. A little tangy from the lemon but the texture was rich and creamy. I gave The Man a taste, his face puckered up, "Wow". Okay, maybe a little less lemon juice next time.
Not sure if I'll make it again. It didn't knock my socks off. I didn't care for the taste - maybe it was the Dijon mustard or too much lemon. If I do make it again it'll be just for The Man and me. I don't think I'll share, because, you know, just in case.
