Not all kitchen tools are created equal. And not all the tools we’ll talk about in this three part blog series are for everyone. But when it comes down to actually consuming all that produce in your Fresh Harvest basket, it’s pretty clear that the Vitamix is king of the kitchen tools. Not only does it work quickly to pulverize all manner of fruits and veggies into a nutritious liquid state, but it’s also fun to use, extremely versatile and a breeze to clean.
Last year I bought a Vitamix and shared some thoughts about my own use of it here. So this time around I decided to pay Anna, Fresh Harvest’s Technology and Marketing Manager, a visit at her home to see what she’s been doing with her new Vitamix. Lucky for me, she was prepping a smoothie with her husband Jon when I arrived.
Joe: What kind of smoothie are you making?
Anna: My typical smoothie is pretty much what’s in season and what’s in my freezer. Right now, that’s kale, mango and a banana. I almost always put a banana in because it makes it so creamy. And I always use coconut milk. Those are the only set staples. Sometimes I get stuff I don’t love in my basket, like grapefruit. The Vitmamix helps because it makes certain flavors less intense when they get mixed in with other flavors. I also typically add cinnamon and a little honey. These smoothies are a meal replacement for me, so I often include seeds and nut protein.
J: Why are Vitamix smoothies so important to you?
A: Most days I have a Happy Camper hand pie for breakfast, some kind of pasta for lunch and then realize I haven’t eaten many fruits or vegetables. Then I remember I can get five fruits and vegetables in a smoothie, so I’m really able to pack them in when there’s produce on hand. When I was adhering to an antiinflammatory regimen not long ago, I had to reduce dairy and gluten and had to eat five fruits and five vegetables a day. The only way I was doing that was through smoothies.
J: What else do you use it for?
Jon: We make soups pretty often. And sauces! Any kind of marinade for meats and things like that.
A: We made a pesto the other day using turnip tops from our basket. It makes me want to use weirder ingredients. Beets are a good example. I’ve had beet smoothies before at smoothie shops around town and wished I could make them like that. Now I can!
J: How’d you decide to go with a Vitamix and not a different blender?
A: Honestly, because I heard everyone talk about how great it is. We had a blender before that I made smoothies with, but it didn’t have the horsepower that this does. This goes up to 10 on the high mode but the other blender’s highest level was like the equivalent of the Vitamix’s 7. I’d try to put greens and beets in it and they would stay chunky even after being on the highest setting.
J: They’re not the least expensive blenders on the market. Any advice to people on a tighter budget?
A: We got it on Black Friday. It was definitely a deal. I had wanted it for a long time so I kept trying to convince Jon to get it and he kept trying to convince me to get a cheaper kind. But I did all the research and I felt like I would use it, so we compromised and just waited until it was on sale. We bought ours on slickdeals.net.
J: Is there anything else you love about it?
Jon: It’s fun to clean. And because it’s so easy to clean, it gets cleaned more regularly. The other one was not fun. It’s really satisfying to see how weirdly creamy the soap gets.
J: Bottom line, how does having a Vitamix in your kitchen impact your life?
A: The Vitamix makes it feel easier for me to catch up on eating healthy. It allows me to use way more produce and therefore consume way more produce. We get a basket pretty much every week. So a lot of times when we have leftover food in the refrigerator, it either gets cut up and thrown in the freezer or made into a smoothie or soup right away.
J: Where does the Vitamix rank on the list of your most important and utilized kitchen tools?
A: Number one is the coffee stuff, of course. Then our pots and pans. And then the Vitamix.
Here are a few of Anna’s favorite smoothie recipes for using that extra produce!
Mixed Berry and Beet Smoothie Recipe | NYT Cooking
Immune Boosting Beet Smoothie | The Awesome Green
Sweet Potato Tahini Smoothie | Dishing Up the Dirt
Immune Boosting Winter Citrus Smoothie | Half Baked Harvest
Best Green Smothie Ever | Amy in the Kitchen
**We have not received any kind of endorsement or sponsorship from Vitamix to write this blog post. We just love their product and hope it will lead to more consumption of healthy, organic and local produce for all.