KitchenAid KSB560AC 5-Speed Blender

*** As with all my reviews, this is a Cruelty Free product from a maker that does NOT use animal testing.***

My son drinks a smoothie almost every day after school. Our old, inexpensive blender worked ok. Even though the motor was powerful enough to crush ice – and it did - the gear that turns the blades was plastic. Teeth were breaking off even after crushing only like 4 ice cubes. I was about to replace this gear for a second time.

Then I was flipping channels and happened to catch the KitchenAid KSB560 5-Speed Blender on QVC. When the demonstrator chopped ice, I was sold.

What you get

The KitchenAid KSB560 5-Speed Blender has more features than my car. You may want to check out the KitchenAid web site to get the entire list. Here are my favorite features:

- stainless steel blades built into pitcher for easy handling and cleanup.
- Commercial-quality, steel-reinforced coupler with 12 interlocking teeth provides direct transfer of motor power to the blade.
- Heavy, die-cast metal base ensures stable operation when blending. Plus, four rubber feet on wide base provide a nonslip, non-marring grip.
- The 56-ounce one-piece pitcher is made of commercial-grade polycarbonate. It is scratch, stain and shatter-resistant.
- Five speeds, pulse and crush ice mode
- Jar is dishwasher safe
- 1-year Limited Manufacturer's Warranty; Made in USA
- Available in Gloss Cinnamon, Buttercup, Blue Willow, Tangerine, Red, White, Black, or Silver Metallic.

How it works; or doesn't

When my new blender came I was shocked at how heavy it is. The base weighs over 11lbs. The con to this is it's not quite so easy to move around. But the plus is that the weight is partly due to the powerful, 0.9 horsepower motor, and it's very stable.
The first thing I did, after washing the jug and top, was to crush some ice and make a smoothie. Even though I didn't crush as many cubes as was done on T.V., it worked just as well. We also use frozen berries for our smoothies so that we don't have to use as much ice, which waters them down. The berries were pulverized, making our Smoothies even smoother. We've been making smoothies at least 3 times a week since. The results have all been great.

The other way I use my blender is to puree cooked veggies. These purees are used for kid-friendly recipes for my picky 7-year old. My son is very sensitive about the texture of his foods. The super smooth purees I get from the The KitchenAid KSB560 5-Speed are perfect.

We've only had the blender for a couple months now. So I have not yet used all of the 5-speeds. But the speed options are: Stir, Chop, Mix, Puree and Liquefy. There are two additional controls (technically three if you count "Off"). These are Pulse and Crush Ice.

The Crush Ice Button "pulses at staggered intervals at an optimal speed to increase blade contact with ice and improve crushing efficiency" (from KitchenAid web site). All I can say is it works really well for our needs. We haven't tried to use a ton of ice at once. Only about 8 cubes at most. But it crushes the ice evenly to a point that is near our shaved ice machine.

The Pulse button is a really neat feature. To use, you first press this button then choose the speed button you want, like Mix. It will then Mix and pause at a regular interval. I use this when pureeing veggies. The pause gives time for some of the mixture to slide back down towards the blades.

Final Thoughts

I can see now why any folks are so loyal to the KitchenAid brand. Although this blender cost more than I planned on paying, I think it's worth every penny.