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Ren Behan Food | renbehan.com

Food Writer

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Russell Hobbs Desire Food Processor (RRP £54.99) – Review and Giveaway

I have been very busy testing the entire Desire Collection range of Russell Hobbs appliances. I have used quite a few appliances by Russell Hobbs in the past, in particular, during a competition they ran around Christmas to test their Allure products and come up with some recipes using them. I have to say, I was impressed by the quality overall and so it is nice to be able to have a play with the Desire range, too. The great news is that Russell Hobbs have also kindly offered a second set of products, so I will be hosting a 3-part giveaway for my Fabulicious Food! readers starting today with the Desire Food Processor. The appliances within the Desire range are matt black with red accents. The Desire Food Processor and Jug Blender has a 600W motor.

Space in my kitchen, as in most, is limited, so it is important to me to find products that do the job I want them to do, whilst taking up the least amount of worktop space.  The Desire food processor comes in three main pieces with the following features –

  • The main body (matt black) with a manual dial at the front.
  • Two interchangeable top pieces – the food processor (with red accents) and a 1.5 litre capacity blending jug (with a red bottom and lid).
  • In addition to this, you also get a number of accessories, such as a slicing disc, coarse grater, fine grater, a mixing blade that can be used for dough and a creamer that can be used for sponge cakes.
  • Two speed settings and a pulse function.
  • A small manual including two recipes.

Desire Blender

The jug blender is pretty standard – it will allow you to crush ice, blend soup and make dips or sauces such as pesto, easily.  The lids fits on very securely, as it has a thick layer of rubber around the lid, which I particularly like as it is safe for the kids to stand and have a go at without thinking that the lid will blow off. The jug blender has been a definite winner in our house – “Yay, Mummy, now we can make milkshakes every day!” In actual fact, it is great for a quick and healthy breakfast smoothies and it gets us well away from the temptation of sugary cereals. I have also used it to make a quick Hollandaise Sauce to coat some fresh British Asparagus. The only thing I have noticed is that in full speed, the blender jumps around a little. There are suction feet on the bottom – make sure they are stuck down!

Ren’s Recipe

Strawberry, Banana, Pear and Chocolate Milkshake/Smoothie

What you need –

10-12 fresh strawberries, hulled

2 ripe pears, peeled, chopped

1 banana, peeled, sliced

1 teaspoon hot chocolate powder

Handful of ice cubes

250ml whole milk

How to make –

Throw all the ingredients into a jug blender, blend until smooth, serve and drink immediately.

Desire Food Processor

Aside from the jug blender, you get a second 1.5 litre capacity processing bowl, also with a safety lock lid, though not rubber lined as with the jug blender.

With the discs in place, you can finely slice, shred and blend. You do get a little pusher piece so that you can push any pieces down the tube safely without putting your fingers anywhere near the blades.

There is a creaming disc that you can use to thicken cream, beat eggs and to cream eggs and sugar together to make cakes. I have found that this is fine when using the all-in-one method. But otherwise, use it to cream your butter and sugar together first, then your eggs and then simple mix your flour in with a spoon – otherwise the whisking action will be too harsh. I made one of our family favourites – Nigella’s Marmalade Pudding Cake – in it and it worked a treat. In fact, lots of Nigella recipes call for you to throw everything into a mixer, so this does the job perfectly.

It is also great for making quick summer salads – a great one is Polish classic carrot and apple salad (Surówka) – 3 carrots, one apple, a handful of sultanas, a teaspoon of lemon juice and a sprinkle of sugar and salt. The grater blades are fairly easy to interchange and once in place will shred and grate very quickly.

Overall Impression

All in all, the mixer isn’t too clunky in size, but I have found with food processors that you have to have space to keep them out on the work top otherwise they barely get used. Leaving mine out this week, we’ve used lots more fruit and have made smoothies every day for breakfast. Tonight, we’ll be having homemade pizza using the dough tool.

There is a Jug Blender on its own within the Desire Collection range, but for the sake of an additonal £17 if not less, you would be better off buying the Food Processor which comes with a Jug Blender as well as the Food Processing Bowl.

I was a little disappointed that there weren’t many recipes to try – just two in the manual – and the two links suggested in the book to follow to get more recipes don’t seem to link to any more…

Giveaway

Thanks to Russell Hobbs, I have one Desire Collection Food Processor to giveaway. Here’s how to enter

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Discloure: I was sent the Russell Hobbs Desire Collection range to test/review along with a second set to giveway. No incentive was given to write a positive review. All opinions are my own. No monetary compensation was received in order for this product to be featured on Fabulicious Food!

Come back tomorrow for Part Two of the Russell Hobbs Desire Review and Giveaway!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. How very exciting and a fantastic birthday present too. Thank you Ren. My poor old food processor which has been with me for over 20 years is struggling. This one looks so smart too and fits in brilliantly with my red kitchen.

  7. I’d love to try making my own smoothies, a lot cheaper than buying them, fresher & more nutritious.

  9. I would make a delicious smoothie with grape, raspberries & mango with pure orange juice! My kids love them and they don’t realise it’s so healthy for them!

  13. I would make something low in fat because my husband has to now watch his cholesterol

  14. What a sexy looking machine! What wouldn’t I use it for – chopping onions, grating cheese, making pastry – and with my old clapped-out processor, I’ve recently discovered that it is great for mixing up bread/pizza dough, so we’ve been having home made pizzas instead of shop bought just recently….A machine like this is about as limited as your imagination! And this one does smoothies too? I’d never get out of the kitchen, I’d be having too much fun!

  15. I’m really into salads at the moment so I’d shred lots of veg such as carrot, celeriac and swede for my salads – yum!

  30. I would try out a million different recipes when my youngest is old enough to start trying solid foods.
    She’s only 2 weeks old, so a couple of months to go yet.

  31. I would use it to make smoothies because they taste so amazingly good! Would love to try to make a fruits of the forest one!

  32. I have a really good recipe for pavlova made with a special strawberry sauce but it’s really hard to make without a food processor so that would be the first thing would make!

  33. Been thinking of trying my hand at making soup for a while.
    Also been thinking of trying my hand at foraging, so, what kind of soup… could be anything, from the recipe on last night’s river cottage involving nettles to a plain old chicken soup.

  37. i could pretend and say i’d make some healthy smoothies but its more likely to be a liquidized mars bar milk shake or similar 🙂

  40. I like to make my little grandson fresh baby meals and this would certainly be a great help.

  42. I’d make some homemade oup to share with my baby girl at lunchtimes.

  45. I’d start by making a lovely soup – we need it in this ‘summer’ weather!

  46. I would make smoothies for the kids, but freeze some in popsicle holders… just in case we ever get a summer!!!

  47. I would make the freshest strawberry milkshake with the finest vanilla ice cream

  48. I would make parsnip soup! I’m about to move in with my boyfriend and my Dad showed me how to make his famous parsnip soup… now all I need is the blender!

  51. I would make a banana milkshake – its lovely cold milk, bananas and honey. Yeah its not rocket science. You can always invigorate it alittle with extra additions, but the children love the simple version anyway and you cant really go wrong with the recipe. At the moment am having to mash the bananas with a fork so some extra kitchen equipment would definately come in handy 🙂

  56. I’m a soup kinda gal…I love making all sorts of soups from the traditional to the weird and wonderfull,Altho my sroput soup was not one of my faves,but I was a novice then lol.

  57. I would make veggie soups to take to work to keep me going out on my rounds 🙂

  59. I would be able to learn how to make soups and pastes for all my family’s malaysian recipes 🙂

  60. id make a fruit smoothie. i bet it would taste so much better than the shop bought stuff

  64. Just love leak and potato soup, so will blend that down until lovely, smooth and creamy

  65. Between me making soups, pies etc and my teenage daughter’s love for baking this would be a hard working machine.

  69. I have struggled by for years making chunky soup, or par-blending with my hand blender…..you wouldn’t believe the mess I have created using this contraption! This food processor would be fab to win! 😀

  72. I am hoping for a good crop of tomatoes again this year and another big batch of homemade tomato soup to be frozen down to use over the winter – this would make life alot easier

  75. I would make potato and leek soup. It’s our family’s favourite and so much more tasty when homemade.

  77. I would make super summer gazpacho even if the sun isn’t shining i’d still make it feel like summer!

  78. Gazpacho, never tried it but it sounds like it’s full of the tastes I love

  89. Perfect for my kitchen and I would make my own coleslaw as we do’nt like onion in it!

  93. I love making bird cake for my feathered friends. The food processor would make this so much easier

  95. I love Carrot and Coriander soup but it has to be silky smooth, so it would certainly get a turn or two in the new blender.

  97. Well, at the moment I have a guinea pig with a broken tooth and amongst other things, I’m crushing his regular food up with a pestle and mortar, so I’d probably whizz some of that up! I’m also spending a fortune on jarred baby food to supplement his syringed food, so I’d probably make up a few batches of banana/peach and carrot/pea mush.

    Then, when his feeding is done for the day and he’s tucked up with a pile of shredded veggies, I’d make myself a margarita and relax!

  98. At the moment, making smoothies from the fruit we pick from our miniature fruit trees in our small garden!

  99. Lots of soup especially celeriac and potato, my absolute favourite, as well as hommous – so much cheaper than shop bought and you are in charge of what goes into them!

  101. Would love one of these. I love my own home made coleslaw, but grating the cabbage and carrot by hand isn’t the same!

  105. I would make a potato dauphinoise and let the blades take the strain of slicing the potatoes finely enough!

  107. I think I would make some dough and bake some fresh bread rolls to have warm with some soup, which I had made earlier.

  113. I would make potato and parsnip soup as it is my favourite on a rainy, wet day.

  115. I’d make some tomato and basil soup with ingredients from my garden 🙂

  117. It sounds as though it is good for all sorts of baking and preparation. As I am due to have surgery on both hands shortly and will have restricted use for up to a year it would mean we could still have homemade goodies as I could use the all-in-one method for cakes/biscuits and would still be able to whip up some healthy soups and smoothies. I’m sure my hubby would be a happy man to not have to do it all.

  119. wow what a fab prize. id love this to help me get more creative in the kitchen, im such a boring cook but long to try new recipes with minimum equipment.

  121. I would make milkshakes, smoothies & soups. I would also make pancake mixture as I always get loads of lumps.

  125. Mojitos! That’s my Friday night answer anyway, normally I would say a smoothie.

  126. As the weather is more ‘wintery’ than ‘summery’ at the moment I would make my warming sweet potato and chilli soup. It’s thick, spicy and very warming on chilly days 🙂

  128. I would make milkshakes! Ingredients being: MILK, ice cream, & any chocolate bar I’m feeling like at the time. For example: Mars Bar Milkshake! NOM NOM NOM.

  131. I would make some yummy smoothies and soups which would hopefully make me stick to my diet!

  134. Smoothies! Nothing beats a good homemade breakfast smoothie and this would speed up my morning routine and keep me away from the evil mid-morning snacks!

  136. I would definitely make Slimming World low-fat tomato soup for me and my husband!

    The RH jug blender and food processor look fabby enough to keep out on the work top, unlike my 26 year old ones which are kept in the cupboard! 😀

  140. I would use it for my veg for soup, cakes and biscuits, meringues and smoothies. Mine is a stupid size, far to big and the liquidiser needs to be on top for the processor half to work…I mean what a stupid stupid design, so too big and tall to be on my cupboard or I would use it more.

  149. I would make healthy fruit smoothies for my little boy, he’s a very fussy eater at the moment so it’d be a way of ensuring he get’s plenty of goodness.

  154. hmmmmm, i think i’d do a fabulous smoothie with lots of various in season fresh fruits!

  155. I would make low-fat soups and smoothies to help with my calorie controlled diet.
    @emma1111111

  163. Son is into weight lifting so it would be perfect for protein shakes and l would make fresh fruit smoothies for myself

  165. I wouldn’t make anything i would get my husband who is a chef to whip up a healthy soup i have not cooked for 13 years of marriage so i wouldn’t want to start now!! Would love to win this so i can gift it to my husband to show him how much i appreciate his cooking.

  172. OMG…I have always wanted one of these. I would use it for smoothies for Breakfast, Soups for lunch and for making sauces and jus for delicious puddings Mmm MMmm

  173. wow impressive, i think i would make some home made coleslaw! looks like the perfect kitchen gadget for me as i hate chopping all my ingredients by hand lol

  174. This is a fab prize, this would be great for my large family x I would make evrything i could, healthy smoothies, healthy soups. I would love it.

  175. I would make soups and smoothies but I would also like to have a go at making my own mayonnaise. Nigel Slater says it’s easy once you’ve got the hang of it so I ought to give it a go as I eat it all the time!

  177. an awful lot of things!
    But my current favourite is Fresh Thai Red Curry Sauce.
    My cousin is married to a Thai girl and she gave me her family recipe.. After that jars just cant crack it!
    Also save me crying pathetically using a pestle and mortar!

    Recipe available!

  178. Think it would either be a smoothie or soup, just depends on the weather

  179. Lovely giveaway Ren, the red in this would be perfect for my kitchen. I’d love to make smoothies in the jug blender and mayonnaise in the food processor as well as coleslaw type salads.

  181. I would make meals for my 5 month old baby girl as she is due to start weaning soon

  183. I’d make loads of smoothies and juices for my little boy, great way to help him reach his 5-a-day!

  185. Homemade coleslaw tastes much better when you make it especially if you have grown all the ingredients

  187. I would make a naughty milkshake with milk bananas, white chocolate Ice Cream and white rum. Poured over a glass of ice. What a Cooler!

  189. I’d prob use it everyday – aiming for soups for staters each day rather than puds for afters healthier and cheaper!

  191. Home made soup unispiring but taste and seeing as our summer weather is rather autumnal I think its a great idea!

  192. Id make a beetroot chocolate cake.. not as fattening as a full chocolate but its just as jummy..
    thanks for the great give away 🙂

  194. If the weather is horrible, I would make soup, but if the weather is nice I would make smoothies!

  197. This prize would inspire me to be much more inventive in my cooking.

  198. SOUP, there are some many uses, but in winter we make loads of soup, also with great gran children/granchildren, this has a thousand uses, great reveiw, thanks for comp

  199. I would have to have a go at making a cake for my grandaughters 1st birthday

  200. i would use it to make my soups, im on various kinds at the moment to help me lose weight but im having to cut/ grate eveything by hand so that would help. plus it would save me grating my hand again lol, im good at that 😉

  201. I’d use the jug blender to make a very quick lemon drink – the one they used to demonstrate blenders with when they first appeared on the market, decades ago, where you drop a whole lemon into the blender with water, ice and sugar, whizz it up and pour it through a strainer.

  205. I would love to win this I would make my granddaughter healthy smoothies

  206. My other half is as fussy as a child about texture and all soups I make have to be pureed and smooth. As you can imagine, without a food processor, this is quite the chore and thus I don’t get to eat nearly as many soups as I would like! I’d be soupin’ it up with a new processor.

  209. I have a jug blender which I use mostly to turn granulated sugar into caster for baking, smoothies and blending soup. I would love to make a lovely pate which I saw once in a demonstration once with a processor and serve it on toast from homemade bread – also using the processor. The creaming tool would be a big help with my baking! I think I need to upgrade! xoxo

  211. I adore smoothies. Non-dairy based fruit smoothies remind me of home. Coming into the lovely summery season means that my fruit smoothies no longer come out of cans! Delicious!

  212. Tomato and onion soup – have done it by hand in the past, but a processor would speed it up!

  213. I put in some bananas and strawberries with a cheeky dollop of double cream and make a delicious banana and strawberry smoothie with a twist.

  214. I would make smoothies, my 2 year old son is crazy for them and they are not cheap 🙂

  219. I’d whizz up some hummus or moutabel to dip into while I planned all the wonderful things I could make with a food processor. Kind regards.

  221. Ren’s Recipe looks as if it tastes AMAZING! I’d love a Food Processor so that I could try it. xx

  225. Berry smoothies 🙂 Blackberries, blueberries, strawberries Yum yum!!!

  227. I would make a Banana smoothie for my daughter because mashing the banana smooth with a fork is starting to wear a bit thin now! 😉

  228. I would make soups, cold soup for summer and soups ready to heat up in the winter

  230. would love to make coleslaw in the food processor and a strawberry smoothie in the blender!

  233. Soup – can’t beat homemade my favourite is Broccoli which sounds yuck but I have a fab recipe inclusing sundried tomatoes, chillies and crispy pancetta on top!

  238. There are lots of Russian salads I could make with this equipment. I have just a bog standard grater, and it takes a long time to grate a reasonable amount for us all.
    Cheers!
    @maximka25

  240. I would make fruity smoothies my little ones love smoothies and this would be great :0)

  243. In the jug blender I’d make pineapple, mango and coconut juice. I’d throw in a handful of nuts too.

  246. I would make Homemade ketchup. My two children get through tons of sauce so this would be ideal and a great way to save money at the same time

  247. I would make a deliscious vegetable soup for my little 20 month old boy. It’s a great way to disguise those vegetables 🙂

  248. I would use it to make smoothies for my breakfast in the morning. I recently started a new health regime and think this would help perfectly!

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