Avocado Pie Teaser, Immersion Blender Talk Again; Cherry Smoothie

The avocado pie was not only perfect for Cinco de Mayo, but also ended up as the perfect birthday cake for Leslie!

I will share the recipe, but I want to talk about immersion blenders again, and I think it'll make this post too long if I try to cover both. The immersion blender talk is relevant to the avocado pie recipe, as I made the pie mostly using the immersion blender in order to ensure it could be made without a Vita-mix.


As much as I love my Vita-mix and wouldn't be without it, I also wouldn't be without an immersion blender. I love its lightness, convenience and easy cleanup. Over two years ago, back before I had a Vita-mix, I wrote a post including some tips for how to make goodies using an immersion blender, and I still agree with what I said then. However, the search for the right machine continues. At the time I wrote that post, I had a Kitchenaid handblender. But when my third one in three years bit the dust last December, I knew it was time to look elsewhere. 


My luck didn't quite turn around when I bought the Juiceman handblender. My hopes were up because it had 550W, so was more powerful, but when it arrived, the design turned out to be a bit flimsy, and the blade was too small to be really effective.

After a month or two, a more serious problem surfaced. The "on" button tended to stick in the "on" position, which was very scary, and the power level would surge without warning. An hour or so on the phone, and I was promised a refund (which I'm still waiting for).


Meanwhile, I went back and read lots of reviews both on Amazon and everywhere else I could find, and ended up ordering the MiTutto Miallegro, also 550W. This was so well reviewed, and I was excited.

Turns out, it's built on a very similar design to the Juiceman blender, which means the Juiceman attachments fit it, so I have some spare parts. But it's much better made. The "on" button is sealed so nothing could stick in there to make it stick in the "on" position (in case that was the problem). The motor sounds better, and seems more effective. 

I love being able to blend a thick smoothie right in the cup!

This was a Cherry-Spirulina smoothie:

1/3 cup unsweetened almond breeze

1/2 cup snow/ice

6 frozen cherries

3g spirulina

1t xanthan gum

stevia

erythritol

pinch vanilla powder

1t coconut butter

The blender coped with the ice just fine, crushed it right up. It's cold here, so the coconut butter was solid, and there ended up being little niblets of coconut butter throughout the smoothie. I actually loved that! I often sprinkle a few cacao nibs into smoothies like this for texture, and I didn't have to do that. My suspicion is that part of the reason why the Vita-mix homogenizes the unmelted coconut butter so thoroughly even in the presence of ice is because it heats everything up more, and it may be better, from the oxidation perspective, not to have stuff heated up. 

I haven't yet tried blending greens with it, but will report in when I have.

Bottom line: it's not the same as a Vita-mix, but as I said in my old post, I think it's better than a cheap upright blender, and it's a wonderful tool. Still early days with this model--I really hope it lasts longer than its predecessors.

Do you have an immersion blender that you like?

Tomorrow, the avocado pie!