[AwakenedMama]

Hi!

I'm moving into a new house that has a much bigger kitchen than I've had for years! It's very exciting and I'm ready to get some of the appliances I've been wanting to be able to make all the things I want to make.

So, what I mainly need are a really good blender for smoothies and things (and nut butters would be awesome) and a grain mill. I'm thinking about a Vita Mix or maybe another high powered blender and a separate grain mill. I have a kitchen aid stand mixer and could get the grain mill, but it's $170. So that plus another blender will be about as much as a VitaMix. We've also been wanting an ice cream maker, though I'm not doing dairy now, so we may not need that for awhile. But it seems the Vita Mix can do ice cream, too.

Thoughts?

Thanks for sharing!

 

[cristeen]

Ice cream does not require dairy, you can make it with any milk replacement (coconut milk ice cream is fabulous), or you can make all-fruit sorbets. And there is an ice cream maker attachment for the KA stand mixer.

 

[LBMarie9]

I say go with the Blendtec---you don't need an extra $80 "dry" canister to blend wheat. --it really depends how much you want to grind wheat--if you are okay with doing 2 c at a time--then use a blender --but if making 8 loafs a week...it might not work as well.

I already have a nutrimill--but am getting a blendtec for christmas--SOO exccited---i am recently dairy free/egg free (allergies in BF babe)--and the vitamix cookbook has recipes for all fruit--frozen desserts that are YUMMY! (I've heard the blendtec book doesn't focus on healthy things as much as the vitamix book so I want to buy the cookbook from vitamix too!)

they are the same price.

 

[AwakenedMama]

Hmmm... The BlendTec looks cool. I could always get the kitchenaid ice cream attachment later, if the blender didn't work for it. I read somewhere that the L'Equip was actually rated better than the VitaMix in Cooks Illustrated. The L'Equip is only $120.

 

[Arduinna]

You might try using search because I know there have been tons of threads on grain mills. Blenders, hmm I really don't know of any specifically gotta have awesome ones. I'm not really into the vitamix concept myself. As far as ice cream makers, we do love our cuisinart one although I don't think it freezes the ice cream as much as the old traditional ice and salt ones. If I had the cash I'd consider one of those fancy electric Italian ones but they are hundreds of dollars.

My favorite non basic splurge kitchen appliances are the Zarafina tea maker and the Bialetti hot chocolate pot that I use to make chai lattes.