I am going on the record now to tell you a little something.
If we have ever discussed appliances–and I know we have– you’ll know there’s not a single blender on my list of “gotta-have-its”. Anywhere. What, you say? Did you miss it? No. I didn’t. In fact, I haven’t missed a single day without a blender because I’ve never owned a blender I liked in all of my 22 years of owning kitchen appliances.
In fact, I’ve had at least one break, one under-perform and one melt. Yes. Melt.
Not a great track record.
Add to this that most blenders tend to never incorporate all the ingredients, requiring several stoppages to scrape down sides, and, with a square-sided jar, you can be sure that precipitates will amass in the corners. Forget about the disassembled rubber seal falling into the garbage disposal, taking the thing apart to wash it and then cutting your fingers on the not-so-sharp blades. Do you see where I’m going with this? I would rather blend food with my roto-tiller than deal with that.
Yeah.
As you can, then, imagine, when Blendtec asked me if I was interested in reviewing their Blendtec Total Blender WildSide, I was pretty reticent. Bad track record, melting blenders, pieces getting lost, I wasn’t sure I needed any more heart-break. I actually researched this company before agreeing, and I looked at reviews and videos–and even then, after years of being without a blender I wasn’t expecting anything positive to come of this process. I mean come on. I’m the girl who catches my own oven on fire. Occasionally.
Well, guess what.Socks, meet being knocked off of your feet, across the room and almost out of the window.
In fact, once I found my socks again, I was pretty much dumbstruck by how un-blender-like this blender really is.
To whit, I brought this appliance–not yet even plugged in– to my friends’ home for a game night, along with the fixings for fruit and yogurt smoothies. We all stood around the kitchen in a large circle as I plugged in the blender and saw the digital console blink to life. A button for smoothies? Hot diggity! Still… Remember, I hate blenders. After loading up the liquids first, followed by fruit, and then finishing with ice, I affixed the lid and hit “smoothie.” I stood back and, based on previous experience, fully waited for the blender to explode, fall off of the counter or melt.
None of that happened.
In fact, after serving 11 people smoothies (and some seconds), my friends looked sad as I brought the blender home again. I wasn’t. I bounded down the steps to my vehicle with my treasure wrapped in my arms. “MINE!” I shrieked at 11pm in the evening, “MINE MINE! HAHAHAHAHAHA!”
What I love about this blender:
- It’s an evolved life form. There are no pieces to disassemble and lose. The 4″ blade is affixed to the bottom of the container.
- 3 peak horsepower motor with 1560 watts turns ice cubes to snow.
- Their jars are BPA-free and contain a vented gripper lid that allows steam to escape while blending warm foods or during a longer cycle.
- Their FourSide Jar holds 74 fluid ounces and their WildSire Jar (my favorite) holds 90 fluid ounces!
- This blender is powerful. With arms that reach out farther into the jar, the whirling action can be seen pretty clearly. This thing is like an airline jet engine.
- Quality, fitting lid. The rubberized lid fits the jar snugly and it stays put. I am not used to this at all.
- The large, angular jar not only doesn’t trap particulates around the edges, itaccommodateslarge amounts of food or beverages in one load.
- Clean-up is literally a cinch. Just add a cup of warm water with a drop of dish soap, affix the lid and pulse to clean.
- Unlike other quality blenders, this one actually fits under my cabinet on my counter top, making it easy to keep available at all times.
- This machine has 25 pre-programmed blend cycles.
- The accompanying 212-page book of recipes accompanying this machine shows its many talents, including (but not limited to): Beverages, Batters, Cereals and Cereal Bars, Jams and Syrups, Soups, Grinding Grains, Kneads Yeast and Gluten-Free Breads, Makes baked and frozen desserts (including ice cream), pet foods, beauty products and more! Seriously; this thing grinds grains. It chops cabbage. It kneads things. It really crushes ice. It makes coconut milk.
- A 7-year warranty
In fact, don’t tell this thing it’s a blender. It will look at you and laugh. This thing is a powerhouse. It’s what happens when a food processor decides to slim down, get sexy and change every preconceived notion you ever had about a blender. Ever.
A huge giveaway from Blendtec is happening this week, so stay tuned!
And, frankly, for what I paid for all of my blenders and my food processors, I could have owned one of these–and this would have been worth it.
To boot, if you think I’m entertaining, check out their “Will it Blend?” series on Youtube. Here he processes an AirSoft pistol into nothingness (I think I heard my husband sobbing somewhere).
This Blendtec is pretty danged powerful.
Tip: Want even more nutrients? Add a handful of fresh spinach to the jar.
Yummy Yogurt Smoothies
1-6 ounce container sugar-free yogurt, any flavor (I used vanilla)
1 cup unsweetened almond or coconut milk
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
6 large frozen strawberries
Add ingredients to the jar in the order listed and secure lid. Select the “Smoothie” cycle and serve.
Makes 2-1.5 cup servings.
Nutritional information per serving: Calories: 76.5, Carbohydrates: 10.7 g, Fiber: 2.2 g, Net Carbohydrates: 8.5 g, Protein: 3 g, Fat: 3g
Blendtec Total Blender WildSide
Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥
Price: $ 454.95
Usefulness: This thing does it all.
Website: Blend-Tec
Where to buy: Blend-Tec.com
Disclosure: Blend-Tec provided this product free of charge for review, but this hasnot in any way affected my review of the item, especially since I typically hate blenders.
