It’s a tool I can’t live without. It makes smoothies in less than two minutes. It purees vegetable soups right in the pan, thickening them and making them creamy. And it’s inexpensive and easy to use.
What am I talking about? An immersion blender. Few countertop kitchen appliances make their way into my kitchen as I only buy and keep things that are versatile and frequently used. And the immersion blender definitely qualifies.
I first bought my immersion blender as a tool to make quick morning smoothies for my family before school and work many years ago. I figured if I can help them start their days with a good dose of the endless variations of frozen fruit, a banana half, yogurt and milk or juice whirled together with my immersion blender, I would feel great about nourishing my family. I soon learned that my family loved the smoothies that started our mornings.
Here are two of our favorites:
Golden Fruit Smoothie
Makes 16 ounces
Ingredients
- 1 cup frozen peaches, mango, pineapple (either a combination of these or just one)
- ½ ripe banana
- ½ cup (4 ounces) strawberry Greek yogurt
- ½ cup (4 ounces) strawberry banana juice puree (such as Bolthouse Farms™ or Naked Juice™)
Instructions
- In blender cup, place frozen fruit, banana, yogurt and juice puree. With immersion blender, blend all ingredients together until smooth.
Purple Power Smoothie
Makes 16 ounces
Ingredients
- ½ cup frozen wild blueberries
- ½ cup frozen whole strawberries (approximately 6 whole strawberries)
- ½ ripe banana
- ½ cup (4 ounces) vanilla Greek yogurt
- ½ cup (4 ounces) fat-free milk or strawberry juice puree (such as Bolthouse Farms™ or Naked Juice™)
Instructions
- In blender cup, place frozen blueberries, strawberries, banana, yogurt and milk. With immersion blender, blend all ingredients together until smooth.
It's also much easier to puree a soup or sauce right in the pan rather than transferring batches to a blender with the potential of burning my hands. And time and time again, I find that pureeing vegetables in a soup gives it a creamier consistency, meaning I can potentially lower the amount of heavy cream I use. It’s also a huge advantage in helping my kids eat more vegetables and, if your kids are in the baby food stage, using an immersion blender can quickly make it more convenient to prepare homemade baby food.
Keep the blender handy because you’ll use it year-round. When it’s time to harvest from my garden, I find myself making favorites like strawberry poppy seed dressing to dress a fresh spinach salad filled with berries, or mixing up a fresh marinara sauce using red, ripe tomatoes just picked off the vine along with fresh bell peppers and onions.
And last but not least, a flavor enhancer and highly versatile — pesto sauce. Pesto is a blend of basil, olive oil, garlic, Parmesan cheese and pine nuts. With an immersion blender, you can prepare pesto in minutes and spread it on a whole wheat baguette for a sandwich topped with mozzarella cheese and fresh sliced tomatoes. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
Click here and here for more recipes using immersion blenders.
