The Incredible, Indelible, Immersion Blender
Friday, April 8, 2011 at 10:26PM Last October I was possessed by an impish demon. Buy 10 pumpkins and put jack-o-lanterns all over the place. I got tired of carving after 4 and since it was a cold day, decided to make pumpkin soup out of fresh pumpkins. The first step in the process, after yet MORE scooping out slimy seeds and gunk, was to roast the pumpkins, cut them and put the hot meat into a blender and puree it. Somewhat. Then, after adding chicken stock, cream, bacon, onions etc and it begins to look like soup, you have to puree it some more. But the blender could only process a little at a time because the pumpkin would get stuck on the sides. The whole process took forever and created a huge mess. I kept thinking 'if only I had an Immersion Blender'....
So I went out and bought one.
The brand I chose was the Cuisinart Smart Stick. There were others- KitchenAid, Sharper Image. But I chose the Cuisinart because I liked its bad 200-watt motor and the way it felt in my hand. It felt solid. Now for those of you who don't know what an immersion, or wand blender is, its simply a hand-held blender. A motor with attachments like whisks, choppers and blades that enable you to blend sauces and drinks with a wand stuck right into the pot or beaker, as opposed to having to pour into a blender. In the case of my pumpkin soup, it would have made matters so much easier, and the result far more efficient if I could have inserted it into the soup kettle. And I wouldn't have had burned fingers!
But it does so much more. Yes, you can use it like a mixer. But it is also a food processor, a motorized whisk, a chopper, a grinder and something cool you can impress your friends with. You can blend your gravies right in the pan, you can make salad dressings and reverse the blade in the processor to chop fruit and crude veggies. The Cuisinart comes with a beaker that you can use to create smoothies and whip cream.
One of my favorites is Guacamole! Who doesn't like a terrific Guacamole on a hot summer day with a dipped chip in one hand and a Corona in the other? I have created, in my opinion, agruably the best Guacamole in the history of mankind. Here is my recipe:
2 cloves garlic
2 limes
2 large jalapenos
2 medium avacados
lime juice
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Attach the processor section to the wand. Cut peppers in half and seed and core them. Cut them into 1/4" chunks. Smash the garlic cloves. Place the garlic, peppers and the cilantro into the bowl and pulse to chop them up. Cut the avocados in half, remove the seed and scoop the meat into the bowl. Add the juice of both limes, one capful of lime juice and the salt. Pulse until a slight puree is reached. Stop and scrap the sides of the bowl down with a rubber spatula. Pulse again until the desired consistency is reached. Spoon into a serving bowl.
Get some chips- I like Tostito Scoops- pop the top off your favorite beer and prepare to enter heaven! Serves 2. Enjoy! If you like this, share it with your friends on facebook and hit the 'like' button at the top of the post!
Reader Comments (1)
Yet another great video John, so good that now I must make your guacamole:) Thank you for the recipe and the video, hugs!~