Kitchen Review- The Blend- Tec

Even though I am super busy with Vegan MOFO (day 10!) I've had time to reflect a lot lately.  Maybe its the fact that my kitchen needs constant cleaning because I've been cooking every day or maybe its the never ending pile of dishes.  I'm not sure.  What I am sure about is that I couldn't do alot of what I do in the kitchen without my Blend-Tec.

I've owned alot of hand-me-down blenders in my day.  Most of them were freebies, all of them broke within a year and never worked well at all.  At one point I was a raw vegan (no cooked food or animal products) and a blender was a vital kitchen appliance.  Even though Im back to just being vegan now I still use this blender almost daily.  Let me give you some examples:

Easiest Ever Ice Cream

Chilled Cantelope Soup

Mango Raspberry Smoothie

Tropical Lust Smoothie

Vanilla Chai Pear Butter

I made all those things and more with a blender.  Now on to other important matters.  I would say some pro's of this blender is that it will blend everything you may ever need to blend while cooking and it will do an amazing job at it. It's also really easy to clean and easy to use a spatula in order to scrape out whatever it is you blended.  The wider base makes it more effective at blending thicker things like filling for a cheesecake (its the only way I make cheesecake filling now because its so fast!), or nut butters.  I've blended ice, and even frozen bananas (for my ice cream) with ease.  I have yet to be disappointed with this blenders performance.  The biggest thing for me is that the base is really easy to clean, just wipe down with a sponge or paper towel.  It has a digital screen and flat buttons that make it a breeze to clean up.

I would say the only real con to this blender is the noise.  Unfortunately, I haven't seen a blender this powerful that wasn't noisy.  Some claim the Vitamix brand is less noisy but I call b.s. on that.  All I can say is that I'm so happy with how well it works that I can forgive the noise.  It's so nice to have smoothies without berry seeds in them (the blender grinds them up) or random chunks of ice.  I can even make a quick soup in minutes.  The convenience of this appliance is a huge benefit.

Well enough about the blender.  If you're in the market you would love the Blend Tec, worth every penny.  Now I have to get back in the kitchen and clean because tonight we are getting started on making hard cider! I'll post all about it tomorrow!

One final thought: What do you use your blender for? I'm looking for new ideas!

Mango Raspberry Smoothie

I found out that this week one of my friends is going on a 10 day raw fruit smoothie cleanse! Yay! I'm so glad I can inspire my friends to try new things and explore food! I'm dedicating this post to all those who are trying new things!

The base of this smoothie is really the mango.  It gives a thickness and a creaminess to the smoothie that is so luxurious.  This is a great quick breakfast or snack, and is packed full of vitamins and nutrition. 

Mango Raspberry Smoothie
1 large mango, peeled and cubed
1 large very ripe banana
1 package of raspberries (or 6 oz of frozen berries)
1 apple cored and cubed (optional)
Ice (optional)

1. Put everything in the blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!

Easiest Ever Ice Cream!

So last week was what they call "Restaurant Week" which is where several restaurants participate in offering deals for lunch and dinner (sometimes both!).  Sometimes they have special menu's they prepare and it's always a great way to try out new foods, and lots of them!

So that is my excuse for having not cooked in a week.  I did however decide to make some of this ridiculously easy ice cream which tastes delicious. It's a little bit like the consistency of frozen yogurt, but in my opinion it tastes better.

Photo taken by kitchen partner Dan :)

Ice Cream

Very ripe bananas, cut into 1/4" slices


Optional Flavorings
Vanilla Extract
Lacuma (gives it a caramel like flavor)
Any other kinds of fruit (my favorite is mixing in blueberries at the end)
Cocoa Powder
Peanut butter

1. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper.  Spread out banana slices.  Add another piece of wax paper on top if you need room for more slices.

2. Cover with plastic wrap.  Freeze a few hours or overnight.

3. Blend 1-2 cups of frozen banana slices at a time in a blender.  Note: The more powerful the blender the more banana slices you can add at once but be conservative at first! Use a spatula to scrap down the sides and pulse the banana until creamy.

When it comes to adding flavors its better to add too little and have to add more than to add too much at once.  If you are using a flavoring like cocoa powder (I have some that is raw) you may need to add some agave nectar or other sweetener.  You can eat this plain, which is what I do, or mix in some fresh fruit for some extra pockets of flavor.  Contrary to what you would think this is not overpoweringly banana flavored. I like adding some homemade vanilla to mine and maybe a crack of sea salt. :)

Once frozen the bananas can be transferred to a zip lock bag and kept in the freezer for quite a long time if need be.  Some times I have this "ice cream" in the morning instead of my normal breakfast smoothie. 

I apologize for there being no end picture.  I will try my best to remedy that soon! I just wanted everyone to be able to enjoy this recipe while the weather holds!

Smoothie Making 101

Smoothies are a staple in our house and make for especially easy breakfasts when motivation is lacking.  Its also a good way to use up some fruit that is riper that you prefer, or would otherwise go bad.  There is really no limit here, your imagination is your limit but I'll provide the guidelines I use and a few recipes of my own.

Tropical Lust Smoothie:
Half a pineapple, outer layer and core removed, cubed
2 Apples (sweet or tart)
2 Bananas (very ripe is ok)
1 Quart Strawberries, tops removed
Flesh of one mango, cubed (about 1C. if using frozen)
1/2 C. Cold water
Nectarine or peach (optional)
A few Ice Cubes (optional)
1 t. Cinnamon

I rinse all of the fruit thoroughly, cut and chop as needed and put everything into my Blendtec. My blender is the one piece of kitchen equipment that I can't live without and it was worth every penny.  It'll blend pretty much everything I could possibly want to blend, including frozen bananas, with ease.

This much fruit works out to two large servings.

Keep in mind that there will look like there is more fruit that you can eat. Once you blend it down this makes about 2 large servings.  I store half in the fridge to eat just before lunchtime.  Its not a good idea to make this too far ahead.  To cut down on time you can use frozen fruit (omit ice) or cut fruit in advance and store it in sealed containers in the fridge.  Cutting all the fruit you see here took me 15 minutes or less, blending about 30 seconds.

Tropical Lust Smoothie

The other recipe most commonly used:

Everything Smoothie:
2-4 Apples (tart or sweet)
2-4 Bananas (the riper they are the sweeter they are)
Any other fruit you have on hand: Strawberries, melon, blueberries, mango, raspberries, plums, nectarines, peaches, etc.
1/2 C. Soymilk (optional, can substitute water)
1 t. Cinnamon

Blend and serve!

Cake Batter Smoothie:
4-6 Very Ripe bananas
1-2 C. of Soymilk (depending on how thick you like it)
1-2 t. Cinnamon (to taste)
Agave Nectar (again to taste, but I use a few Tablespoons)

For this recipe you may want to start out with less soy milk and add more after tasting.  Same thing applies for the cinnamon and agave.  It's supposed to be fairly thick (like cake batter) and smooth. This recipe is not just a favorite for breakfast but also a great dessert when we have guests.