Real talk: I honestly thought a food processor was overrated. That it would just sit on the counter and collect dust. Boy was I wrong.
My husband saw how much baking I was doing, and he suggested a food processor. I quickly told him no, as I thought, I have a Nutri bullet blender and what can’t be done in there? Well, let’s be honest, a whole lot.
What’s the difference between a blender and processor you ask? Short answer: a lot. So, let’s dig in.
What even is a food processor? At minimum, a basic food processor comes with a bowl, removable lid, and a base (the motor) and usually a very sharp blade. More or less, it’s a very powerful knife that excels at quickly chopping, grinding and shredding up different ingredients that can range from nuts to hard cheeses and butter in a matter of seconds. The set of attachments (if you choose to go with more than a basic one) will shred carrots for a carrot cake, cheese for homemade cheese its, and especially butter for homemade pie crusts and puff pastries. The more attachments you get, the more you are able to do, such a knead dough, and juice vegetables.
If you were like me and didn’t really dive into a lot of baking or cooking beforehand, because it was too much work to grate your carrots through a box grater or cut your butter into flour. This food processor will definitely help you, and also make you feel more confident in your baking and cooking skills. It also cuts down on time and makes cooking and baking faster and more enjoyable.
I tend to lean towards more baking, so that’s really where it comes in for me. It effortlessly cuts cold and even frozen butter into my flour for a flaky pie crust, or a fluffy pastry puff. It finely crushes up vanilla wafers for a homemade pie crust to go with that banana cream pie you’re dying to try. Shreds cheese finely so you can make your kids homemade cheese it’s without all the additives of store-bought ones. While I have done all these by hand, and about cut myself multiple times doing it, I wished I had a food processor before buying one.
The questions is ultimately yours on if you need one or not. If you’ll use it, I highly recommend getting one, even if it does take up a little space on your counter. Plus, if it helps you to bake or cook more because it’s sitting there taunting you on the counter, then it’s a win-win no matter what. The size is completely up to you, but I highly recommend Hamilton Beach Stack and Snap Food Processor. A bonus is the suction cups on the bottom to help it stay in place.
