This Cranberry Bacon Cream Cheese Appetizer has the perfect combination of sweet and savory flavors, with cream cheese, smoky bacon, caramelized onions, tart cranberries, balsamic vinegar and a bit of coffee to balance all the flavors. The perfect holiday appetizer!

This Cranberry Bacon Cream Cheese Appetizer is easy to make but has such an impressive presentation.

It’s the perfect appetizer for your holiday spread or even for a fancy dinner party!

Made by topping a large block of cream cheese with a delicious bacon and cranberry mixture that’s so addictive, it’s such a delicious combination.

This is one of my favorite easy appetizer recipes, it takes just 20 minutes to make, and can be served with just about anything, from crackers to veggies!

If you love cream cheese appetizers, try my cream cheese balls for something a bit different! This classic Cheese Ball recipe is a great savory appetizer for a crowd during the holiday season, while my Snickers Cheese Ball is a great option for dessert.

Ingredients Needed:

• Bacon: use your favorite kind of bacon for this recipe. I usually use thick cut!
• Onion and Garlic: use freshly minced garlic and fresh onion for a great savory flavor base for the topping.
• Cranberries: dried cranberries and cranberry juice add sweet and tart flavors as well as a great texture to the topping.
• Seasonings: use salt and freshly cracked black pepper to enhance the flavors, with some red pepper flakes on top for a spicy kick.
• Brown Sugar: helps caramelize and sweeten the topping.
• Balsamic Vinegar: adds a burst of tangy sweetness to the topping.
• Coffee: use hot or cold coffee, so save some from your morning brew.
• Cornstarch: a little bit of cornstarch will make the topping a bit thicker.
• Cream Cheese: full-fat cream cheese will give you the flavor and texture you want, but use whichever brand you prefer. You can also use light cream cheese.
• Garnish: top with fresh parsley and fresh cranberries as desired. Serve with Ritz crackers or your favorite kind of crackers on the side for dipping!

How to Make Easy Cranberry Cream Cheese Dip

This recipe is quick and easy to make. Full instructions are included in the recipe card below.

1. Cook bacon: In a medium saucepan, cook the bacon until nicely browned.
2. Remove bacon: Remove the bacon from the pan, putting it into a bowl lined with a paper towel to drain.

3. Sauté: Sauté the onion in the bacon fat and add the garlic.
4. Add remaining ingredients: Add the bacon back to the pan with dried cranberries, cranberry juice, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, coffee, and red pepper flakes. Cook together, stirring often, until thickened slightly. Then, set it aside to cool to room temperature.

5. Thicken: Whisk together some cranberry juice and cornstarch, then stir it into the sauce until thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Assemble appetizer: Place the cream cheese block on a serving platter, then spread the cooled cranberry bacon mixture over the top of the cream cheese and serve with crackers.

Bacon Cranberry Cream Cheese Appetizer FAQs

Tips and Notes

• Use high-quality cream cheese. As it’s the base of the dip, you’ll want to make sure you use good-quality cream cheese for the best flavor.
• Blend it into a dip. You can serve this appetizer as I have, as a block with a topping, or you can blend it together to make a flavorful cream cheese dip that is great for serving with crackers, veggie sticks, or even tortilla chips! Simply stir the cream cheese in a large bowl to break it down, adding some milk if needed to thin it out, and mix in the bacon cranberry topping.
• For a lighter texture, you can whip the cream cheese with some cream or a bit of sour cream, or purchase a tub of plain whipped cream cheese. Spread it onto a serving plate and top with the bacon jam.

Cranberry Bacon Cream Cheese Appetizer Variations

• Cranberry sauce. I love serving this cream cheese appetizer with fresh cranberries on the side for an extra burst of color, but fresh cranberry sauce will work well too!
• ​Adding spice. The red pepper flakes add a bit of spice to this appetizer, but you can add some chopped jalapeño chile or hot sauce to add even more spice if you want.

Serving Suggestions

Serve this amazing appetizer as the center of your Christmas Day starter, or serve it with some of my other appetizers at a Christmas party.

These Jalapeno Poppers, Pigs in Blankets, and Mozzarella Sticks are also great options alongside this dip or simply make some veggie sticks for a healthier dipping option.

Try some of my Homemade Breadsticks or my No Knead Artisan Bread for dipping instead of crackers if you prefer something a bit heartier!

More Holiday Appetizers to Try

Appetizers

Cranberry and Bacon Cream Cheese Appetizer

Appetizers

Baked Brie Bites

Appetizers

Cheese Ball recipe

Appetizers

Bacon Wrapped Smokies

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Cranberry and Bacon Cream Cheese Appetizer

This Cranberry Bacon Cream Cheese Appetizer has the perfect combination of sweet and savory flavors, with yummy cream cheese, smoky bacon, sweet and tart cranberries, with some balsamic vinegar and coffee in the mix for extra flavor! 

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 12 servings

Calories 119cal

Author Ashley Fehr

Ingredients

Cranberry Bacon Topping:

• ½ lb bacon (chopped) 7-8 slices
• ½ medium onion (finely chopped)
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• ⅓ cup + 3 tablespoons cranberry juice (divided)
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon brewed coffee (hot or cold) – optional
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

Cream Cheese Appetizer:

• 1 package cream cheese
• fresh parsley and cranberries for garnish as desired
• crackers for serving

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• In a medium saucepan, cook the bacon until nicely browned. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon.
• In bacon fat, cook the onions over medium heat until translucent. Add garlic and cook about a minute until fragrant.
• Add bacon back to the pan along with cranberries, ⅓ cup cranberry juice, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, coffee and red pepper flakes.
• Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for about 15-20 minutes until thickened slightly — there shouldn't be much excess grease when it is done cooking, so be sure not to cut this cook time too short. If there is a lot of excess, you can dab with a paper towel if desired. Set aside to cool to room temperature or refrigerate.
• Whisk together 3 tablespoons cranberry juice and corn starch. Stir into sauce until thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Cream Cheese Appetizer

• Unwrap cream cheese and place on a serving platter.
• Spread cooled cranberry bacon topping over the top of the cream cheese and serve with crackers. (*Note: you can make ahead and refrigerate up to 1 day).

Notes

Ingredients and Substitutions:

*There are not a lot of substitutions I can offer for this recipe because each change will affect the consistency and flavor of the topping. You don’t want it to become too sticky and hard, or too runny. 

• Coffee: the coffee helps to balance out the flavors and the sweetness. You can omit if you prefer and swap with water.
• Cream cheese: you can easily use light or dairy-free cream cheese instead.

Storage:

• Store: You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for a week or so. If you aren’t planning on serving it straight away, store the cream cheese block and the topping seperately. Top the cream cheese and garnish just before serving.
• Freeze: I wouldn’t recommend freezing the cream cheese block, though you can prep the bacon cranberry topping ahead of time and freeze it for up to 1 month. Let it defrost fully, and reheat it to thicken it again if needed. Then, let it cool before adding it to the top of the fresh cream cheese block and serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 119cal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 13mg | Sodium: 128mg | Potassium: 63mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 23IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 8mg | Iron: 0.2mg

The post Cranberry and Bacon Cream Cheese Appetizer appeared first on The Recipe Rebel.

This Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider is made with the perfect combination of apple, cranberry, and orange juices. It’s warm, sweet, cozy, and perfect for your next Thanksgiving or Christmas party.

Cider has never really been something my family has at our holiday gatherings. But after making this Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider, I think you can count on it being at every holiday get-together from here on out.

I’ve had traditional apple cider, and it’s delicious. But I have to say, I do enjoy a good flavor twist. And I love any recipe made with cranberry!

For this apple cider recipe, I used pure, unsweetened juices with just a bit of sugar so you can control the added sweetness and sugar. This drink is warm, cozy, and perfect for the holidays!

Love cranberries? Try this Orange Cranberry Bread or these White Chocolate Cranberry Sweet Rolls next!

Ingredients Needed:

• Juice: we’re using a combination of pure, unsweetened apple juice, orange juice, and cranberry juice.
• Sweetener: I usually use granulated sugar, but feel free to use another sweetener like stevia or honey.
• Spices: we’re using whole cinnamon sticks and ground cloves to give the cider a bit of sweet, spicy flavor.

How to Make Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider

Any recipe I can prep in 5 minutes is one I want in my life! Here’s how to make this super simple cider:

1. Combine: Add all of the ingredients to the crockpot, then stir to combine.
2. Cook and serve: Cover and cook on low until hot, then serve immediately or keep warm.

Slow Cooker Apple Cider FAQs

Tips and Notes

• Use whole spices if you can. They soak in the cider and infuse so much delicious flavor without any risk of graininess.
• If you can’t find whole spices, ground should work. I would never add ground spices to a cold drink, but they should dissolve completely as the cider heats, so it works just as well.
• If you use ground spices and you notice clumps in the finished cider, simply strain it through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth.
• Add other seasonings. Spice things up even more with allspice or fresh ginger.
• Make it boozy. Feel free to spike your cider with a couple ounces of rum, bourbon, or whiskey!

More Holiday Beverages You’ll Love

Drinks

Peppermint Mocha Recipe

Drinks

Slow Cooker Cranberry White Hot Chocolate

Drinks

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Spice Latte

Drinks

Crockpot Hot Chocolate — easy and homemade!

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Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider

This Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider is made with the perfect combination of apple, cranberry, and orange juices. It's warm, sweet, cozy, and perfect for your next Thanksgiving or Christmas party.

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 3 hours hours

Total Time 3 hours hours 5 minutes minutes

Servings 10

Calories 129cal

Author Ashley Fehr

Ingredients

• 1 liter apple juice pure unsweetened
• 2 cups orange juice pure unsweetened
• 1 liter cranberry juice unsweetened
• 1/4-1/2 cup sugar (stevia, honey or other sweetener) (to taste)
• 3 cinnamon sticks whole
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• Add all ingredients to a 4 quart or larger slow cooker. Stir.
• Cook at least 3-4 hours on low or until hot. Keep warm as long as needed on the low or warm setting.
• *Leftovers refrigerate wonderfully and reheat just fine!

Video

Notes

I was going to add whole cloves and allspice, but I couldn’t find any! I would never add ground spices to a cold drink, but the ground spices dissolve completely as the cider is heated so it works just as well. If you can find ground cloves and allspice and want to go that route, it would also be amazing!

Nutrition

Calories: 129cal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Sodium: 6mg | Potassium: 281mg | Sugar: 28g | Vitamin A: 145IU | Vitamin C: 35mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 0.6mg

The post Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider appeared first on The Recipe Rebel.

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Maybe you’ve figured out by now that we are big fans of pulled pork. (Did this Honey Balsamic Pulled Pork or this Pineapple Brown Sugar Pulled Pork give it away?)

Maybe you’ve figured out we’re also really big fans of sauce.

Dr. Pepper BBQ Sauce, Pineapple BBQ Sauce, Cherry BBQ Sauce — you name it, just let me slather it on everything.

The newest addition to the family is this unreal Cranberry BBQ Sauce, made with cranberry juice and cranberry sauce, for loads of fruity, tangy flavor.

If you’ve never tried cranberry with pork, you are missing out! The two make an incredible pair, and once you try this Instant Pot Pulled Pork I’m not sure you’ll need any other recipes.

I think cranberries are underrated this time of year.

Once the sun starts shining we’re often found dreaming of rhubarb and berries and we forget that cranberries make an awesome addition to our summer cookouts, too.

Dried cranberries are perfect in salads and coleslaw (a coleslaw to top this pulled pork, maybe??) as well as trail mixes for busy days, and cranberry juice can be used to make marinades or drinks or desserts or maybe a thick, rich barbecue sauce to slather on pulled pork, grilled chicken or turkey burgers (oh my word, can you imagine?!).

Cranberries are loaded with antioxidants, vitamins and are part of a heart-healthy diet, so there’s no reason to wait until fall to enjoy!

How to make Instant Pot Pulled Pork:

• Gluten-free: this pulled pork is naturally gluten-free, but be sure to double check all of your ingredients.
• Dairy-free: this pulled pork is also naturally dairy-free, but again, be sure to read all labels carefully.
• Cook it long enough: if your meat is not shredding easily, it wasn’t cooked long enough (to some extent, I mean, if you cook it for hours and hours until it’s crispy it won’t shred well either!). I cut my loin into roughly 1lb pieces, so that it cooks more quickly and is more tender. If you need to, turn the pressure cooker back on for 5 or 10 minutes.

How to make Pulled Pork with Cranberry BBQ Sauce in the slow cooker:

You can definitely make this recipe in the slow cooker as well!

Simply add the pork, cranberry juice and seasonings to a slow cooker (you’ll want one at least 3-4 quarts), and let cook on low for 8-10 hours until it easily pulls apart.

Shred, and prepare the sauce on the stove top, simmering the sauce ingredients together until thickened, and adjusting the seasonings to your tastes.

Why use a pork loin for this Instant Pot Pulled Pork?

I always, always use a boneless pork loin for pulled pork because they’re lean (and any fat on the outside you can easily trim before cooking), they cook easily, and they’re easy to shred.

It’s also an inexpensive cut of meat, often going on sale for less than $2/lb. Perfect for stocking the freezer!

Looking for more Instant Pot recipes? Try these:

• Instant Pot Pork Chops with Bacon Apple Glaze
• Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
• Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Garlic Herb Rub

*This post is generously sponsored by Wisconsin Cranberries — thank you for supporting the brands and industries that make The Recipe Rebel possible!

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Instant Pot Pulled Pork with Cranberry BBQ Sauce

This Instant Pot Pulled Pork with Cranberry BBQ Sauce is sweet and tangy with a little kick! It is SO easy, the pork loin is fall apart tender and the barbecue sauce cooks right in the pressure cooker! Makes a large batch so it’s perfect for those summer cookouts, but it’s also freezer friendly! 

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes

Servings 12 servings

Calories 182cal

Author Ashley Fehr

Ingredients

• 3 lbs boneless pork loin cut into 1lb chunks
• 2 cups cranberry juice
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Cranberry BBQ Sauce

• 1 can jellied cranberry sauce 384 ml or 13 ounces
• 1 cup cranberry juice
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons corn starch
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1-2 pinch red pepper flakes (or more!)

Instructions

• Cut pork loin into 1 lb chunks and place in the Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker. 
• Add the cranberry juice, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Place the lid on, turn the valve to sealing, and cook on Manual, high pressure, for 60 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes to come to pressure.
• Let pressure release naturally for 10 minutes before opening the valve to release remaining pressure. Check for doneness — if the pork easily pulls apart, it is done.
• Remove meat from the Instant Pot and shred with two forks. Drain the remaining liquid from the pot.

Cranberry BBQ Sauce

• Add all of the sauce ingredients to the pot and whisk until completely combined. 
• Turn the Instant Pot to saute mode, and cook and stir until thickened. Taste and adjust seasonings to taste.
• Add pork back into the sauce, and stir to coat. Serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 182cal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 71mg | Sodium: 445mg | Potassium: 515mg | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 60IU | Vitamin C: 5.1mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Instant Pot Pulled Pork with Cranberry BBQ Sauce appeared first on The Recipe Rebel.

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First of all, let me tell you that I know there are a lot of people who look at these….. “pretzel salads”, and scratch their heads. What says “salad” about that?!?

I get it.

But, since I am not a fan of any leafy salads except for good ol’ taco salad, I’m jumping on the pretzel salad train with glee. May all salads have cream cheese and crushed pretzels and fresh fruit and a homemade Jello layer from now on.

When I came up with the idea for this…. “salad”, I wanted to use as much Real Food as possible. That is really my goal here, and while I’ll never deny I have a few boxes of cake mix and KD in the cupboard for emergencies, we cook from scratch whenever possible.

And so, I cut out the Cool Whip and the Jello. I hope you aren’t mad? (Confession: I do have Cool Whip and Jello in my home. For, you know, whipped cream emergencies, but like I said above — I want to show you you can make a fun pretzel salad without them! Judge me all you want).

Let me just say that we absolutely devoured this! The cranberry raspberry flavors are perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas, but it’s totally no bake so it works just as well as a summer dessert. It’s win-win, if you ask me!

Tips and Tricks for Making this Cranberry Raspberry Pretzel Salad Dessert:

• Instead of the Jello, I use unflavored gelatin to set some real fruit juice — you can buy the low sugar or low calorie juice if that’s something you’re concerned about, or you can buy the all natural 100% fruit juice if that’s your thing. Either one should work just fine.
• Don’t have cranberries or raspberries? Use whatever berries you like! Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, even mandarin oranges would be great! Feel free to mix up the flavor of juice as well, but stick with clear (no pulp) apple or berry juices for best results.
• This recipe is great for making ahead! Since it needs some time to set, you can make ahead and store in the fridge for up to 24 hours before serving.

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Cranberry Raspberry Pretzel Salad Dessert + VIDEO

This Cranberry Raspberry Pretzel Salad Dessert is an easy holiday dessert salad that will be a big hit at Christmas or Thanksgiving! Made with cream cheese, fresh fruit and real fruit juice instead of Jello and includes a step by step recipe video.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 12 servings

Calories 286cal

Author Ashley Fehr

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups crushed pretzels about 150g
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1 package light cream cheese 8oz
• 1 cup heavy cream 35%
• 3/4 cup powdered icing sugar
• 2 cups cranberry raspberry juice divided
• 1 1/4oz package unflavored gelatin
• 1 cup fresh or frozen, thawed, cranberries
• 1 cup fresh raspberries
• 3 tablespoons sugar optional

Instructions

• In a medium bowl, combine crushed pretzels and melted butter. Press firmly into an 8×8″ pan.
• In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth. Add cream and sugar and beat on high until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. Spread over pretzel crust and refrigerate.
• Pour ½ cup of the juice into a small bowl and sprinkle gelatin over top. Set aside.
• To a large skillet, add remaining 1½ cups juice and cranberries. Bring to a simmer and cook for 4-5 minutes, until cranberries start to burst (I prefer not to have whole cranberries in my “salad” because they are tart — you don’t have to cook them until bursting if you want them whole!).
• Place juice and gelatin mixture in the microwave and cook on high for 10 seconds. Stir to dissolve the gelatin and add to skillet with juice and cranberries. Stir in raspberries and sugar (optional — the berries are tart so I added a little! Feel free to taste and adjust).
• Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Pour over cream cheese layer and refrigerate until completely set, at least 3-4 hours. Slice and serve.

Video

Notes

*You can easily make this recipe to fit a 9×13″ pan to feed a crowd — just double it!
**Nutrition information is estimated and will vary depending on exact serving size, types and brands of products used. This information was calculated using unsweetened real fruit juice — using low calorie fruit juice will reduce the calorie and sugar count further.

Nutrition

Calories: 286cal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Sodium: 301mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 18g

The post Cranberry Raspberry Pretzel Salad Dessert + VIDEO appeared first on The Recipe Rebel.

So it’s actually been a little while since my last Cranberry White Chocolate recipe. Surprised, aren’t you?

Cranberry and white chocolate is one of my favorite combinations around the holidays. As well as — obviously — mint chocolate, Turtle (chocolate, caramel and pecan) and anything apple.

I have been dreaming of this recipe for a long, long time, mostly because I had never seen anything like it before. Coming up with creative new recipes is my favorite part of having this here blog, and I love to experiment in the kitchen!

Well this White Hot Chocolate was definitely an experiment.

The first time, I tried using 1% milk, because that’s what I would normally use to make hot chocolate. I mean, logistically, I should have known it would curdle, but there is this part of me that sometimes thinks that everything will just work out in the end anyway.

It turns out, food doesn’t actually work like that. You have to actually do things that make some sense.

And so I dumped it, all of that glorious, high quality white chocolate, and started over. The second time I used a combination of cream and whole milk. I know this sounds totally decadent, and it is. You might be able to reduce the fat content in the cream slightly if that concerns you, but I use lower calorie or reduced sugar cranberry juice to try to balance things out a bit.

This is such a fun holiday drink! I love the pretty pink color and the splash of fruitiness from the cranberry. It’s something you don’t really expect in a hot chocolate, but it totally works!

What’s your favorite holiday drink?

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Slow Cooker Cranberry White Hot Chocolate

This Slow Cooker Cranberry White Hot Chocolate is a decadent holiday drink!

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 3 hours hours

Total Time 3 hours hours 5 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 439cal

Author Ashley Fehr

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups whole 3% milk
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 1 cup high quality chopped white chocolate
• 1 cup reduced sugar or low calorie cranberry juice
• Optional: red food coloring

Instructions

• Combine cream, milk, chocolate and cranberry juice in a 4 quart slow cooker.
• Cook on low for 3-4 hours, whisking every hour (it’s okay if it looks a little weird — give it a whisk and it will come together!).
• Add a few drops of red food coloring if you wish to bring out the pink color. Serve with whipped cream if desired.

Notes

This is a smaller recipe, with only about 4 cups. It is easily doubled or tripled to make as much as you need!

Nutrition

Calories: 439cal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Cholesterol: 386mg | Sodium: 171mg | Potassium: 291mg | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 960IU | Vitamin C: 5.9mg | Calcium: 141mg | Iron: 1.8mg

The post Slow Cooker Cranberry White Hot Chocolate appeared first on The Recipe Rebel.

So this is the first smoothie recipe on The Recipe Rebel.

And I know you know how much I like to indulge every now and then, and I want you to know it’s not like I don’t drink smoothies. I have a smoothie pretty much everyday. It’s like a healthy milkshake! I also happen to love berries and yogurt.

But I’m a little picky about my smoothies because I find some blenders don’t get the raspberries or strawberries perfectly smooth and you’re left with a weird texture.

I’ve been through 2 blenders in the last few months (and I’ll be the first to admit I push them to their limits experimenting with different gluten free cake batters), so when Kitchenaid emailed and asked if I was able to review their new Torrent Blender I couldn’t say no. I was actually currently blenderless, and really intrigued to see how the Torrent would stack up against my previous blenders.

Let’s get to it!

Look

Pros

I mean, it’s a beautiful machine. It comes in a choice of 4 colours (mine shown is Liquid Graphite), and I like how it’s much less clunky than the Vitamix and Blendtec (which, for the record, are not any of the blenders I’ve had in the future, so I won’t be comparing the Torrent to them).

Cons

I have no cons when it comes to the look of the blender!

Feel/Functionality

Pros

I love the simple design of the power button. There are 4 options based on texture and consistency (juice, soups/sauces, milkshakes, ice drinks/smoothies), plus a pulse option, and the start/pause button.

Another thing I love is how the jar slides in and out of the machine like a coffee maker. I’ve never been able to keep a blender on the counter because most are too tall and don’t fit under our upper cabinets. I love being able to pull it out and make a quick smoothie without having to haul it out of the corner I’ve tucked it into.

I like that the bottom piece of the jar with the blade actually doesn’t come off like most other blenders I’ve had. For the last blender I had, I found that the seal in the bottom was easily broken and there’ll be no issue with that on the Torrent. Because it’s a magnetic drive blender, there is nothing that physically attaches to the bottom piece of the blender when you slide it in. It’s actually pretty amazing to think about how quickly it goes considering there’s no physical manipulation of the blade. Those are some pretty crazy magnets!

Cons

The blender fits just fine under my upper cabinets, but because we have a molding under our cabinets (about 1.5-2″ below our cabinets), I can’t simply pull out the blender. I would have to tilt it on its side, which is not an easy feat at all considering its weight (the weight is a plus here, because it’s a powerful machine! It just makes moving it difficult). So the top feed for me will never really get used. I don’t often add ingredients part way through blending, so I’m not really upset about this, but it’s worth noting if you want to use the top feed, you’ll have to move it out from under your cabinets. Usually, I’ll add ingredients after tasting, and that’s not something you can do while the blender is doing its thing anyway.

Sound

Pros

The blender automatically shuts off and beeps when whatever you’re mixing up is ready — that’s pretty neat!

Cons

On its highest settings, it’s pretty loud. It’s like any appliance though — you can’t really add much more insulation to the machine without it getting bigger and less like something you want sitting on your counter. It’s a trade-off for the speed and power you get.

Performance

Pros

The blender automatically adjusts its speed to whatever you’re blending, even throughout the blending process, which is pretty neat to see. It powers through frozen fruit quickly and easily. It obviously has a lot of power. It is also easily the most powerful blender I’ve ever had, but like I mentioned earlier, I’m not able to compare to a Vitamix or Blendtec.

Cons

I haven’t gotten around to really pushing it to the limits yet, so I can’t comment on how it handles things like hot soup (though I’m super excited about this feature!), or the gluten free cake batters I experiment with. I will update this review here as I get around to testing the blender with more types of food.

Overall

I think if you’re looking for a high performance blender and are willing to pay for one, this is a great option. I can’t compare to the performance of the Vitamix or Blendtec, but I like the look of the Kitchenaid better and the fact that I can actually keep it under my upper cabinets and slide it in and out.

*I received this blender free from KitchenAid Canada for review purposes but was not otherwise compensated for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

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Cranberry Raspberry Smoothie

A sweet, tangy and creamy cranberry raspberry smoothie made with few, simple ingredients — the perfect snack or breakfast! Plus a review of the KitchenAid Torrent Blender.

Course Breakfast, Drinks

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 2 servings

Calories 160cal

Author Ashley Fehr

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup low calorie Cranberry Raspberry juice
• 1 cup low fat vanilla or raspberry yogurt
• 3/4 cup frozen cranberries
• 1 cup frozen raspberries

Instructions

• Add all ingredients to the blender and puree until smooth.

Notes

*Cranberries and raspberries are both tart, especially if frozen. Depending on the sweetness of your juice and yogurt (which both vary quite a bit), you may want to add additional sweetener to your tastes.
*Other options to reduce tartness are to add half a banana or some plain ice cubes.

Nutrition

Calories: 160cal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 8g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 97mg | Potassium: 507mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 45IU | Vitamin C: 30.6mg | Calcium: 266mg | Iron: 0.9mg

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