Do you love smoothies as much as I do?  Our family usually has at least one a day.  They are a great way to sneak in extra fruits, veggies and protein.  My kids call them milkshakes, and are delighted I let them drink a "milkshake" for breakfast!  I can't think of a quicker, easier, or tastier way to get your daily dose of fruits and veggies. 

The downfall is that I believe we have gone through at least one blender a year since we have started our smoothie habit.  We keep buying nicer and nicer machines, but even so our motors kept giving out on us.  We were to the point where we were spending at least $150 a year on blenders!  This past month we finally gave in and bought the nice professional quality Vita Mix 5200.  I LOVE this machine!  Everything turns out incredibly smooth, (no more hidden large ice chunks) the cookbook that comes with it is awesome and best of all it has a 7 year warranty! 

Of course this machine is great for other things besides smoothies as well.  It is a food processor and blender all in one.  It basically does everything both a professional grade blender and food processor would do.  Anything from baby food, to chopping vegetables.  It also makes homemade soup (it even heats it up for you) and homemade ice-cream in a snap.  I guess it's three machines in one for us as we have an ice-cream maker as well that we haven't used since we purchased our Vita Mix.  You also have the option of purchasing a dry food container to make homemade flour and knead dough. 

One of my favorite aspects of the machine is the clean up.  Do you have a traditional blender or smoothie maker that has to be disassembled into 3-10 parts for cleaning?  Yup, all my past machines were like that too.  This machine does not have to be taken apart.  When you are done using it simply fill it with hot water and a drop of dish soap.  Turn it on, run it for a minute, turn it off, dump and rinse and you are done!  So quick and easy!   

I will warn you that I felt a bit of sticker shock when I saw the price.  However, I am incredibly thankful now that we made the purchase.  Smoothies at our house have never been quicker or easier to make and they taste like the professional ones you pay $5.00 for at the mall or coffee shop.  Truthfully we will be saving money as this one is guaranteed to last at least 7 years; so at the rate we were purchasing blenders this one will pay for itself in less than 3 years.  Not to mention with this machine I don't have to have a separate food processor and ice-cream maker cluttering my kitchen. 

I would definitely recommend the Vita Mix 5200 to anyone who is interested in a quality blender/food processor.  I think we will probably own one for the rest of our lives now that we are so attached to ours. 

To learn more about the machine click here.  If you do decide to purchase you may enter coupon code
06-001694 for FREE Shipping - a $25.00 value. 

Also here is a FREE Healthy Smoothie Recipe Book for you to enjoy!