Smoothie maker with 2 bottles

You drink from what you blend in

With a morning smoothie the blending is the small job. The big one is pouring it from the jug into a glass, from the glass into a bottle, and then washing all three. Here the bottle is the blending vessel: the fruit goes in, the blade unit screws on, the whole thing goes onto the base, and after blending all you do is put the cap on.

Three hundred millilitres or six hundred

Two bottles come with it, each with its own lid: 300 ml and 600 ml. The smaller one covers a quick breakfast or a child's portion, the larger one a full smoothie to take with you. Since both fit the same base, you can decide that morning which one you start with.

320 watts, two speeds, pulse

The motor is rated at 320 watts. The two speeds each have their own job: the lower one for liquid ingredients, the higher one for firmer ones. Pulse gives short, interrupted bursts, and that is what breaks the bigger pieces down before you switch to continuous blending.

The appliance stands 35 cm tall and 13.5 cm wide, so it does not take over half the worktop and fits assembled under most wall units. The cable has its own storage, so nothing hangs off the counter when you put it away.

Four leaves, 18/10 steel

18/10 stainless steel

A steel alloy with 18% chromium and 10% nickel. The chromium gives corrosion resistance, the nickel toughness. It is the usual material for kitchen knives and blades.

The blade unit has four leaves in 18/10 stainless steel. It works fixed to the bottom of the vessel, so the ingredients drop onto it rather than frozen fruit hunting for a blade in the middle of a jug. The blades handle crushed ice too.

Why it does not walk across the worktop

The motor base stands on an anti-slip foot. With frozen fruit and ice that is not a comfort question: the appliance vibrates, and if it does not grip the worktop it sets off towards the sink. The sealing rings on the vessels and lids head off the other annoyance, when the smoothie leaks out along the blade unit.

One minute, no more

It is built for short runs: one minute of continuous operation at most. For a smoothie that is plenty, and most portions are done well inside it. If the mixture stalls around the blade, do not keep driving the motor: stop it, shake the vessel and start again. Under overload the use has to be interrupted.

Seven in the morning, quarter past

The night before, a batch of banana and berries goes into the freezer. In the morning it goes into the bottle with the yoghurt and the liquid, a short burst of pulse, then blending, cap on, done. There is no jug to wash, because there was never a jug.

After a workout the same bottle goes into the bag, and in an office the smaller one covers an afternoon portion. Once the blending is done you only put the cap on and go.

An appliance that can stay out on the worktop

A clean shape, simple controls, a stable body: this machine can stay out on the worktop between two mornings. At 35 centimetres tall and 13.5 wide it does not take over your work surface, and it does not follow other blenders to the back of a cupboard. It stands where your hand needs it at seven.

Cleaning

There are four ways to clean it: self cleaning, a dishwasher-safe bottle, a quick rinse and hand washing. The motor base is not one of them: it must not be immersed, only wiped with a slightly damp cloth, and it has to be unplugged before cleaning.

• Rinse the bottle after use, before the smoothie dries onto its wall.
• Rinse the blade unit under running water and keep your fingers away from the blades.
• The bottle can go in the dishwasher; wash the lid and the sealing ring by hand.
• Wipe the motor base with a slightly damp cloth and never immerse it.
• Unplug the appliance before cleaning it.
• Dry the sealing rings after washing so no moisture is trapped under them.

Safety

Whom it suits

Do not buy it to purée a large pot of soup, to knead dough or to blend long and often through the day: that calls for a jug blender with more power. It is not for hot liquids either.

Frequently asked questions

Specification