Mayonnaise

Tonight in culinary class we learned how to make mayonnaise. Yeah, the real stuff, not Miracle Whip, which I prefer. First off, mayonnaise is dangerous. You use raw eggs and if you don't use pasturized eggs, you could be eating...salmonella. So if you're going to try this - get pasturized eggs and still be careful. Homemade mayo doesn't store well. 2-3 days in the fridge. Personally, I'd throw out any leftovers.

Second, don't expect your mayo to be white in color - it will be yellow, possibly bright yellow. I thought it was a bit frightening.

Ok, so how do you make mayo?

Carefully crack 3 eggs and separate the yolks. Throw everything but the yolk away. Whisk or use a blender/food processor to froth. Add a bit of olive oil, slowly to the eggs, keep whisking; add some more oil - up to about a 1/4 cup and whisk until your arm falls off and so do the arms of 3 other people or until the yolk/oil mixture thickens. If you add the oil too quickly - the two liquids separate and you have to start over. Once the two starts to thicken you're past the oopsy stage. Next mix in 1 tablespoon of lemon juice (or white vinegar)beat like crazy. 1-2 tablespoons of dijon mustard (although I made mine with 1 teaspoon of dry mustard)and beat some more.

That is your basic mayo recipe. Tonight my group made two very different flavors - Jalepeno and Blueberry.

For the jalepeno, add a teaspoon of jalepeno juice and a pinch of white pepper. More if you want more zing than zip.

For the Blueberry - stop wrinkling your nose -it's quite tasty. Chop up about a quarter cup of blueberries, whisk. Add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, 2 squirts of vanilla paste and a table spoon of sugar.

I took them to my parents' house after class and we dipped crackers in the jalepeno mayo - yum! and we drizzled the blueberry mayo over fruit - even better.

Will I do this again? Yes, but only if I can use a food processor - this beating by hand is terrible.

According to helpwithcooking.com "Mayonnaise is one of the five French "mother sauces", which means that is it the basis for a range of other sauces including garlic mayonnaise or "aioli", tartar sauce or thousand island dressing."