Vitamix Successes and Failures

[Half-Mary]

I know many of us now own Vitamix blenders. After coveting them for years, I finally got one at Costco this September during the road show. When trying to explain it to a friend who had no idea what a Vitamix is like, I told her that my blender could blend her blender. For those who don't know, Vitamix blenders are very powerful and can blend just about anything. They also have great motors in them so they can blend foods for 6-7 minutes at a time to heat it up to the boiling point. Start with cold foods and add ice, and you can make ice cream in a matter of moments.

I'm made some really good smoothies, an odd tasting pumpkin soup, some watery salsa, some amazing home-made Nutella, and a couple of batches of hummus. I also have the dry container so I can grind my own flour and ground lots of coffee at once. I haven't done much more with the dry container yet.

I figured that we should have a thread where we can discuss the good things and the bad things we've made, and just discuss things blender-related.

So... I made salsa tonight using the recipe from the Vitamix website (the same recipe from the cookbook, I think). I found that the tomatoes didn't blend nearly enough, but the other items blended really well - probably too well. Has anybody else tried making the salsa? How did it turn out?

[La]

Good:
- My morning smoothie is "smoothier" than it ever was in my old blender.
- I've experimented with Green Drinks, which have all been pretty tasty.
- I made sorbet. Texture-wise it was fine, but need to play with the ingredients so that it tastes better.
- I made sweet potato and squash soup on the stove and used to Vitamix to blend it - it was velvety smooth!
- Clean-up is a breeze, too!

Not-so-good:
- I tried making soup in the Vitamix and I didn't really like it. For me, cooking is more than just "heating stuff up" - I like to brown or caramelize my ingredients to give them more flavour. I doubt I'll make "soup" in it again.
- I don't think I'd use it for its chopping capabilities. I'm pretty handy with a knife and like to have a bit more control over the things I chop.

I haven't really tried anything else yet. I have the large and small wet containers, but not the dry one.

[CAW]

I'm with La, on all points.

I've also made Guacamole in my vitamix on several occasions...using the recipe from the cook book and using my own recipe. Both were great but I like my recipe better. But the guac was extra creamy which I liked.

I've used my Vitamix to whip cream in 3 seconds. That came in handy when making crepes and creme anglaise which both require a lot of attention, so to have my cream whipped in just seconds was convenient.

I don't have the dry container but I still grind flax (in small amounts) regularly.

[deerdree]

i've had the salsa from the cookbook and it was great. i didn't make it, though, Lightning did. i'm too nervous about 'chopping'.

i love green smoothies.

from their cookbook, i loved the carrot ginger tofu soup and the "cream" of spinach soup (in both recipes, you sauté the veggies first).

i like the "ice cream" - cream, sugar, frozen fruit.

the only failure i've had was the first recipe i tried, where i threw veggies in willy nilly and tried to make a soup. that was when i learned to follow their logic. oh, and i tried an apple and romaine "smoothie" this morning that was more like a juice and not super appetizing. that was a random recipe i found online, though.

[Kristi]

I love my Vitamix! I've made lots of smoothies, and have experimented with including some green stuff in there. I actually really like the soups from the vitamin because it's so easy - I've made a few versions of a broccoli cheese soup and learned that you really must steam the broccoli first. That was a good lesson. I do use it for wet chopping - onions, cauliflower, cabbage and I feel like it has saved me a lot of time.

[deerdree]

i think i might try this on the weekend. i'm intrigued!

http://www.bigredkitchen.com/2012/05/th ... wer-video/

[Kristi]

Dee- that's exactly how I do it. It's easy and quick and doesn't waste any cauliflower compared to hand grating.

[deerdree]

a lot of the vitamix "success" comes down to technique and practice, i find. like getting the 4 mounds for ice cream! so, i'm going to keep practising this "chopping" thing. the majority chopped uniformly, but i had a couple of big chunks left in each batch. that didn't happen in the video. i also wasn't sure how long to drain it....

anyway, i'll call my cauliflower rice a moderate success. i used some of it to make cauliflower fried "rice" and it was pretty tasty.

[Half-Mary]

I just tried the guacamole recipe from the website. I used too much cilantro, and I added half of a jalapeño because I like my food spicier. I really liked it aside from the excessive cilantro.

[La]

Here's a yummy soup I just made. As I said, I don't use the Vitamix to do the cooking for me as all these ingredients were cooked when I put them in.

400g baked sweet potato (weight after baking, flesh only)
2 cups chicken (or veg) stock (adjust according to how thick you want it)
1/2 onion
1 clove garlic, smashed
1/2 bulb fennel/anise
Sautee the onion, garlic & fennel until soft and translucent (5 min)
1 tsp ground coriander (the dry stuff, not the leaves)
1/2 cup evaporated milk (you could use coconut milk or cream. Regular, soy or almond milk probably won't work)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Put broth in large blending container. Add all the other ingredients and blend on High until velvety smooth (about 5 minutes).

[oink]

For those that find the price of the 'real thing' too much, check this out at half the price

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/commercial-blender-FREE-SHIPPING-100-GUARANTEED-NO-1-QUALITY-IN-THE-WORLD/569652870.html?cn=null&PID=4000185&tp1=skim2927X594702X7697048d6b8f668b6d7599d349f96efc&tracelog=datafeeds&src=ale&URL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aliexpress.com%2Fitem%2Fcommercial-blender-FREE-SHIPPING-100-GUARANTEED-NO-1-QUALITY-IN-THE-WORLD%2F569652870.html&cv=10887173&af=cj_4000185&vd=30

Group by anyone?

[Half-Mary]

For those that find the price of the 'real thing' too much, check this out at half the price

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/commercial-blender-FREE-SHIPPING-100-GUARANTEED-NO-1-QUALITY-IN-THE-WORLD/569652870.html?cn=null&PID=4000185&tp1=skim2927X594702X7697048d6b8f668b6d7599d349f96efc&tracelog=datafeeds&src=ale&URL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aliexpress.com%2Fitem%2Fcommercial-blender-FREE-SHIPPING-100-GUARANTEED-NO-1-QUALITY-IN-THE-WORLD%2F569652870.html&cv=10887173&af=cj_4000185&vd=30

Group by anyone?

First thing that popped up when I clicked that link was a notification saying "We ship to the Canada."

[Jwolf]

You get what you pay for.

[lisaannr]

I love my Vitamix! I've made lots of smoothies, and have experimented with including some green stuff in there. I actually really like the soups from the vitamin because it's so easy - I've made a few versions of a broccoli cheese soup and learned that you really must steam the broccoli first. That was a good lesson. I do use it for wet chopping - onions, cauliflower, cabbage and I feel like it has saved me a lot of time.

I love mine for chopping, I chop up sweet potato, carrots, and onions for my "scrambled eggs". Chops them up perfectly.

[Half-Mary]

I made pudding last night using coconut (the water and the meat from a Young Thai Coconut), an avocado, 1/2 cup cocoa, sweetener (I used honey and maple syrup - about 3Tbsp total. Agave nectar would work too), vanilla and a bit of cinnamon. I used a bit too much cinnamon but otherwise, it's yummy. Just blend it until it's pudding consistency.

[Habs4ever]

I know this is for success and failure, but I really didn't want to start a new topic just for a Vitamix question.
Most of you bought on-line right? (I think). If we go to the States this spring do they sell these in stores that I could pick one up from or is it just on-line ordering?

[deerdree]

I know this is for success and failure, but I really didn't want to start a new topic just for a Vitamix question.
Most of you bought on-line right? (I think). If we go to the States this spring do they sell these in stores that I could pick one up from or is it just on-line ordering?

i bought mine at costco.

the "where to buy" should help you find a store! i put in buffalo and a few popped up (bed, bath & beyond, etc). https://www.vitamix.com/Where-To-Buy

[Habs4ever]

Thanks. I have 8 places to choose from in the city we are going to.

[Half-Mary]

I think we all got them at Costco. I also got the dry container and with taxes, mine was $660. The base plus the wet (normal) container was $500 + taxes and the dry container was $99 + taxes.

Every penny was well spent!

[La]

I think we all got them at Costco. I also got the dry container and with taxes, mine was $660. The base plus the wet (normal) container was $500 + taxes and the dry container was $99 + taxes.

Every penny was well spent!

I think they're kind of like Apple products - the price is the price, you're not going to see them "on sale" anywhere. Usually the deal a retailer will offer is that they'll throw in an extra container or have an interest-free payment plan (like on the Shopping Channel).

I think I paid $579 (plus tax) when I bought mine at the Ex this year. I got a second cookbook the small (wet) container thrown in free.

[Habs4ever]

I think we all got them at Costco. I also got the dry container and with taxes, mine was $660. The base plus the wet (normal) container was $500 + taxes and the dry container was $99 + taxes.

Every penny was well spent!

I think they're kind of like Apple products - the price is the price, you're not going to see them "on sale" anywhere. Usually the deal a retailer will offer is that they'll throw in an extra container or have an interest-free payment plan (like on the Shopping Channel).

I think I paid $579 (plus tax) when I bought mine at the Ex this year. I got a second cookbook the small (wet) container thrown in free.

That's kind of what I was wondering, if going to the States and buying one would be cheaper.
Costco in Medicine Hat is having a demo from 2/20-3/3. I'll miss it by two days if I make it south in February.

[deerdree]

Buying it in the states would be much cheaper, based on Internet prices (not sure If they're higher in-store).

[fit-kitty]

I bought mine off the shopping channel

(and they have it in RED!) which went on special a few mths after I purchased mine.... red matches my kitchen.



LOVE LOVE mine, I make my smoothies like ice cream every day, I havent played with it enough to try different stuff, and keep meaning to watch the dvd.

[Half-Mary]

I need to expand my repetoire of recipes I make in it. I use my Vitamix mostly for smoothies and hummus. I want to find a better hummus recipe than the one in the book though. That one assumes that canned chick peas are used, but I don't always use canned chick peas. I also need to make sure I have all of the ingredients before starting a batch, too. I made some hummus on the weekend and discovered that I only had 1 tsp of lime juice, and not 1/4 cup! (I dislike lemon so I use lime instead.)

[trixiee]

This will be my next purchase...