This Compact, Ultra-Powerful Blender Is My Go-To for Smoothies (Snag It On Sale Now!)

From the beginning of the year up until a couple of months ago, I’d been living without a blender, and it was a sad time. Before that, I’d used a NutriBullet for years to make fruit smoothies every day — sometimes even twice a day. The reason I put off getting a new blender for so long is because my new kitchen is tiny and barely has any space for another appliance. My roommates have their own blenders and juicers, which are huge and take up a ton of counter space, though I have no interest in sharing with them.

For a minute, I had a rechargeable personal blender, which wasn’t super powerful, but it did the job — until its battery died and refused to recharge. Okay, I thought, it’s officially time to get a real blender. I did some research and came across Ninja’s Nutri Pro blender. It seemed perfect! Not only did it sport a similar design to my beloved NutriBullet, but it also looked compact enough for my small kitchen. Now that I’ve been using it every day for a while, I can say it fully lived up to my expectations. You can shop it directly on Ninja’s website, though right now, it is 20 perfect off on Amazon.

When I say this blender is compact, I mean its base measures just under 7 inches wide, which, compared to a lot of other blender bases, is nothing. I store it and the included cup on my dedicated shelf inside one of our cabinets, and I still have plenty of space for my pots, pans, and dishes. Size aside, the base is hefty and has little suction cups on the bottom, so once you stick it on your counter, there’s no budging. This is important because the blending capabilities of this little machine are intense. You’ll also find that the blender’s blades are removable. Once you remove the blade cap, you can drink right out of the 24-ounce single-serve cup, or twist on the spout lid, which allows you to bring your beverage on the go.

Although there’s a dedicated “smoothie” button on the blender, I typically just use the start/stop button, and my smoothies are done in 7 seconds flat. This holds true even when I use frozen berries and ice cubes. Of course, you can also crush ice and chop other tough, fibrous fruits and veggies with the dedicated “crush” button. “Smoothie” and “crush” are both Auto-iQ preset programs, so if you’re not sure how long to blend, they take the guesswork out of the process. No matter which button you press, your concoction will be ready to go in a few seconds. If you’re looking for a tiny but mighty machine that’ll be a workhorse in the kitchen and take care of all your blending needs, look no further — because this is it.

• Sturdy Design: As I previously mentioned, I loved my trusty NutriBullet. No matter what I threw into it, it kept chugging along, all through my high school and college years. But I have to say, I like my Ninja even more. Occasionally, my NutriBullet would leak when I tipped the cup upside-down to insert it into the base. I’ve had no such problems with the Ninja. What’s more, I appreciate that I don’t have to manually hold the Nutri Pro blender’s cup down while it’s working. I can simply insert it, let go, and press “start.”
• Fast, Powerful Blending: When you purchase this small appliance, you don’t need to worry about cutting your ingredients before putting them in the cup. I’ve thrown whole strawberries, uncut apple halves, nuts, chia seeds, and other tough eats inside, and the results are always completely lump-free.

The only downside to this blender is that it’s quite loud, but then again, what blender isn’t? Plus, if you live with people who like to sleep in, you could always make your breakfast smoothie the night before instead of first thing in the morning.

Yes! I genuinely think this blender would be a great fit in just about any kitchen, but especially if you’re looking for the following features:

• Easy cleanups
• Beverage portability
• Compact Design

• Ninja, $99.99
• Amazon, $79.95
• Best Buy, $79.99

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