Price Points: Soup makers

Soup makers

Winter is the time that we turn to soup to warm us up from the inside out. Hearty bowlfuls full of chunky potatoes and beans or smooth versions containing puréed vegetables and pungent cheese.

Soup makers are relative newcomers to the kitchen appliance world, but boy, are they useful! You can simply fill the jug with your ingredients, turn it on and time the cycle to when you want your meal.

Let’s say you’re planning on going for a lovely winter walk – you can switch on your soup maker as you step out the door… and have a hot, satisfying, tasty meal ready & waiting on your return!

If there are only a couple of you, the basic Morphy Richards compact example would be a good option. It make 1 litre of soup in 19 minutes flat and you can choose either a chunky or smooth setting.

We were sent the Simplissimo to review some time ago, and as its name suggests, it’s really simple to use. You can cook your soup and then keep it on a ‘keep warm’ setting until your ready to eat. This is a great choice if you’re going to be out all day, it has an 8-hour timer function. And to top it off, it’s self-cleaning!

The Vitamix is waaaaay more expensive than the other two models, so what do you get extra? There are 5 settings compared to Simplissimo’s three. It has wireless connectivity technology which Vitamix says, “will not power on until a container is properly seated on the motor base, and certain programs are automatically disabled if the wrong container is used”. Also, I’ve read many customer reviews that claim that the interior of the plastic jug is easily scratched, making it look opaque and worn (The Simplissimo’s jug is made of tough glass). Are these features worth over £450.00? The choice is yours.

Finally, as well as hot food, you can use a soup maker to make cold smoothies – so it will get used in the winter AND summer.

  1. Morphy Richards soup maker 501021: from £29.99 “buy it now”, eBay
  2. Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender: £195.95, Wayfair
  3. Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i: £675.00, Lakeland

shop soup makers

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Prices & links correct at time of publication.

Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
£675.00
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
£195.95
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
from £29.99 "buy it now"
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
£675.00
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
£195.95
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
from £29.99 "buy it now"
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
£675.00
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
£195.95
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
from £29.99 "buy it now"
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
£675.00
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
£195.95
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
from £29.99 "buy it now"
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
Vitamix Ascent blender A3500i
£675.00
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
Scott Simplissimo Chef all in one cook blender
£195.95
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
Morphy Richards soup maker 501021
from £29.99 "buy it now"

Smooth Operator!

"Smooth Operator!" blog post banner

Mixed fruit smoothie with lemon balm garnish | H is for Home
Since we’ve lost the facility to bake cakes we’ve been replacing our usual dessert course with a nightly fruit smoothie. We’ve been doing a lot of experimenting and have discovered a few great combinations.

ingredients and equipment to make a mixed fruit smoothie

We put all the ingredients into a stainless steel jug and use a Philips ‘Billy’ blender to whiz the whole thing up in a jiffy! It’s much less of a faff to clean then if it’s done in a jug blender. And so much cheaper than if you buy it ready-made!

Just as delicious as a slab of cake, just a filling – but much friendlier on the waistline! Each recipe below makes two large glassfuls.

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