We are totally in to green smoothies here at Kiwi Families HQ. We’re not quite at the daily goodness level yet, but certainly a couple times a week. We’ve also started sending smoothies to kindy with our Miss 3, using the Kai Carrier pouches (you can read our review on the Kai Carrier pouches here).
So when it came time to try out the George Foreman Mix and Go – Blend and Freeze, we were very excited.
What I’m liking
With smoothie blenders you’re more or less paying for the power of the machine. The George Foreman Mix and Go retails at a really smart price point, so the trade-off should be power. The motor in the George Foreman is only 300 watts after all. To be totally honest, I couldn’t tell much difference between this machine and ‘bullet’ style blenders.
We’ve run our go-to green smoothie, using kale, through it. There were no more lumps than we get from using our 750 watt Kenwood food processor. We also tried out an orange and pineapple recipe (see below) to make up some iceblocks, and it just smashed through the pineapple core, no problem.
I love the chill sticks that come with the 2 BPA free bottles too. The bottles have the perfect fill line measured on them for the sticks. And it means we can make up smoothies for day-trips, pop in the chill stick from the freezer, and head off knowing the milk is going to stay good, even in a hot car.
The iceblock moulds are really just a great bonus feature. It’s only a few bucks more for the ‘Blend and Freeze’ version. We love iceblocks in the summer time. And if we can make them at home, and keep the sugar quantity right down, then all the better for family wellness!
Anything to improve?
The only thing that I could suggest is that the bottle size is a little small. This is probably just a personal thing though. It’s much smaller than our food processor’s blender jug, so I’ve had to adjust the recipe for our go-to smoothie a bit. It might well be that this is the standard size for the new pressure activated blenders.
Conclusion
I really love the pressure activated ‘bullet’ style blenders. They really do a great job at destroying fruit and veg, and leaving a very smooth, smoothie. This is an entry level blender though. Real smoothie enthusiasts will probably want to look at the 800 watt Mix and Go Pro. We haven’t found the 300 watt motor to struggle though, and the price point is super-sharp. The George Foreman Mix and Go – Blend and Freeze retails at around $100, but shop online as we’ve seen prices down to $49 on special.
