Mix Masters

Best In Class - Breville Hemisphere Control Blender $200; www.williams-sonoma.com With its wide blades, contoured pitcher, five speeds, and three additional(pulse, smoothie, and crushed ice), this home machine wowed Schenker-high praise from a chef whose go-to tool is often an industrial blender. "It's intuitively designed and simple to use," he says, after making everything from potato sour to apple puree without a glitch. The LCD timer and tuck-away cord also earned props. "If it could grind spices, it's be my dream blender," he says. "Still, it's my faorite here." Cuisinart Blend & Cook - $200; www.cuisinart.com A hot plate sits below the pitcher, letting you cook soups and sauces as easily as you can blend a smoothie: Add ingredients and set the temperature, and the device sautes, simmers, and stirs. Schenker didn't think the blades pureed perfectly, but he loved the multifunctionality: "It cuts out stove-top heating. It even makes omelets!" Vitamix Pro Series 500 - $600; www.williams-sonoma.com With 10 variable speeds, a pulse button, three preprogrammed settings, and a blade so accurate that it can pulverize peppercorns, the Vitamix is the Bentley of blending. Schenker loved its ease of use and thought it tackled most jobs well, but he felt the pricey machine should have been more adept at crushing ice. Omega BL480 - $500; www.omegajuicers.com With a three-hp motos and a gargantuan blade, the BL480 whipped frozen drinks and milk shakes with aplomb. "It crushes ice like a beast," says Schenker. But it wasn't great at processing herbs or purees. "It's all about power, not precision," he says. "It's appropriate only for a bar - or a boozy deck in the Hamptons."