I love the new year and everyones sense of determination and new beginning (however short lived they may be). Though I try not to make any grand unrealistic resolutions, I do use the motivation this time of year to better myself and our family in practical ways. One simple way that our family has made healthy changes in the past is to start making 'processed' food items at home. Not only does this save money, but it is a lot healthier than most things I can buy in the store. I've talked before about how we make all of our own salad dressings, and I realized we've been making our own mayo for a few years now. I was never satisfied with the ingredients in store-bought mayo, most have a lot of unhealthy oils, preservatives, or unnecessary sugar or stabilizers. I was intimidated to try and make it myself though, and I admit there have been some flops, but after some tweaking and practice the results now are consistently great. It doesn't take much time to whip up your own mayo so why not give it a try? Don't worry if it's not perfect the first time, it may take a few times to get the technique right; the biggest issue I have had is not getting it to emulsify and thicken properly, you can still use it as a salad dressing when this happens. Enjoy!
