So this is the first smoothie recipe on The Recipe Rebel. And I know you know how much I like to indulge every now and then, and I want you to know it’s not like I don’t drink smoothies. I have a smoothie pretty much everyday. It’s like a healthy milkshake! I also happen to love berries and yogurt. But I’m a little picky about my smoothies because I find some blenders don’t get the raspberries or strawberries perfectly smooth and you’re left with a weird texture. I’ve been through 2 blenders in the last few months (and I’ll be the first to admit I push them to their limits experimenting with different gluten free cake batters), so when Kitchenaid emailed and asked if I was able to review their new Torrent Blender I couldn’t say no. I was actually currently blenderless, and really intrigued to see how the Torrent would stack up against my previous blenders. Let’s get to it! Look Pros I mean, it’s a beautiful machine. It comes in a choice of 4 colours (mine shown is Liquid Graphite), and I like how it’s much less clunky than the Vitamix and Blendtec (which, for the record, are not any of the blenders I’ve had in the future, so I won’t be comparing the Torrent to them). Cons I have no cons when it comes to the look of the blender! Feel/Functionality Pros I love the simple design of the power button. There are 4 options based on texture and consistency (juice, soups/sauces, milkshakes, ice drinks/smoothies), plus a pulse option, and the start/pause button. Another thing I love is how the jar slides in and out of the machine like a coffee maker. I’ve never been able to keep a blender on the counter because most are too tall and don’t fit under our upper cabinets. I love being able to pull it out and make a quick smoothie without having to haul it out of the corner I’ve tucked it into. I like that the bottom piece of the jar with the blade actually doesn’t come off like most other blenders I’ve had. For the last blender I had, I found that the seal in the bottom was easily broken and there’ll be no issue with that on the Torrent. Because it’s a magnetic drive blender, there is nothing that physically attaches to the bottom piece of the blender when you slide it in. It’s actually pretty amazing to think about how quickly it goes considering there’s no physical manipulation of the blade. Those are some pretty crazy magnets! Cons The blender fits just fine under my upper cabinets, but because we have a molding under our cabinets (about 1.5-2″ below our cabinets), I can’t simply pull out the blender. I would have to tilt it on its side, which is not an easy feat at all considering its weight (the weight is a plus here, because it’s a powerful machine! It just makes moving it difficult). So the top feed for me will never really get used. I don’t often add ingredients part way through blending, so I’m not really upset about this, but it’s worth noting if you want to use the top feed, you’ll have to move it out from under your cabinets. Usually, I’ll add ingredients after tasting, and that’s not something you can do while the blender is doing its thing anyway. Sound Pros The blender automatically shuts off and beeps when whatever you’re mixing up is ready — that’s pretty neat! Cons On its highest settings, it’s pretty loud. It’s like any appliance though — you can’t really add much more insulation to the machine without it getting bigger and less like something you want sitting on your counter. It’s a trade-off for the speed and power you get. Performance Pros The blender automatically adjusts its speed to whatever you’re blending, even throughout the blending process, which is pretty neat to see. It powers through frozen fruit quickly and easily. It obviously has a lot of power. It is also easily the most powerful blender I’ve ever had, but like I mentioned earlier, I’m not able to compare to a Vitamix or Blendtec. Cons I haven’t gotten around to really pushing it to the limits yet, so I can’t comment on how it handles things like hot soup (though I’m super excited about this feature!), or the gluten free cake batters I experiment with. I will update this review here as I get around to testing the blender with more types of food. Overall I think if you’re looking for a high performance blender and are willing to pay for one, this is a great option. I can’t compare to the performance of the Vitamix or Blendtec, but I like the look of the Kitchenaid better and the fact that I can actually keep it under my upper cabinets and slide it in and out. *I received this blender free from KitchenAid Canada for review purposes but was not otherwise compensated for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.
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