Refresher on Vegetable Oils
I've written about inflammation and how the fats in our diets can cause this. Just a quick refresher…when our intake of omega-6 fats, commonly found in processed food and vegetable oils like soybean, corn and canola oil, exceeds our omega-3 fat intake, inflammation occurs. Inflammation is linked to most disease process, including heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer's and many other diseases. Inflammation ages us. A healthy balance of omega-6 to omega-3 is between 4:1 – 1:1. The average person consuming a standard American diet has a ratio of 20:1 or higher. Clearly we need to reduce the amount of processed vegetable oils in our diet.
REMEMBER
Naturally occurring saturated fat = good!
Omega-3 fats = good!
Monounsaturated fats = good!
Vegetable Oils = avoid as much as possible!
Trans fats (hydrogenated)= avoid like the plague!
In our kitchen, we have ditched everything containing vegetable oil, with the last remaining item being mayonnaise. Even though we were using organic mayo, it was still made with canola oil. Most commercial mayo is made with soybean oil. Either way, we try to avoid both (soy and canola).
I am so excited to share this healthy recipe for homemade mayonnaise with you, as it opens a door to a variety of salad dressings, nothing wrong with oil and vinegar, but a Creamy Ranch or Dill recipe would be nice. Look for those recipes in the future.
Mayonnaise
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Makes: 1 cup
Ingredients
- 1 Large Pasture Raised Egg
- Dash Cayenne Pepper
- 1/2 tsp. Dry Mustard
- 1/4 tsp. Celtic Sea Salt
- 1 Tbsp. Fresh Lemon Juice
- 1 Tbsp. White Vinegar
- 1 c. High-Oleic Sunflower Oil (see notes)
Directions
- Combine the egg, cayenne, mustard, salt, lemon juice, vinegar, and 1/4 c. oil in the container of a blender or food processor.
- With the machine running at medium speed, add the remaining oil VERY SLOOOOOWLY in a thin, constant, steady stream.
- After you’ve added about half the oil, the mixture should start to thicken.
- Once all the oil has been incorporated, shut off the machine and transfer mayonnaise to a small jar.
- Store refrigerated for up to 14 days.
Notes
Standard sunflower oil is high in linoleic acid, an omega-6 fat. However high-oleic sunflower oil, is at least 82% oleic acid, the same monounsaturated fat found in olive oil, lard, yes lard, while being extremely low in omega-6. Be sure to read labels carefully when selecting sunflower oil. This is the one I use and recommend.
