Building Your Plant Based Kitchen – A Vitamix

Yes, you can run a highly efficient plant based kitchen without a Vitamix but having one does make the prep of everything from smoothies to sauces to soups just that much easier. It was our commitment to morning smoothies that pushed the decision to purchase one and we have literally used it every morning that we are home for 2.5 years straight.

There certainly is a lot of thought that needs to go into paying more than $300 for any piece of kitchen equipment. It is no doubt a purchase for those fully committed to using the machine day in and day out. However, if eating at home more is one of your goals as you shift to plant based eating, then having the right tools will absolutely help support that change in behavior. There is no doubt it is an incredible addition to your kitchen.

Here is a great blog post by the Frugal Girl that weighs the investment of Vitamix. She also gives some great tips on finding one at a lower price point. I bought the most basic model Amazon offered at the time and honestly have never missed any of the options. You might want to have a look at the reconditioned models Vitamix themselves offers or watch your local Craigslist.

So how do I use my Vitamix? As I mentioned before, it is our breakfast machine and it cranks out seasonal smoothies in a flash with a container large enough to fill us all up in one go. Ours is always used at least one more time later in the day whether it be for fresh herbal salad dressing that blend in seconds, plant based cheese sauces, pestos, or soup. It also was one of the first tools my son was drawn to, likely due to the power and sound it produced!

Ready for a test drive?

While these recipes can absolutely be made with an immersion blender, nothing quite gets the sauces as smooth and creamy as a Vitamix. Before ditching dairy, as vegetarians, we were quite the cheese-centric family. So when we cleared our fridge of all milk based products there was no doubt a big hole. Ever the scientist, my then preteen son went on a quest to create the best cheezy plant based sauces. After conquering cashew based sauces, finding nut free options were his next challenge. Here are two of his latest go to recipes, each producing a smooth, flavorful, rich sauce that will compliment a variety of dishes from roasted veggies to gluten free grains.

Oh She Glows Cauli-power Alfredo

Blissful Basil’s Sunflower Seed Alfredo