Smoothie maker by day, cocktail maker by night! (Kenwood New York Smoothie Maker)

Member Name: chriswotton

Product:	Kenwood New York Smoothie Maker
Date:	30/12/04 (1936 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It has a tap!, Cheaper to make your own, Really easy to use

Disadvantages: Doesn't dishwash, but still easy to wash up

I'll be the first to admit that when it comes to kitchen gadgets and gizmos like this one, I usually go in with my eyes closed and - within about a week of having bought it - decide that it's useless and don't use it again. But this one seems to be different (bear in mind, though, that I've only actually had it for five days now).

Anyone who's read my review of Innocent's fruit smoothies - and hopefully soon my review of PJ's smoothies, too - will know that I'm a total addict. And let's face it, it's fab to be addicted to something that makes a living out of doing your body such good. So imagine my delight, then, to find such an inexpensive machine that makes smoothies in a whiz.

In essence, the Kenwood New York Smoothie maker is little more than a blender, but it's designed more for fruit smoothie making in that - as well as a button to mix and blend the ingredients - there's another button used to smooth through everything you've blitzed to come up with a smoother drink than you'd ever thought you'd achieve.

What really attracted me to this machine, when I saw adverts for in on the telly, was - as sad as it may sound - the fact that it has a tap to dispense the smoothie from cleanly. So that means there's no more smears of smoothie dribbling over the edge of the glass after being made in a wide-lipped food processor. Instead you just flip the tap and watch it pour gorgeous smoothies into glasses or bottles, as you choose. One very important thing should, however, be noted - when you take the goblet from the dish drainer and begin to pour orange juice inside, don't assume (like I happened to just a couple of days ago) that the tap is actually closed. It can be quite alarming to see your juice flowing straight through and coming out the other side...

The big downside of this machine is that none of the parts are dishwasher-proof, though it has to be said that the cleaning of the machine is not exactly that taxing. It does make things a lot easier if you whiz some warm water and washing up liquid around in the blender before taking it apart to wash, and also make sure you give the inside of the tap a good rinse through, as little bits of fruit tend to like to cluster up in there in the most damned-disgusting way.

Adapted from an Innocent recipe, this is a fantastic detoxifying smoothie recipe that tastes fab too. To your smoothie machine add a splash of orange juice and a splash of apple juice (be generous but not overly - you'll see the marker on the goblet, where the liquids should go up to for 2 or 4 servings), followed by one banana roughly broken into a few pieces. Then add a good heaped tablespoon of decent honey - I like to use a nice Mexican variety I picked up a while back - and not-too-large-a-lump of peeled, chopped, fresh ginger. Give it a whiz until it all seems to have blended, then smooth it through for half a minute or so before dispensing into a couple of glasses through your tap.

I would certainly recommend this smoothie maker to anyone who's after eating (or drinking!) more fruit and veg, at a slightly less expensive rate than gulping down Innocent drinks. As an example of how cheap it really does cost to make your own, a lump of ginger which will last me for about 50 of the above smoothies cost me - wait for it - 18p!! Cheap as chips...

Oh, and did I mention that it becomes a cocktail maker by night? (The smoothie maker that is, not the ginger!)

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