As you may or may not know, I am a person who used a blender daily. Almost every day I can be found in my kitchen whipping up a soup or a smoothie in a blender for a meal or an after school snack. These days conversations about the quality of blenders are a high priority in my social circle. It may not be quite as exciting as when we were all talking about the concerts we were buying tickets for in our younger years, but trust me when I say that blenders vary in quality in vast ways.
Far too many times over my smoothie/mocktail making years I have been found sticking an wooden spoon into the bottom of a blender to get the ice dislodged from where it’s stuck into the blade. In my mind a blender should make quick work of ice and harder ingredients when it’s being marketed as the answer to the perfect smoothie. Because I’ve killed many a blender, I look forward to reviewing them when I am asked.
Today I am reviewing the Harley Pasternak’s new Power Blender by Salton.
This blender is of professional grade. And I LOVED that it comes with a tamper that is designed specifically for this blender so that you can maneuver your ingredients while continuing to blend.
The blender has 8 stainless steel blades that are optimal for consistent blending which means there are no pesky ice bits or hard veggies being missed.
This blender isn’t just pretty, it’s packed with a motor that is 30,000 RPM, 2 HP and 1500 watts, which means POWER!!!!
Making Smoothies
The Harley Pasternak Power Blender comes with a recipe book that includes smoothies, dips, soups, salad dressings and more. How could I possibly do a review of a blender without including a smoothie recipe? Today I’m sharing one of our favourites, the Avocado Strawberry Smoothie. Adding avocado to this smoothie gives an amazing creamy texture and adds some protein!
Avocado Strawberry Smoothie
INGREDIENTS
- ½ cup plain greek yogurt
- ½ cup – 1 cup milk, depending on your preference of consistency (use almond milk if you prefer)
- 1 cup frozen strawberries
- 1 banana
- ½ avocado
- a few ice cubes
PREPARATION
Put items in the blender in the order listed….Blend, Serve, Enjoy!!
I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly and efficiently this blender blended these ingredients – and most of all, produced a smoothie with a beautifully consistent texture! So it passed the first test with flying colours! Next up, SOUP!!
Coconut Curried Butternut Squash Soup
Getting the right consistency in this soup is so important…often times, with the wrong blender, you can end up with chunks, and that is not what you want. Living in Canada, nothing is better on a cold winters day than a big bowl of this soup!
INGREDIENTS
- 1 large butternut squash cut in chunks
- 2 medium cooking onions cut in chunks
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 heaping tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- salt and pepper
- 1 carton chicken broth
- 1 can coconut milk
PREPARATION
In a large soup pot, add the oil. Once hot, add the onions, curry powder, ginger, cinnamon, salt and pepper and cook until the onions are transparent.
Add in the butternut squash and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer until squash is tender (about 15-20 mins). Remove from heat and let cool for a few mins.
Pour into a blender, add in the can of coconut milk and blend until smooth.
Overall Review
This blender stands up to the claims that it is of professional grade and is packed with power. I was impressed the overall quality of this blender. The power behind it made all of my blending easy and I was pleased to see how easy to clean it is!
I am looking forward to trying the recipes that are included in the box – so many dips, mayonnaises and nut butters! The Harley Pasternak Power Blender can be found at retailers like Canadian Tire and Home Hardware for $249.99…definitely worth the investment!!
the AVOCADO STRAWBERRY SMOOTHIE looks so good, yum!
oh now this baby has some serious power behind it. I have gone through a few and didn’t replace my last after the fire because they never last more than a year. I am sure going to go have a look. Your review is great and gives me the facts I need before making a purchasing decision. Thanks
mmmm avocado strawberry smoothie! I have never tried that combo but i will now. my daughter loves strawberries and avocado (cause i hide it in her food) so i will try giving this to her :)
this seems to be a good powerful machine. It’s always good to know the strength of the motor, allows you to realise whether it’s a good blender or not.
I would love to own a high power blender that actually does what it is supposed to do, I just wished they weren’t so dang expensive, with only the hubby working it’s a little hard to get the nice stuff
That is a sleek looking blender! Where did you get your mugs?
This sounds like a strong blender,thanks for the review and recipe
My long search is finally over! I’ve been looking for a new blender to replace my old one and Harley Pasternak’s New Power Blender is the one! After seeing the mouthwatering recipes here, I can’t wait to own this excellent kitchen gadget at home too, and use it while I prepare my thirst-quenching smoothies and specialty creamy Pesto sauce!
Something everyone should BE AWARE of… I have had this blender for about a year and use it moderately (1-2x a week). I will say, when this worked, it worked GREAT!
Suddenly the blender is spewing a black tar like substance under the jug itself. It is also making such a loud horrible noise that we are afraid to use it.
The worst part is, try and find ANYTHING on- line about service, warranty or even where to buy a replacement jug. It would appear that the only place to find out anything about this is from the many retailers. The problem……NONE of them do any service.
Good luck in your decision making
This blender has been working well for me too since I bought it in 2014. However, similar to John, I the bottom of the blender started leaking our a black, tar-like substance as well a few months ago which made it a pain to clean. Then it started leaking a rust-coloured substance and now the seal on the blender is gone and it’s leaking the contents. I used this blender 3-4x/week mostly for smoothies and was happy with its performance until it started leaking out the black, tarry substance. I am considering buying a high-end immersion blender instead to replace it.