Reddit reviews Cuisinart CSB-77 Smart Stick Hand Blender with Whisk and Chopper Attachments

I just received this one for my birthday and it's been amazing so far.

We make home made mayo all the time with an immersion blender. You have to be careful to use a container that is only slightly larger than the head of the blender. I've got this one and the cup is the perfect size. This way it can create the vortex you need to slowly pull the oil in to the egg and mix it.

Also, we found that safflower oil is a great base. You can add in more flavorful oils that would potentially be overpowering or cause the mayo to be too thick, like extra virgin olive oil, bacon fat, hot sesame, or coconut oil. Usually we do about 1/4th cup of the flavorful oil we want and 3/4ths cup of the safflower oil. You can adjust based on preferences but coconut oil and bacon fat will make extremely thick/chunky mayonnaise. Bragg's raw cider vinegar is also absolutely amazing in mayo, and so is malt vinegar. Oh, also, if you like it spicy grate a shitload of fresh horse radish in there. It's delicious.

I think my favorite so far was maple bacon fat mayo, followed by hot sesame oil mayo.

You need to get in the habit and then once you are eating them regularly, you will likely find you enjoy them and crave them. When I get into a junk food rut, all I crave is more junk food. If I can get my self back to fruit and veg, I actually start craving that.

For fruits, try smoothies. Start out adding something to sweeten them, like a big spoonful of honey, and as you drink more of them, you'll likely need less and less of the honey (I think just the fruit is sweet enough now). I always have a small banana and some strawberries (fresh when in season, but frozen other times). To that I add depending on what's in season or available: blueberries, raspberries (both good for fiber), kiwi, melons (watermelon adds a lot of sweetness), pear, peach, grapes. For liquid I use lowfat, unsweetened almond milk (but I used skim milk before becoming lactose intolerant). You don't need much. Blend it well. Add some ice for a nice crunch when it's hot out. Not too much of anything, even with fruit the calories can add up.

Vegetables. You need to start off with easy things so you'll actually try them. I like to saute (in a T or two of olive oil) sliced zucchini and yellow squash with onion. Finish with a little salt. Love that stuff.

I love soups because I cook once and then can just heat up a bowl for days or even freeze portions for quick meals later. I got an immersion blender and now blended soups are so much easier to make. Some recipes I like:

red pepper soup. I love, love the flavor of this and it's low cal.

Orange soup: butternut squash, carrots, parsnips, yams, onion, yellow squash, ginger, broth. You can roast the veggies if you like or use them raw, and you don't need all of them, just some combo of these. Cook veggies and peeled ginger (lots of ginger) in water+bullion (or stock, I use vegetable stock, chicken would be fine) until everything is tender. Add a jar or two of roasted red peppers. Blend with immersion blender. You can add a little sour cream or creme fraiche when serving for some fat.

Broccoli soup: Saute some sliced onion in olive oil. Add lots of broccoli (mostly the tops, not too much stem), a peeled and sliced potato or two, some broth (water+bullion is fine), and simmer until tender. Season with black pepper and garlic powder (if you like garlic). Enjoy. You can add some creme fraiche or sour cream if you like.

A tasty non-soup recipe.

Fairly Easy Tomato Sauce

• Two 28 ounce cans of whole peeled tomatoes
  
• Olive oil
  
• Salt
  
• One white or yellow onion
  
• 12-15 cloves of garlic
  
• dried thyme and oregano (aka italian seasoning/spices)
  
• two full sprigs of basil
  
• a 5-quart saucepan/dutch oven
  
• wooden spoon
  
• a bunch of free "sitting around" time
  
  Ok, so this is a fairly easy recipe that really is only "difficult" because of the amount of time that it takes. But, in reality, its not too difficult to maintain the sauce for several hours while it reduces so you can be doing something else like watching tv or doing homework or whatever while you're making it.
  
  Prep (some of this can be done during cook time):
  
  

1. Chop onion in half and remove peel
   
   
2. peel 12-15 cloves of garlic (crushing is optional)
   
   
3. Empty tomatoes into bowl, crush with hands, removing any harder stems or pieces
   
   4.Wash Basil
   
   Cooking:
   
4. Put sauce pan over medium-high heat with enough olive oil to coat the bottom
   
   
5. Throw in garlic and place onion halves face down on pan and reduce heat to medium-low
   
   
6. Cook until garlic is lightly browned
   
   
7. Pour in tomatoes and about a tablespoon of salt and bring up heat to high
   
   
8. Once the sauce is boiling reduce heat to medium-low/low and bring to a simmer. Leave uncovered.
   
   
9. Grab a beer and go watch some TV or whatever, every 5-10 minutes go and give the sauce a good stir
   
   
10. As the sauce reduces and the bits inside get softer crush them up with the spoon
    
    
11. Around the 2nd or 3rd hour add some of the Italian Seasoning, to taste
    
    
12. Continue stirring every 5-10 minutes tasting occasionally to see if salt or seasoning needs to be added (CAUTION: over salting or spicing at this point would be VERY bad at this point because as the sauce reduces those flavors will intensify and may overpower the rest of your sauce)
    
    
13. About an hour before you plan on being done add in the two whole stalks of basil, continuing to stir often
    
    
14. When the sauce has reduce by about half (or whenever you feel like stopping / have to stop) remove onion halves and basil stalks
    
    
15. Serve with pasta or whatever else you would but tomato sauce on
    
    tip - if you have a stick blender like this you can blend the sauce after its done for a smoother consistency
    
    

I believe it is this one. The price listed is about what I paid for it too. If you don't feel like ordering it online, I bought mine at Bed Bath & Beyond. I'm sure they will sell it at places like that, and also Target, Wal-Mart, etc.

I have this one that I originally got and used exactly the way you described, smoothies right in the glass (you do need a wide glass though). It's great for an occasional or small one.

But if you're planning on making a lot of smoothies, either at once (e.g. multiple people), or just to have some in the fridge, a full size blender is so much easier. The Kitchenaid 5-speed is the one that Cook's Illustrated recommends, and it is absolutely awesome. Makes perfectly smooth drinks using fresh or frozen ingredients, destroys ice, doesn't walk all over the counter.

If you like to make soup though, a stick/immersion blender is perfect since it can go right in the pot.