Pure purée, eh?
January 13, 2012 
4 Comments
It’s a well-known adage that when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. So naturally, ever since getting my new Vitamix high-speed blender, I’ve been looking for excuses to puree things.
One of the benefits of a blender like the Vitamix is the size of the container: no more “transfer to a blender in batches” for me! And a good thing, too, because the first preparation I used it for, the chipotle ketchup from Michael Ruhlman’s Twenty, wouldn’t have fit in the 5-cup container of my old blender. One of the ingredients it calls for is a 28-ounce can of tomatoes, which would nearly have filled my old blender on its own.
With this much speed and power, purées form a lovely vortex, perfect for dispersing hydocolloids.
It also calls for seeded chipotles, but I was curious to see how the new blender would handle the seeds, so I added the chipotles whole. When I strained the resulting puree, there were only a couple of fragments left, and even they would probably have been broken down completely if I’d let it run a bit longer. Of course, in keeping the seeds, I also kept the membranes they’re attached to, which is where most of the capsaicin resides, so the ketchup turned out a little hotter than I might have expected. Fine for me, but potentially challenging for more timid palates!
There’s a flip side to the high speed the Vitamix is capable of producing: its low speed is quite low, almost “stir” rather than “blend.” So the next thing I made in it was the chocolate pudding from Ideas in Food. You start by mixing egg yolks and tapioca starch in a blender “on low speed until they form a light colored paste,” then add a boiling hot milk/cream/sugar mixture and increase the speed to medium, before adding the chocolate and emulsifying it all together. Incidentally, this is why I wanted a Vitamix rather than a Blendtec: I liked the idea of a speed dial better than individual push buttons. The pudding, of course, was delicious. (I assume it’s the same as the one I had at the Ideas in Food dinner at Atelier last March.)
This piece of equipment is definitely threatening to move into “How did I live without it?” territory.
What’s your favourite thing to blend?
Yep, my Vitamix seemed a luxury at the time and now is a kitchen necessity. I love puree-soups! Gotta make that catsup! (without the seeds!) I make hummus with it a couple of times a month. When I strain some purees there is much less fibrous material left since the Vitamix so thoroughly processed the ingredients. I like the idea that the finer material made it into a probably more nutritious puree or soup. I’ve made some of the sherbets and custards for ice cream from the recipes that came with the Vitamix and they are excellent. Anyway, this expensive buy turned out to be a very good buy.
Couldn’t agree more about the Vitamix. I had been lusting for one but could not justify the expense while my 20 yr old Sunbeam was still working…but then it died and the Shopping Channel featured it @ a great price. The Vitamix (note no longer use the word blender). I even picked up the dry container for nuts and whole wheat flour!
Matthew, I discovered your site while searching for other’s experiences re making homemade vinegars. Very informative and your culinary journey mirrors many of us who lovingly “cook” as pastime rather than as a necessity.
Glad to hear you share my feelings about the Vitamix, SQ! And thanks for the kind words.