The first time I got my hands on a Vitamix blender, I was in culinary school. While I sincerely believed I had been making some nice soups and purees with my immersion blender or conventional smoothie model, the Vitamix made that all seem like child's play after one go. Gone was the minuscule, vegetal particulate matter that otherwise defined my early attempts at a velvety butternut squash soup. A truly emulsified, homogeneous mixture was apparently only available with a professional device, a truth I would acknowledge time and time again, no matter which Vitamix model I encountered in various restaurant kitchens. Professional devices come with professional price tags, however, and I never enjoyed the exceptional outcome available from a Vitamix in the privacy of my own home. But small kitchen appliances have come a long way in the last decade, and with high-functioning brands like Ninja in the mix, it begs the question: Is a Vitamix worth it?…