A Smoothie Machine Lets You Make Healthy Drinks Right From Home

A smoothie machine lets you create the same types of delicious healthy smoothies you will find at smoothie shops and restaurants, but at a fraction of the cost.

While all blenders are smoothie makers because they should be able to make a basic smoothie, there is a class of blenders that take smoothie making to a whole new level. These specialized blenders are called smoothie makers or smoothie machines and they have several features that allow them to churn out tasty smoothies quicker and more efficiently than your standard countertop blender.

One of the major differences between smoothie makers and blenders is that smoothie machines usually have a pour spout on the front of the machine, similar to what you would see in a commercial smoothie shop. The spout lets you serve your smoothies up without having to take the jug off of the base. So no spills and no heavy lifting, just stick a glass under the spout and you're good to go.

Another difference you'll find with a smoothie machine is that they are usually a higher wattage and offer a more powerful engine than your standard kitchen blenders. They are designed this way so that they can smoothly blend all of the tough ingredients like frozen fruit and ice that make a delicious smoothie. Many standard kitchen blenders can have a hard time with these types of ingredients and often leave little ice balls in the smoothie mix.

Many smoothie makers also have specially designed carafe jars that create more of a vortex than standard blenders so that ingredients are blended more smoothly and efficiently. The true measure of a good smoothie machine is its ability to churn out a nice creamy smoothie free of ice chunks and unblended pieces of fruit.

Another accessory that many smoothie machines come with is a stir stick that you can use to help blend the ingredients evenly. Basically the stir stick is a plastic cylinder that you jam down on the ingredients that may be staying at the top when the blender is running, so that everything gets blended evenly. Often when you load up your blender with a lot of stuff, it will create a vortex when it starts and some of the ingredients at the top won't make it to the bottom. You often see this with very powerful blenders. So the stir stick just helps it along. It sounds dramatic, but it works really well, and you see many celebrity chefs on TV using such a device in their blenders to get everything blending smoothly.

Smoothie makers also may have preprogrammed settings and digital displays where you can just push a couple of buttons and walk away. The machine will then cycle through the appropriate settings for the type of smoothie you are blending and cut off when it's done. By using the measuring scale on the glass jar and the appropriate amounts of ingredients you can rest assured that the smoothie machine will do its job perfectly and you'll have a delicious smoothie waiting for you when you come back.

If you need some help getting started with your smoothie maker, you can find many free healthy smoothie recipes on this site and all over the internet for you to try out. We'll have many more as this site grows. You can even add your own smoothie recipe here, and have other smoothie lovers rate it and tell you how good it tastes.

Smoothie machines come in a variety of different sizes and engine power settings. There are also many features and price ranges to choose from. Here is a list of some of the most popular models and brands.

Back to Basics Smoothie Maker

In addition to the Back to Basics Express Personal Blender, Back to Basics offers five models of smoothie machines, ranging from the basic Smoothie Elite model to the Frosty Blend Smoothie Maker. Prices range from about $40-50. Most all of the models offer powerful engines and pour spouts to dispense your smoothie just like at restaurants. One of the most popular models is the Back to Basics AutoServe which features an automatic dispensing spout.

Back to Basics Smoothie Maker Review - A Machine With An Auto-Pour Spout
The Back to Basics Smoothie Maker features an auto-dispensing pour spout just like you see at smoothie shops, however, consumer reports say there are problems with this.

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