ALMOND MILK MAYO
"I love it swirled into a vegetable soup to make it more hearty".
Mayonnaise is synonymous with summer salads and sandwiches but after making and eating almond milk mayo for the first time (in Italy of all places after a cooking lesson at Verdura Resort, Sicily with their chef who specialises in vegetarian cuisine), it got me thinking how I could enjoy this quick recipe (2 mins!) to spruce up some cold weather dishes now that we’re officially in Autumn.
Delicious with baked sweet potatoes, roasted veggies, as a dip for wedges or grilled ‘crudites’. Serve as a side with fish instead of yoghurt or cream which doesn’t food combine well and experiment with all kinds of herbs and spices. Try a blob of mustard, a dollop of pesto or a dash of smoked paprika to liven it up. I love it with some crispy on the outside panfried polenta and a stew or swirled into a vegetable soup to make it more hearty.
I used extra virgin olive oil to make this which gives it a strong flavour rather than a more refined oil or one that has less health benefits and is too high in polyunsaturated fats, I’ve since started using extra virgin avocado oil - harder to find but the taste is more neutral and works well here - a combination works too. To combat the ‘green tinge’ of a good olive/avocado oil you can add the tiniest sprinkle of turmeric and to give it a more buttery taste just mix in some melted ghee at the end. If you’re flavouring your mayo with herbs and spices then don’t worry about the flavour of the colour from the olive oil! Feel free to half the recipe. I usually make the lot - since this doesn’t contain raw egg yolks like a traditional mayonnaise, it keeps for a few days so it can go into and onto everything!
This mayo is looser than a traditional oil. I find using the end of a carton of almond milk offers a thicker consistency or if you make your own almond milk you can play wth the amount of water you use to make it.
INGREDIENTS
Makes 2 cups
3/4 cup avocado oil/extra virgin olive oil (220g), plus more
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (120ml), room temp
1tbs apple cider vinegar/lemon or lime juice
2tsp of maple syrup
1/4 tsp sea salt to taste
Optional:
Teeny bit of turmeric to make it more yellow
4 tbsp of melted ghee to make it taste buttery
Herbs, spices, mustard, smoked paprika to change it up
METHOD
In a tall jug add the almond milk and apple cider vinegar or lemon/lime juice.
Insert an immersion blender so that it rests on the bottom. Turn it on and start blending with one hand while pouring in the olive oil.
Continue blending once all the oil has gone in, moving the blender up and down to incorporate any oil that is sitting on top.
Season and taste, adding more salt if needed. If it’s too thick, add more almond milk and if is too watery add more oil. Pulse again until the mayonnaise has the perfect consistency.
Whisk in the melted ghee and any spices/herbs
Store in a clean, sealed jar for up to 4 days and use a clean spoon to serve each time.
East by West tip:
An immersion blender makes light work of this but you can also use a normal food processor: place all the ingredients, except the oil, into the blender and blend, gradually adding the oil gradually in a stream until it is all incorporated and emulsified.