Soups. Shakes. Sauces. Smoothies. Most chefs rely on their blenders to make a few, standard menu items. But a high-performance blender, like the EXPEDITOR Culinary Blender series from Hamilton Beach Commercial, can lend its talents in a few unexpected ways. We found seven recipes for blenders that might surprise you, from pizza crust to lemonade. Why not give them a whirl?
1. Sweet Corn Purée
Some things just taste like summer: Fresh basil. Beefsteak tomatoes. And most of all, sweet corn. “Blending corn kernels not only gives you a sweet and smooth purée to use in soups, fritters and cornbread, but it also brings out the kernel’s starchier nature. And this can be a good thing, especially when it comes to making a sweet summery sauce for pasta,” Melissa Clark writes in The New York Times. Corn purée provides a creamy base that’s dairy-free. Try this recipe for creamy corn pasta with basil, finished with a squeeze of fresh lemon and a smattering of chili pepper.
2. Pancake Batter
Want to speed up breakfast service? Give batter a quick whirl in the blender and pour it onto the griddle directly from the jar. But wait — won’t this result in flat, tough pancakes? Only if you blend for too long. Overmixing pancake batter activates the gluten in the flour, preventing pancakes from rising, but a few seconds in the blender will mix the batter perfectly. Here’s more on the science of fluffy pancakes.
3. Cashew Cream
Gesundheit! Seriously, though — cashew cream is a delicious, decadent and versatile ingredient in vegan cooking. Making it is as simple as soaking raw cashews in water and then blending them. Food52 has some suggestions: “Add a little maple syrup or demerara sugar, and it becomes a sweet dessert cream. Add some miso or salt and a touch of lemon, and the cream (or crème, if you want to be fancy) turns savory. Add some cocoa powder and vanilla, and you can even create a vegan ganache.”
4. Cauliflower Pizza Crust
Making pizza crust that’s gluten- and grain-free is a challenge for any chef. One winning option is a cauliflower crust, which is thin and crunchy yet ultra-healthy. Blend raw cauliflower florets to a rice-like consistency (not a full purée), then sauté. Combine with seasonings, binding ingredients, like egg and cheese, and bake the crust before topping.
5. House-Made Nutella
Creamy. Chocolatey. Hazelnutty. The only way Nutella could be better is if you make it in-house. It’s easy with a high-performance blender — combine toasted hazelnuts, vegetable oil, cocoa/chocolate, vanilla and salt. Cream is optional. Here’s a recipe from Splendid Table.
6. Blender Lemonade
Lemonade made with whole lemons may not sound too ap-peel-ing (sorry, we had to), but just try it. No juicing required — just a blender. This recipe from Pinch of Yum pulses three lemons and a lime with sugar and water, strains the mixture and then adds sweetened condensed milk.
7. Apple Butter
Apple butter is the perfect distillation of fall flavors — fresh apples, brown sugar, cinnamon and ginger. Serve it with house-made biscuits, or on top of a pork chop. Here’s a recipe from Betty Crocker that uses both fresh ginger root and crystallized ginger. It takes time — up to 5 hours in a slow cooker — but is so worth it.
What’s your signature blender dish? Tell us about it —we’d love to feature your recipe in a future post.
