Kitchen

[wagirl]

I make peanut butter in my 30 + year old Vitamix and find I need to add some oil to it, for the jar-like consistency of the store bought one. I use olive oil or coconut oil but use whatever oil you have.

[Kachina624]

I wouldn't pay that much money unless you plan to use it for a lot more than peanut butter. I have one and all I use it for is smoothies. It was a waste of money because there are cheaper machines that will do just as well. I don't care for mushy stuff like cream soups so would never use the machine for that, nor do I eat peanut butter. Every time I see that peanut butter demo, I think of the big mess it would be to get it out of the container and clean it.

[brandiwine]

One thing Jan mentioned was grinding your own meat. This way there is no pink slime. Hadn't thought of that and it's a big deal to me. My S-I-L has some little bullet thing that is totally worthless. I got a Ninja a few years ago and It's a piece of garbage. I'm saving for the Vitamix. Think I will get a reconditioned one. Great price and new warranty. Happy cooking

[Mama Deb]

I'm a huge advocate for the Vitamix and am thrilled to know how well they work. I've purchased two - one for myself and one for my son. Love it and have never regretted buying it.

Did you purchase it?

[mideria]

I'm hooked on the carrot ginger soup as well as the broccoli cheese soup. Hot soup right from the vitamix is amazing. Short prep time, too.

[tartlets]

Get it. You won't be sorry. Make the monthly payments on it. Nothing can compare to the Vita-Mix. I don't care for the Ninja. Too many parts to clean and its big and clunky! Also the Vita- mix will last a LIFETIME. Great customer service in Cleveland.

[topazzz]

The Vitamix is one of my top five items I feel I wouldn't want to be without. I just got mine about two years ago now and I use it EVERY - SINGLE-DAY (and sometimes twice a day). I make the usual smoothies (green and other varieties), soups, grind nuts, make cashew butter (much easier than I ever thought - I use cashew halves/pieces to start with to make it even quicker), shakes, toppings and so on.

I didn't want to spend the money on it either and had gone through various blenders in the past. Total waste of my time/money to do that - had I known about the Vitamix back then - I still would have balked at the price, but it's just totally worth it. To me, it's in a class by itself.

Suggestion: Google recipes, research it online, think about what you like to make and what you wish you could make. The Vitamix makes everything so much quicker, in my opinion.

Good luck with your decision making!

Edit: Thought of two more things as I submitted this the first time: 1.) Clean up is an absolute BREEZE - that was another thing I despised about my former blenders. That easy clean up is worth one of the payments 2.) To extend the clean up thought process - after making cashew butter ( I make about a whole cup at a time and use it over about a month) - I dreaded the thought of cleaning the first time, I cleaned it the 'normal' way, but it wasn't quite enough. What I then did, was use my Dawn grease-remover dish soap, put it in there with hot, soapy water, blended a few seconds, then let it sit for about 20 min so it could eat away at the oils in the bottom and around the blades - perfection. Finished with another whir of the blades, rinsed, did it again for good measure and it was perfectly clean. Anyway, it case it matters.....it worked and I was/am a happy camper.

[Scorpios]

GrannyDea, go onto the Vitamix website. They have refurbished vitamix units there for hundreds less than on the Q. I got a refurbished unit and you would never have know it was not entirely brand new. The pitcher and the plunger will be new because they can't recycle those parts of the unit, the only part that is refurbished is the actual motor base; which by the way didn't have a scratch or scrape on it. I even got the recipe binder and all the sheets that go into the binder and they were all brand new still in the cellophane wrapers. I use mine every day and have never regretted the purchase. I think that people want brand new even though their unit is not even close to worn out so they turn them in for an upgrade and buy the latest models. I love mine. Good luck!

[GrannyDea]

Thanks to everyone who has responded. Sure appreciate more than I can say. And Scorpios, and others I've read about getting the refurbished instead of new, sounds like a great idea. The Vitamix site also says they will pay to return it if you decide not to keep it. At least, I think that's what the website said. Sounds good to me. Now to make that decision. Thanks again all.