Wednesday, April 11, 2007

New Toy

I was out of commission for a little while - very, very sick with the flu - just in time for spring break! I had a fever of 102 F, and finally succumbed and went to the doctor, who prescribed some heavy duty ibuprofen to bring down my fever, but could do little else for me. So the next day, having taken the ibuprofen so that my eyeballs were no longer burning a hole to the back of my skull, and I could turn my head without pain, I drove home.

When I got home, lots of sleeping and getting pampered ensued. Moocow, my brother (also home on break), my mom and I did get out a bit while I was home. But I just couldn't wait to share my new kitchen gadget, the immersion blender that I've been coveting for ages and ages! See how pretty it is, fresh out of the box! It didn't come with a lot of fancy accessories, just a blending beaker, but I think that's more than sufficient. In fact, the blender and the beaker were both larger and heftier than I'd imagined.
I decided to use up some plain yogurt that was in my fridge. I poured the yogurt, some soy milk and some frozen raspberries into the beaker and turned on the blender.
And had a beautiful, pink smoothie in seconds! And cleanup was a breeze, too! Three cheers!

But I wasn't done yet. It's asparagus season right now, and I'd brought two beautiful bunches of asparagus back up from the city. I used one today to make a creamy asparagus soup. It was fun, blending the cooked asparagus, then making a roux with butter and flour, and then adding in some sour cream. I bought a nice, fresh loaf of Italian bread at the supermarket today, and it made a very satisfying lunch. I'm thinking the next thing that I'll make with my blender is roasted red pepper soup. And then I believe I'll start a hunt for the perfect tomato soup recipe. I am completely enamoured with this latest addition to my kitchen!

3 comments:

greeeenwithenv said...

OOOH! I love the colors of your conconctions. I could really use a blending gadget. At first I thought a enclosed food processor or blender was the way to go, but I notice some people opt for the hand held variety. Why did you get an immersion blender instead of a standing one?

Hope you get better soon!

P.S. My mom and I went shopping on Easter Sunday and I saw a gorgeous clear glass tea pot. I really wanted to buy it, but the $50+ price tag prevented me. :( Some day!

Lana said...

Check out http://www.adagio.com for reasonably priced glass teapots.

I got a handheld blender because 1) I don't have room in my kitchen/on the countertop for another appliance, 2) I knew I wanted to make a lot of soups and sauces, and having something that can blend straight in the pot (not having to transfer hot liquids, etc.) was a big consideration. If you just want something that blends/purees, I think skipping a traditional blender and getting an immersion blender is a better idea. If you want something that has all the functionality of a good food processor, an immersion blender can't do all those things.

greeeenwithenv said...

Blogger isn't letting me log in for some reason...

I checked out that link last time, but I'm feel kind of iffy about having some so delicate shipped to me. :/

Hmm, I guess I should figure out exactly what I need from a blender first! I'm not limited on space, but your reason #2 is a really good point. I'll have to think more about this one, but I'm in no rush.