Food Processor Advice

[Leslie_L]

I have a 3 cup food processor attachment that came with my Hamilton Beach Blender.

I am preparing food for 1, I am also not eating as much as I did before on my SAD diet as this food seems so much more filling.
So in an effort not to waste expensive ingredients and until I figure out what I like and don't I am only doing 1/4 and 1/2 recipes.

These small amounts do not seem to mix well my mini processor. The food sticks to the sides and I have to continually turn it off and scrape the sides many many times and even then some of the thicker mixtures do not process well or get smooth as the recipes say they should.

I am wondering if a better quality processor would work better but at the same time I am worried that with a bigger processor the problem will be compounded since I am only doing smaller amounts.

Any suggestions or advice?

Should I get a new bigger processor?

Thanks,

Leslie

[SamuelWilson]

What I did was buy a "Mini" Processor. They sell them at most department stores. I also make many of my meals just for myself and the portions are sometimes small.

[rawpriestess]

I was raw fro 4 years with a baby processor, that held about 1 to 2 cups of dryish type foods, heaven forbid I add any liquid, then it would explode all over my kitchen, I finally bit the bullet and bought an expensive top of the line Cuisinart, and took it back, bought it again, took it back, I finally kept it the third time I bought it.

I kept taking it back-- not becuase it didn't work, it worked great, -- I just couldn't see spending $200 for something that was a convenience, and i already had one that worked kind of.

But, I must say, that with my Cuisinart, I now make big huge batches of the things I love and freeze at least half, so i can have some whenever I want, instead of feeling like I have to eat an entire recipe all at once, I like variety, so I make a regualr size batch, freeze 1/4 to 1/2 then eat what I want.

this works for me.

But if you wish to make baby batches, the big one will not work well, you won't be happy with it, because you need to have the contents semi-match the capacity of your machine.

[mrobinbird]

Hi! I started out with a 5 cup Kitchenaid ($90) and found that was even too small for 1/2 batch recipes. So when it decided to make a funky noise one day - I decided to buy a bigger model. I ended up with the Hamilton Beach 14 Cup processor and paid around $65 for it - love it.. I started making full recipes and everything turns out wonderful - I think that a person needs to make the full recipe to see how it really turns out. Just my opinion from my experience ;) You could buy a smaller one if you want like at 7-10 cup. I think you may be having problems due to the 1-2 cup capacity.... I have had to make several recipes that I didn't like - this process isn't easy and it just takes practice :p

[Rawmney]

Hi Leslie,

I'm with you on the quest for the right tool for small jobs (like 1/2 cup nuts + other ingredients for single serving of pate or dessert crust). Unfortunately, all I can tell you is what ISN'T working for me and want to ask others specifically about the Tribest:

* My Cuisinart mini-chopper doesn't do the job and the reviews at America's Test Kitchen / Cook's Illustrated didn't give any of the mini-choppers high marks with nuts.
* Tried my Mom's Magic Bullet, which was fair, but went the other way of having too little capacity.
* I'm grinding nuts in the coffee grinder before adding to the mini-chop, but the mini-chop won't even combine that and blend the red peppers, for example, for Alissa's mock salmon.

Anyone have more to add on jobs that would go in the food processor, but aren't big enough? How about the Tribest blender? I don't need it for smoothies, but wondered about using it for these other jobs.

Thanks everyone!

Best,
Caryn

[Apples'nAvos]

I also had a mini food processor (a kitchen aid one) that held 3 cups, and after 1 week of using it every day, I broke it (technically, I burnt the motor out) while trying to make a raw fudge recipe from the greenchefs.tv website .. heehee ... ooops. (on a side note - the fudge was soooo worth it!)
Even though I had only had it for a week, I was already noticing what you are talking about - it's too small! So when I broke the mini one, I thought "well, that fixes that problem" and went to Target and bought a Black and Decker 7-cup processor for around $60 or $70. I made half of Alissa's mock salmon pate in it this week, and it came out deeeeeelish! :)

[greywolf]

i have the KitchenAid 5-cup - i really love it in general but would love the larger model for the extra size and power.

what i have discovered is that sometimes you have to really really pay attention to what order and how much you put in at a time. and the smaller models also mean a bit more pre-chopping to get things done.

i am waiting until i just can not stand the small one anymore, or burn it out, before i go looking for another one.

[RawTruth]

You're talking about two issues here: the appliance and also halving the recipes.

Just bite the bullet and get a larger food processor. I know I've said this ad nauseum, but the Hamilton Beach $29.99 food processor at Target is just great. That's what Alissa uses, that's what I use, that's what my students are buying. It's got a really strong motor, it's cheap ... what more could you want?

Consider making the whole recipe. You can eat it for a couple of days and it'll still stay good in the fridge. Why make something new every day -- or several times a day -- when you can just do it once? Think of it as raw fast food -- just open your fridge (instead of driving through somewhere) and there you are!! Also, if you halve a recipe, the seasonings can easily get skewed. I hadn't though of this until Alissa discussed it in the teacher training she does. (This doesn't just relate to raw food -- it's true about all foods, apparently.) I could go into detail, but don't want to bore you.

Happy processing!