Making Frozen Blender Drinks

As a general rule, drinks containing ingredients that don't readily mix, such as cream, sour mix, eggs, ice cream, grenadine or heavy liqueurs, need to be shaken firmly for a long time or, better yet, blended. Only blending supplies the superior smoothness that thick or frozen drinks require. The blender can be a miracle worker for the good bartender and can create miraculous results and yet is easy to learn to use properly. If you think of your blender as your co host at the party or your sidekick behind the bar it will never let you mess up those fancy drinks.

I want to share with you a few tricks and tips to make sure that you make the best use of the blender in making blended drinks. Of course, choosing the blender is very important and there are many top of the line, really expensive blenders out there. But you can do just fine with something really inexpensive. Check out one of my favorites, here.

Tips for blending creamy drinks:

*Always fill the blending cup 1/4 full of ice, no more, no less.
*Measure out the liqueurs before adding and add liqueurs before the cream
*After adding the cream, blend at medium speed (too fast makes the liquid too thin) and for no more than 5-10 seconds.
*Check for smoothness. If it's still lumpy or too thick, blend another 5 secs

Tips for blending sour drinks:

*Always fill the blender cup 1/4 full of ice, no more than that
*Measure the liqueurs first and add; then measure out the other alcohols and add
*Add sour mix after adding the liqueurs and liquors
*Add other ingredients at the very last
*Never blend any faster than at medium speed.
*Watch the process for smoothness; when smooth, it is ready

Tips for blending tropical drinks:

*Always fill the blending up 1/4 full of ice and no more
*Add the fresh fruit first
*Measure and add liqueurs after the fruit
*Measure and add other liquors next
*Add sour mix after the liquors
*Add other ingredients at the last
*Blend at medium speed only for up to 15 seconds or as long as it takes to create smoothness

Tips of care of your blender:

*Before you use a brand new blender, fill it with warm water and with the lid on, turn it on for about 25 seconds. This will clean it up perfectly.
*Always be sure the machine is "off" before plugging it in. Always leave it unplugged when not in use. And be sure the switch is "off", too, before shutting down for the night.
*Always check the blender for spoons or swizzle sticks or other bar accessories before turning it on. Many a blender has been busted by someone dipping spoons into the mix an leaving them.
*Never dip spoons, sticks or strainers into the blender while blending.
*Before using, check to be sure the blade assembly is attached securely at the bottom. After cleaning, these are sometimes replaced too loosely and this can cause your blender to leak.. sometimes badly!
*Never pour boiling hot water into the blender cup, even during use. This will crack the cup.
*Be careful not to fill the blender beyond capacity. This is why you should only fill it about 1/4 full with ice. Filling the cup too much reduces the effiency of the blender and makes it work too hard. This shortens it's life.
*Make sure the lid is on tight before turning it on. This seems like a "duh", but it's why you see bartenders holding the caps down with their hands! After use, the lids begin to lose their tightness and the force of the blades can cause the ingredients to jump upwards.. and out!
*And, of course, do not remove the lid every while blending. Some folk have been known to open the lid to get a gander of the mix but they end up with the mix on the floor instead of in the blender.
*And, never, not ever, put your hand in the blender while in use. I know this seems like another "duh" but people put their hands in garbage disposals. So this needs to be monitored.
*Here's a big one that seems like a no brainer: never remove the blender cup before the blades stop spinning. People do this all the time, in a hurry to pour the drink! But this destroys the blades quickly and you end up with a useless machine.
*To clean the machine after a long night of use, do as I said in tip #1. Fill the mixing container with warm water (not hot or boiling!) and put the lid down tight. Run the blades for about 25 seconds to get all the leftover ingredients out of the equipment. You may also wash the blender cup separately by filling it with warm water and washing it out with sponges or the like. NEVER put it in the dishwasher! The water is too hot and can crack or melt the plastic conatiner. Never put the base in the dishwasher, either, unless you want to throw the blender out afterwards.
*Wash the container as often as possible, preferably after every use. This gets the left over fruit, sugars, liquors and other residue out so that it doesn't taint the next mix. Even if you are not using it again, you should wash it immediately. Once the remains of fruits and sugars get dried on, they are hard to get off and you don't want to end up scratching up the cup with scouring pads.

INTERESTING BLENDERS TO CONSIDER:



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