My sister-in-law gave me this thing for Christmas. She uses her own religiously, whipping all sorts of things into healthy, flavorful “shakes”.

I started making some of the veggie shakes recommended in the booklet that comes with the machine:

• Lettuce
• Carrot
• Apple
• Sunflower Seeds
• Avocado

Pour in some water and blend for about fifteen seconds. The result? A light, frothy-tasting salad-flavored drink. The problem is that it needed some acid, so I squeezed in some lemon juice and a little Italian salad dressing. Yum!

Now, I have a gluten intolerance (not full-on celiac) and I have to mention that I did not eat any bread during the three days that I was using the ‘bullet to blend my breakfast. In any case, the “nutrient extraction” going on caused some symptoms similar to those I get when I do eat bread. I am not sure if my system wasn’t prepared for the “richness” of what I was eating or what. Let’s just say that my lower GI prefers a protein-rich breakfast, like meat or eggs, so it can function in a more efficient manner.

Over the past two weeks we have been using the ‘bullet to make breakfast shakes with bananas, pears and milk (I add a 1/4-cup of unsalted peanuts to mine). These drinks have been very tasty and do not seem to have the same effect as the blended veggies.

Does it work to make you healthier and lose weight? The jury is out on that. The booklet does include some recipes and a journal for tracking your food/diet, but I’m not using it.

The Verdict

This NutriBullet is a very effective, powerful blender. If you need a blender it will work quite well for you. Personally, I’ll probably use it more for making juices and sauces.