It depends on your tolerance for risk. It has been said that one in 20,000 eggs may contain salmonella. The risk is reduced if you buy organic "farmer" eggs and not those mass produced, and the fresher the egg the less salmonella will be in it...IF there is salmonella in the egg.
I say go for it!....as long as no one has a compromised immune system like from chemo or radiation.
Linda C

Here is a link that might be useful: measuring the risk

The other day on the cheesecake thread ColeenOZ prefaced a recipe containing raw eggs with, "We don't seem to have the issues with raw eggs here that you do in the US..." so I set out to find if there really was a difference between eggs in our countries. At first it seemed there was just a negligible difference, something like an estimated a .004% incidence vs our .005%, but then I read something interesting on the FSANZ (Food Standards Australia New Zealand) website:

Unlike many other countries, the types of Salmonella that can contaminate the inside of eggs as they are formed in the bird are not present in Australian laying flocks. While Salmonella can be sometimes present on the outside eggs, it won�t grow, even at room temperatures, because the condition of the egg surface limits its growth.

I don't have any supporting evidence, but it's my understanding that even here, most of the already extremely rare incidences of contamination are on the outside of the egg, not the inside. I always wash my hands after handling eggs, and if I'm using them raw I wash the egg first. I think that puts the odds of getting sick pretty darn close to zero. I also say go for it, along with LindaC's disclaimer.

Here is a link that might be useful: FSANZ

Informative link LindaC....Thanks :)

I agree, unless you are very old, very young, compromised immunity, etc., you're probably pretty safe. So all of those over 65 guests are healthy?

I eat raw eggs regularly, as well as those cooked sunny side up, which is also a risk, incidentally. I make ice cream with raw eggs and just to increase my risk, I eat raw beef and rare burgers.

So, there you go. Your choice. Is there a possibility of salmonella, however slight? Yes, there is. It is not a large enough threat that I think twice about it, being relatively healthy and prone to risk taking behaviors, at least where it comes to food consumption!

Annie

Thank you all. I vascilated - and the alternative was Linda's carrot cake so there really wasn't a bad choice - but ultimately I went with the raw eggs. It's in the refrigerator. I sampled some of the chocolate sauce so if I'm okay tomorrow - I'm going to take it as a good sign!

Funny thing, I am making Alton Brown's homemade mayo today. He recommended that if you have small children or elderly folks eating the mayo, use pastuerized eggs.

My mother, who lives with us, is 88. I paid under $4.00 for a dozen pasteurized eggs. It was worth it. Mom loves salads - potato, pasta, chicken, tuna. And homemade thousand island too. We are excited about making the mayo with the pasteurized eggs!

Gotta go make it right now.