A cool, calming and refreshing shade of green is the color of the year for good reason! In our highly urbanized world, the ruling color of 2017 is an invitation for us to reconnect with good old Mother Nature, and it’s an invitation that extends to adjusting our diets to become more nourishing and wholesome — the way they were always meant to be.
With this in mind, Vitamix’s premium blender is proving to be the perfect companion for those wishing to make the permanent diet and lifestyle jump from junk to health hunk (and babe, too!)
(The Vitamix premium blender)
Since Vitamix’s blender’s well-received introduction in the Philippines 10 years ago, its loyal and regular users have had nothing but praises for it, citing its versatility, durability, ease of use, brand customer service and continuous innovations, as well as its impeccable ability to retain food’s texture and flavor (without beating ingredients to a mushy, unappetizing pulp).
Three Vitamix brand ambassadors add their testimonies of the dependable kitchen buddy that’s proven indispensable in both home and commercial settings, and top those off with delicious recipes your friends and family will certainly love!
Hindy Weber and Melanie Teng-Go
Hindy Weber and Melanie Teng-Go are moms with a shared vision of providing farm-to-family food. The health-conscious duo then founded Holy Carabao in 2007, an agricultural venture inspired by organic, biodynamic and permaculture principles for healthy and living soil with a no to GMOs, synthetic pesticides, fungicides and chemical fertilizers philosophy.
As a graduate of the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems from Tufts University, Melanie has been using the premium blender for over a decade, too! “I’ve had a Vitamix for 17 years. It’s simple yet versatile. It’s a workhorse and has never let me down. We didn’t have to think twice about representing Vitamix, because it supports the holistic lifestyle we espouse. It’s a brand totally aligned with Holy Carabao,” she shares.
Recipe #1: Yogurt Caesar Dressing
- 150 ml Holy Carabao Holistic Farm carabao yogurt
- 5 ml mustard
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 50 ml garlic infused extra virgin olive oil
- Any herb or your choice
- Salt and pepper
Blending:
- Place all ingredients in the Vitamix Container and secure the lid.
- Select Variable 1, turn the machine on and quickly increase to Variable 10, then to High.
Recipe #2: Take Root Smoothie Bowl
Base:
- 200 g boiled sweet potatoes
- ½ cup Holy Carabao Holistic Farm carabao milk
- 1 tsp coco syrup
- 180 g ice
Toppings:
- Candied purple yam (ube) fried in butter, coconut sugar and sea salt
- Banana slices
- Toasted and slightly crushed black sesame seeds
- Toasted coconut chips
Blending:
- Place all ingredients in the order listed in the Vitamix container, then secure the lid.
- Select Variable 1, turn the machine on and quickly increase to Variable 10, then High.
Chef Robby Goco
Award-winning Chef Robby Goco — the culinary mastermind behind restaurants like Tequila Joe’s, Hotel Luna, Charlie’s Hand-crafted Burgers, Yumi Japanese Restaurants, Green Pastures and Cyma Greek Restaurants, to name a few — shares the same sentiment.
With an advocacy of keeping the nutritional value of each organic food ingredient intact, Robby is excited to discover more of what this premium blender can offer. He says, “with Vitamix technology, there’s going to be better cooking, not only for the industry, but also for households. It elevated the level of pureed food, too! It’s more efficient and cooking is now more accessible to everyone. It perfectly conforms to my advocacy that food must be made from scratch, yet each ingredient should not lose its integrity.”
Recipe #3: Caldo Verde
Yield: 4 Servings (1L)
Ingredients:
- 300 g potato, peeled and diced
- 75 g spanish chorizo (chistoras)
- 1 medium size white onion
- 1 tbsp garlic, minced
- 3 cups chicken broth/white chicken stock
- 75 g kale
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Procedure:
- Place potato in a sauce pan filled with cold water then bring to a boil until cooked all the way through. Set aside
- Heat olive oil in a pan, sauté chorizo until brown then set aside. Reserve oil.
- Sauté onions, until slightly caramelized, add garlic and sauté until aromatic.
- Set aside the mixture.
Blending:
- Place all sautéed ingredients kale, chicken stock, salt and pepper) in the wet container and secure lid.
- Select Variable 1, turn the machine on and quickly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High.
- Blend for 3-4 minutes or until heavy steam escapes from the vented lid.
- Place on a serving bowl, then garnish with some shredded kale and chorizo.
Recipe #4: Avocado Hummus
Yield: 5 cups (1.2 L; recipe may be halved)
Ingredients:
- 250 g dried chickpeas (garbanzos)
- ¼ cup tahini paste
- 1 ½ tbsp garlic, minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp white pepper
- 1 cup sunflower oil, or any neutral oil
- 2 pcs whole avocado, remove skin and seed
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- A pinch of cumin powder
For plating:
- 1 tsp paprika
- 2 tbsp edamame
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Wonton wrapper or vegetable sticks for serving
Procedure:
- Soak garbanzos at least 12 hrs or overnight. Discard the water soak garbanzos in clean water.
- Boil for an hour or until garbanzos are soft.
- Strain.
- Reserve ¼ cup liquid.
- Peel the skin of the garbanzos.
Blending:
- Placed cooked garbanzos, tahini paste, garlic, cumin, salt, white pepper, paprika and sunflower oil into the Vitamix container and secure lid.
- Select Variable 1, turn the machine on and quickly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High. Blend until smooth.
- Add avocado and lemon juice through the lid plug. Blend until avocado is fully incorporated. (Blend avocado for about 30 seconds to avoid overmixing).
Plating:
Garnish with edamame, paprika and extra virgin olive oil. Serve with fried wonton wrapper or vegetable sticks.
Sara Black
And then there’s Sara Black, a talented and trusted PeopleAsia photographer and overall wellness advocate. Not everyone knows that this yogi at heart had a cancer scare back in 2013, prompting her to undergo a lifestyle shift with a promise to put health first.
Now, Sara believes in supplementing her clean living lifestyle by eating healthy and living sustainably. “I live a very active lifestyle being a photographer and athlete, and the Vitamix (blender) enables me to eat nutrient dense food minus the prep time… It takes me five minutes to whip up a meal complete in macronutrients (protein, fat and carbs). I like to feed myself the best quality of food, and the Vitamix technology doesn’t kill the enzymes in my food, so it’s like I’m drinking high octane fuel,” she shares.
Truly, Vitamix has revolutionized blender technology, setting the goal high for its competitors as it keeps a leading position in its product category.
Recipe #5: Green Smoothie
Yield: 3-4 servings (1 L)
Ingredients:
- 200 mL coconut milk
- ½ pc ripe avocado
- 1 pc ripe lakatan bananas
- 1 pc ripe mango
- 30 g spinach
- 1 tbsp agave nectar
- 1 ½ cups ice
- ½ Tbsp chia seeds (soaked in water)
Blending:
- Place all ingredients, except chia seeds in vitamix wet container and secure lid.
- Select variable 1, turn machine on and quicky increase to Variable 10, then to High.
Serving:
Drain chia seeds and incorporate in the smoothie.
Recipe #6: Choco-nut Butter Ice Cream
Yield: 6 servings (1L)
Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cup coconut meat
- 25 g cacao powder
- 70 g nut butter
- 2 or 3 Tbsp agave nectar or honey pinch of salt
- 3 cups coconut cream (frozen in ice cube trays)
- Cacao nibs for topping/texture
Blending:
- Place all ingredients into the Vitamix container in the order listed and secure lid.
- Select Variable 1, turn machine on and quickly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High.
- With the help of the tamper, push ingredients down towards the blades.
- In about 30 to 60 seconds, the sound of the motor with change and four mounds should form.
- Stop machine and place cacao nibs, run for 5 seconds. Do not overmix.
- Scoop and serve.
The Vitamix blender is available at Rustan’s Shangri-La, Rustan’s Makati, Rustan’s Cebu, Gourdo’s Gateway, Gourdo’s Trinoma, Gourdo’s Alabang Town Center, Gourdo’s Megamall, Living Well Podium, Living Well SM Aura, the Parenting Emporium, Healthy Eats, Earth Origins, the SuperFood Grocer, Chimes Specialty Store Davao, Automatic Center Greenbelt, Automatic Center Eastwood, Abenson Fort, Healthy Eats Makati, Landers Superstore Otis and Landers Superstore Balintawak.
For inquiries and home demonstration appointments, please call (02) 373 3038, or e-mail to info@vitanutrition.ph or vitamixphilippines@gmail.com.
