Mayonnaise

Last week I got together with my friend Steph and together we whipped up some homemade mayonnaise. I was surprised at how easy it was and how delicious it tasted. My family loved it which made me so happy since we are picky about our mayonnaise. We love mayonnaise (especially Best Foods/Hellmann's) but I have not found any store bought ones we like that are not filled with GMO's or other nasty ingredients. I used my immersion blender and a wide mouth canning jar which worked perfectly!

Mayonnaise
2 egg yolks or one whole egg* 
1 tbs lemon juice
1 teaspoon white vinegar (optional)
1/4- 1/2 tsp salt
pinch ground pepper
1 tsp mustard seed (optional)
1 cup vegetable oil*

Place the egg yolks in the bottom of a wide mouth canning jar. Add the lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Place the immersion blender in the jar and  begin to mix. Slowly pour in the oil a small amount at a time. Taking at least 1-2 min to add all the oil to the jar. As you put in the oil the mixture will start to thicken and become white and mayonnaise like. After adding all the oil if it seems thick add a teaspoon or two of water and blend. The mixture will thicken a bit in the fridge but not a lot so be sure to have it at about the right constancy. It will last for 1-2 weeks in the fridge.

Experiment with making it just the way you like it. A lot of recipes call for a small amount of mustard in it up to 1 tsp. Replace the vinegar with more lemon juice or add a clove of garlic for garlic mayonnaise. The best part of making your own is that you can create the right recipe for you.


*Be sure you are using only fresh clean eggs. I buy mine from the farmer and feel confident after talking with them that the eggs I use are safe for eating raw this way.

*We tried flax seed and grape seed and definitely liked the grape seed better. You want to use a flavorless oil. Olive oil has a lot of flavor and is good in combination with other less strong oils. Mixing 2 different oils can make for a good mayonnaise. Our favorite is half walnut oil half sunflower seed oil. Again it is up to you and your tastes. Try some different combinations and see what you like.

Pesto Salad Dressing

I love The Old Spaghetti Factory Pesto Salad Dressing. On New Years we decided to try out the recipe and make it ourselves. It was absolutely wonderful and I will be making it again. I also think the mix could be used on my Pizza Salad instead of the Ranch Mix to make a wonderful Pesto Pizza Salad.

Pesto Dressing Mix
2 tablespoons grated Romano Cheese (you can also use Parmesan)
2 tablespoons dried basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic minced
1/4 teaspoon paprika

Mix all ingredients together.

To Make Salad Dressing
Mix 1/2 cup milk with 1 tablespoon vinegar. Let sit for 10 min.
Or you can use 1/2 cup buttermilk instead of the milk and vinegar.
Whisk 1 cup mayonnaise with the milk mixture or the buttermilk until smooth.
Mix the Pesto mix with the mayonnaise mixture.
Store in refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.

Ranch Mix

Use this mix as a replacement in any recipe that calls for a dry ranch mix. For a quick dressing I just mix a small amount of milk with mayonnaise and sprinkle in mix tell desired taste and texture. The other day I used it as my seasoning one kale chips instead of salt or sprinkled on popcorn with butter. Or mix it in to sour cream, mayonnaise, hummus, or cream cheese for a quick veggie dip. I use it anytime I think a ranch flavor would be good.

Ranch Mix

4 teaspoon Parsley

2 teaspoon Salt

1 teaspoon Black or Lemon Pepper

1 teaspoon Onion Powder

2 teaspoon Garlic Powder

½ teaspoon Thyme

1 teaspoon Dill Weed

Mix together all ingredients and store in an airtight spice container.

Salad Dressing

Mix ¼ cup milk with ½ tablespoon vinegar. Let sit for 10 min.

Or use 1/4 cup buttermilk instead of the milk and vinegar

Whisk ½ cup mayonnaise with milk or buttermilk until smooth.

Mix 2 tsp ranch mix with mayonnaise mixture.

Store in refrigerator in am airtight container for up to a week.