Nothing like a Blendtec giveaway and 3 new smoothie recipes to kick off the weekend, right?
Happy Friday indeed!
Blendtec sent me a refurbished Blendtec Total Blender to review on the blog. I’m going to have a fun little giveaway to get your own engines revving and give this beast away to one lucky reader.
And boy, is this thing a beast!
As you may know, I purchased a Vitamix last year and I’m in love with it. I wasn’t sure what to expect with the Blendtec. My standards are pretty high when it comes to blenders, so I’m a tough cookie smoothie!
This is a refurbished machine, which means that it was slightly used but it was inspected and processed in the Blendtec factory to restore it to ‘like new’ condition. Honestly, you’d never be able to tell that this machine wasn’t brand spanking new! It is in mint condition. You can also save quite a bit of money if you purchase their refurbished models.
Plus, you get to be all eco-friendly by recycling…what’s not to love?
Here are some specs:
- You can make smoothies, fresh juice, ice cream, milkshakes, cappuccinos, margaritas, soups, sauces, bread dough, dressings, salsas and more
- The Total Blender comes with an exclusive Smart-Touch Technology which means when a cycle button is pushed, the Total Blender automatically speeds up and slows down, then shuts off when the cycle is complete.
- It turns ice to snow and actually comes with an Ice-Crushing Guarantee and has1560 Watts of blending power
- Blender includes: 32 oz. BPA free wet + dry container, Total Blender Motor Base, FourSide Pitcher, Vented Pitcher Lid, Recipe Book, Owner’s Manual, instructional CD
- It has 6 pre-programmed blend cycles (below) that are designed to produce optimum results for a range of blending tasks such as soups and sauces or whole juice. The instruction manual tells you how long each cycle goes for and it’s also displayed on the screen when blending.
- The pitcher is a wet and dry which means you don’t have to purchase another container like you do with the Vitamix.
After reading up on this bad boy, I threw a blending party and Eric and I got to be the lucky taste-testers!
Of course, the ultimate test for any blender is a Green Monster smoothie made with KALE! If you’ve ever made a smoothie with kale and it was chunky, I feel your pain. I suffered through that for a couple years before I finally bought my Vitamix beast.
After putting in my Green Monster ingredients, I hit the ‘smoothie’ button. I quickly realized that the smoothie setting (30 seconds) was probably not intended for Green Monsters because the greens didn’t pulverize enough after 30 seconds. I ended up blending for 3 smoothie cycles (1.5 minutes) instead of one.
After 1.5 minutes, it blended well and the kale was virtually smooth, but perhaps not as smooth as the Vitamix. It was a really close call, but I found the Blendtec was a tiny bit more coarse in texture as compared to my GM’s made with the Vitamix.
But again, it was so close, it’s almost a non-issue. And I’m sure many people don’t blend kale like my crazy self!
edited to add: Some of you told me to use the LIQUIFY setting for kale as it works much better! Good to know. :)
Up next, I made a few fruit smoothies and I was very pleased with the outcome. 
Strawberry Cherry Basil Mango Coconut Cream Banana Data Cinnamon
These smoothies turned out I-N-C-R-E-D-I-B-L-E.
I tried another ultimate test for this beast- grinding flax. I’ve used a few blenders in the past that didn’t grind flax well, so I was anxious to test it out with the Blendtec.
Let’s just say it was PULVERIZED! Amazing job!!!
All in all, I think the Blendtec Total Blender is a great machine.
Here are some specifics that I love about it:
- Shorter height (15”) compared to Vitamix (20.5”) which means that it will fit under any counter top
- Easy to remove lid (I find the Vitamix lid is hard to put on and off)
- BPA free container
- Digital display (while not necessary, it is sleek and fun)
- No need for a Tamper stick like you need with the Vitamix. (The Tamper stick is included with a Vitamix to help push down and process ingredients. No need for this with the Blendtec)
- Contemporary & sleek design! Looks great on the counter.
- Wet + dry container all in one
Now how about some of those smoothie recipes to kick off the weekend?
Mango Coconut Cream Smoothie
- 1.25 cups coconut water
- 1 cup frozen mango chunks
- 1/2 frozen banana (or 1/4 cup coconut ice cream)
- 1 tbsp chia seeds or ground flax (optional)
Strawberry Cherry Basil Smoothie
(My fav new smoothie!)
- 1/4 cup (or a bit less) loosely packed basil (trust me it WORKS!)
- 1 cup almond milk
- 3/4 cup pitted and frozen cherries
- 1/2 cup hulled and frozen strawberries
- Chia seeds or flax (optional)
Banana Date Cinnamon Smoothie
- 1 frozen banana (peel before freezing)
- 1 cup almond milk
- 1 pitted medjool date
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 cup rolled oats
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 2-3 ice cubes, as needed
(That one is for Kristi!)
By the way, what the heck is this? Nooooooooooo!!!!
To enter the giveaway:
Leave one comment below and you are entered! I’ll be drawing the random winner on Tuesday of next week.
Goodluck to all! Big thanks to Blendtec for this amazing opportunity!
Mama could use a new blender ;)
Recently found the site, and I _LOVE_ all of your recipes!
Keep up the great work!!
I need a good blender!!! The one I have now can’t even blend chickpeas into hummus!!
I would love a Blendtec…thanks for this opportunity to win this awesome blender!!!!!!! :)
I’ve always wanted a good blender. I currently sport a $9 Target blender. I need an upgrade that can actually crush ice. I would LOVE a blendtec. Thank you for the giveaway! :-)
Wow, I wouldn’t mind having one of these, that’s for sure! :)
this would be incredible! my blender is probably pushing 13 yrs old, it works ok, but this would be MUCH better! thanks for the giveaway!
Damn that’s a nice blender. I have a tiny food processer that came with my stick blender…but for anything bigger than an onion, it doesn’t cut it :(
Wow! Great smoothie recipes and a blender give-away!
Could definitely use a high speed blender. And look forward to trying out the new recipes on the weekend. I think I might try to Mango Coconut Cream one this afternoon.
When I first started reading your blog I was very skeptical of the Green Monster. I am proud to say I am now addicted and enjoy coming up with new combinations all the time:) This blender would be amazing to support my new addiction. Thanks for sharing!
I could sure use a good blender! I’m using a Magic Bullet and it just doesn’t cut the mustard.
Oooh awesome giveaway!! I don’t actually own a blender; I’ve been thinking of asking for one for Christmas!
Yay! I currently use an old Oster, it would be so nice to have something withe POWER! :)
I just got a Vitamix and was so surprised at how better even my smoothies tasted! I am curious though, do you core apples where you throw them in there? What about oranges? Peel, pits and all?
Oh, I would love this blender! My fiance and I have started drinking smoothies for breakfast every morning. A couple of times a week I will add spinach, and each time he tells me the texture is weird. I need a high speed blender to pulverize those little spinach bits!
I would love to get this blender! My mother always worries about me breaking our other one with all the ice I blend for my green monsters and iced coffees. :)
A new blender would be AMAZING!!! Chunky chard smoothies just arent great. I am a minor so the choice of blender buying is unfortunately not mine. It would be a dream come true!
I have tried a couple of blenders in the past and always burnt out the motor. I’m in Arizona and those smoothies look so refreshing, especially during the summer.
Oh my gosh I would die to have an industrial-strength blender!!!! Awesome giveaway, the winner of this one is a lucky girl!
I try to indoctrinate everyone I know into the cult of the Green Monster. Would love this blender!
I had never heard of Blendtec until your post. It sounds really nice and a lot more powerful than my current blender!
Oh I am in love!
Yum! I’ve yet to try basil in a smoothie, but I trust you… maybe I will? :)
I have a million food allergies, and it’s really hard to find delicious treats that I can eat! Smoothies are GREAT, though. I put tons of foods I can tolerate in at once and voila! My blender right now is not up for the task, though, so this would be wonderful!
Ever since finding your site I have wanted something like this to ‘play’ with in the kitchen~so much fun to have with new kitchen toys!
love the greenmonsters, your blog and all things blended!!!!!! thank you for putting this out there for us!
I have 18 year old boys who are smoothie monsters and my current blender has a difficult time with frozen bananas, let alone ice!!! Would love them to have the opportunity to juice also. Gotta encourage healthy eating, especially in kids.
Oh, I need a new blender so bad! My green monsters have been a little too chunky lately. Can’t wait to try the cherry-basil smoothie!
My blender has no lid! I definately need a new one!!! :)
I would loveto get this blender it would not be for me but a dear dear friend who was diagnosised with cervical cancer. i thought this would brighten her spirits and get her to finally start making some green smoothies. Thanks for the wonderful giveaway
How fun! I don’t make smoothies anymore b/c I still have the $10 blender from Target that moans… thanks for such a great contest and awesome recipes Angela!
I would LOVE this blender. We make a ton of smoothies and my daughters would enjoy this too! I always enjoy your blog!
My blender just broke this week! It sprays smoothie everywhere when I use it, so I need a new one anyway!
I need a good blender. Please pick me.
Oh, a new blender would be wonderful. My current blender doesn’t blend ice well and I have to crunch my smoothies. Not cool!
I NEED a new blender as I broke mine recently!! Fingers crossed!
What a great giveaway! Your smoothie recipes sound delicious. I would love to own a Blendtec!
I can’t make enough smoothies lately!! They get my day off to a great start!
blendtec for caitlin, please ;)
This sounds awesome! I lack a Vitamix and any other type of high speed blender so I’ve been mainly looking towards my little dinky old food processor for blending purposes.. Heh. This sounds perfect.
I’m a college student going through a binge eating cycle similar to the one you’ve recovered from. You’ve served as an amazing inspiration to me the past year and I’ve been making tons of your recipes- the weekend glow kale salad is a favorite of mine, as well as the butternut squash “mac and cheese”- AND of course I LOVE voo and green monsters! Man, I could just list my favorite recipes forever! Anyways, I’ve been dying to get a great blender so that I can keep up with all your deliciously healthy smoothie recipes.
Thanks for everything-
I love how the greens in the first picture in this blog makes it look as though the smoothie ingredients have “a great big, bushy beard”! I don’t know if you have seen ‘Hot Fuzz’, but, if you haven’t, you should!
(Also, I totally blend kale! My morning breakfast drink is coconut milk, green algae, chlorella, maca powder, Olivia’s mixed greens, kale, and water. =) )
Drooling at the blender and the thought of all the healthy yummy things I could whip up. As a self proclaimed blender killer I really need something that can take a licking and keep on ticking.
Blender Envy. I need something to replace my like $15 Black Decker one.
I’ve just started to make green monsters, and my cheap old blender isn’t cutting it! Also a girl living in Austin needs some frozen drinks if you know what I mean. :)
I’m not entering because I have a Blendtec, just wanted to say that it is THE BEST blender!!
I’ve never commented (I don’t think), but it’s sad when all along I’ve wanted to tell you how very much I appreciate and love all the good you share and offer us with this blog. I’ve referred many to this site and we all just love you, Angela. I’ve always wanted a BlendTec. Maybe this will be my chance!
I really need a new blender so this would be perfect!
Those smoothies look terrific. I’m eager to try the cherry-basil one. Sounds interesting!
I love it! I need a new blender! It’s a must-have in order to “hide” veggies for my two year old!!!! <3
I think my blender is dying on me and it makes me sad! Whenever I make smoothies it leaks out the bottom! Nooooo!!!!!