How To Create A Character In Blender

Blenders are incredibly versatile. Follow our list, and you'll be using yours for more than soups and smoothies in no time…

Grind spices

The powerful blade of a blender can grind spices with ease. You might need to do a few spoonfuls to make it work, so store any leftovers in an airtight jar and use within a month to enjoy its freshness.

Make caster sugar and icing sugar

In a pinch, you can blitz granulated to caster sugar, and caster sugar to a rough icing sugar. We wouldn't advise it if you're baking for a special occasion, but for every-day cakes, it works a treat!

Sift icing sugar

Whilst we're on the subject, sifting icing sugar is a massive pain – it wafts around the kitchen and settles on floors and surfaces, making them annoyingly sticky. It's far easier to put it into the blender and give it a few quick pulses.

Make sorbet

Blenders are powerful enough to crush ice to a slush, so take advantage of this and throw frozen fruit straight in to the machine to make a delicious sorbet.

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Make frozen cocktails

Add alcohol to the frozen fruit and you can turn it into a very quick cocktail slushie. Try our luscious Strawberry Daiquiri.

Make posh sauces

Hollandaise and béarnaise sauces don't have to be the reserve of restaurants. Making them in a blender is easy. Just follow the quantities in your recipe, putting the yolks and vinegar in the blender jug and whizzing together. With the motor running, slowly trickle in melted butter until thickened and smooth (this works in a food processor too!), and season to taste.

Make batter

Don't tire yourself with whisking up a breakfast after you've only just got out of bed. Put all your pancake or waffle ingredients in a blender, then press the button and watch the batter come together in seconds.

Make nut butters

Instead of spending a fortune on nut butters, whiz up your own at home. Toast peanuts, almonds, hazelnuts (or whatever nuts take your fancy) in a large frying pan until fragrant, then put into a blender – seasoning with a little salt and sugar, if you like – and process until smooth.

Food, Almond butter, Nut butter, Dish, Cuisine, Chocolate milk, Ingredient, Peanut butter, Almond, Non-alcoholic beverage,

Make amazing vegan desserts

Take nut butters a step further and use the blender to whip cashews to creamy perfection in this vegan pudding.

Rub butter and flour together

Whether you're making pastry, shortbread or crumble, rubbing butter and flour together is tedious work, so take the boredom out of it by blitzing it in the blender. You can then tip the mixture into a mixing bowl and continue with your recipe.

Whip cream in an instant

Pour cream into the blender with a little icing sugar and vanilla extract, then push the button until the cream is thickened and just holds its shape. If you over-whip it, just add a splash of milk and pulse briefly.

Grind coffee

Ideally, you should grind coffee with a burr grinder to achieve consistent, flavourful coffee, especially if you have an espresso machine. But if you're not a purist and you only ever drink coffee from a cafetiere, a blender will do a decent job of making coffee grounds that are suitably sized for it.

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