This isn’t strictly a Vitamix recipe, but I use the Vitamix to grind the whole grains. In addition to yielding maximally fresh whole-grain flour, this also gives you more flexibility to explore different kinds of flour. Want to try adding some oat flour? Buckwheat? Rice? Quinoa? No problem. This particular recipe uses a 50-50 blend of wheat and rye. Whole-grain breads are generally denser than their white counterparts, and this is no exception, but it gets a decent rise. Continue Reading →
Pomegranates are awesome, but I’ve only recently started putting them in smoothies. Previously I was afraid that their seeds wouldn’t blend smooth enough, and it always felt like a major undertaking to deseed them. It turns out that with a high-performance blender you can blend the seeds pretty smooth. There will still be some detectable texture, but I think it’s perfectly palatable. I recently came across a different deseeding technique that makes it go significantly faster. The flavor of pomegranate can really brighten up a smoothie. Continue Reading →
Vitamix quietly released a new consumer model last week, the Vitamix 64 oz. 12-in-1 Automatic Blender. It’s a Standard machine, which means it is designed for the classic narrow containers with 3-inch blades and not the Next Generation wide container (to see which models are Standard and which are Next Generation, see my Vitamix comparison page). The front panel shares the same layout as the 6300 and Pro 500, including the handy on-off switch on the bottom left, the pulse toggle-switch on the top left, and the start-stop toggle switch on the top right. The central knob is physically the same, but its settings are different. It has six timed settings: 20 sec, 30 sec, 1 min, 1.5 min, 4.5 min, and 6.5 min. There is no manual variable speed control. Continue Reading →
Green smoothies are a great way to increase your consumption of leafy greens. A mild green like baby spinach is a good first green to try because its flavor easily fades behind whatever else you blend. However, ultimately you probably want to branch out to other greens, both because baby spinach can get expensive, and because it’s probably healthier to eat a variety of greens.* Other greens can be bitter, and if you just blend them up without thinking about the combination, they can be unpalatable. One solution is to add a lot of sweet fruits to overshadow the bitterness, but I prefer to balance the bitterness with other strong flavors like ginger and lime. Continue Reading →
Note: this only affects machines sold before August 2013. The machines currently being sold have a stronger blade that does not present this risk.
Vitamix just announced a safety recall of the short profile 64-oz container sold with the 7500, Pro 300, and Pro 750. There have been 18 reported cases where the blade broke. The recall is of ~169,000 units, so this failure is quite rare, and there are no reported injuries, but Vitamix is taking it seriously and wants all owners to have their blade replaced.
Vitamix is working with the US CPSC to proceed with the recall. They have set up a website and phone number for owners to process their returns: ContainerBladeRecall.com and 1-888-350-4386. Continue Reading →
It’s peak tomato season around here, so I highly recommend taking advantage and making some gazpacho. The first recipe that I posted on this blog was a sort of gazpacho, but this one is more traditional and simple. It’s worth trying to find home-grown or farmer’s market tomatoes for maximum flavor. I like to make a smooth base, and then add some tomato and cucumber chunks for texture. Continue Reading →
This dressing/sauce is purely inspired by the restaurant Real Food Daily. It’s their house dressing, and the recipe can be found in their cookbook. Eating at RFD gave me the idea that you can make some simple tasty meals by pouring a dressing like this over various things, such as grains and steamed vegetables. It’s also good with a salad of chopped raw vegetables. We had it most recently with quinoa and steamed cauliflower, and also a salad of Vitamix-chopped cabbage and carrots. The dressing has a sesame seed base, with a few additions to make it more flavorful. The RFD cookbook uses tahini, but I used whole sesame seeds because they’re cheaper and more convenient, and the Vitamix quickly turns them into tahini. Continue Reading →
It’s hard to argue with a cool peach smoothie on a warm summer afternoon. I’m not the biggest fan of stone fruit, but it’s majorly in season, and this smoothie is delicious, even for someone who doesn’t love peaches. I consulted with a friend who is a huge peach fan to come up with the recipe. In addition to peaches, it has a bit of exciting flavor from cardamom. Continue Reading →
Most things I make with the Vitamix I blend until they are completely smooth, but pesto is something where it’s best to leave some texture. Basil is prone to oxidation, so it’s good to minimize how much it is blended. This is where the variable speed control is particularly useful. Pesto is a perfect complement to a summer meal, and if you make a big batch you can freeze it and have it all year long. Continue Reading →
Vitamix blenders excel at making ultra-smooth purees and soups, but sometimes it’s nice to have a soup with a bit of texture. It turns out that it’s quite easy to make chunky soups with a Vitamix. All you have to do is add a few ingredients at the end and briefly blend them on low speed until you get to the desired texture. This recipe is inspired by the Tortilla Soup recipe that Vitamix demonstrators always make. Continue Reading →