Tarragon Aioli

From A Friendsgiving Picnic by Melissa Fairchild Clark

Picnic

Chef Shane Meistrich ( Photo by Natalie and Cody Gantz

I want to thank my favorite fellow chef, Shane Meistrich (in the photo at right), for giving me the tip of using a whole egg (rather than just the yolks) after I’d broken my sauce … twice.

Makes ½ pint
2 large eggs
½ lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon salt
1 clove garlic
1–1½ cups extra-virgin olive oil (Avoid a super-grassy oil if you don’t want the aioli to look green.)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon minced fresh tarragon

Blend the eggs, lemon juice, and salt on a medium setting in a food processor or blender. Add the clove of garlic and blend for about 10 seconds. (Press the garlic through a garlic press first if you think your blender is not up to thoroughly blending it in.)

With the blender running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil in, keeping an eye on the consistency of the emulsification. You want to stop adding oil when it looks like a good schmear, and it may only take 1 cup of the oil. If you add too much, the texture might break and you’ll have to start over.

Pour the aioli into a bowl and add the tarragon, using a spatula to mix it in. Pour into a half-pint jar and refrigerate until serving.