Hi,
I would really recommend the Kenwood Frothie Hot and Cold Drinks Maker. I got it for £20 from Amazon, and have also seen it in Asda for that price. Other places it can cost up to £39.99, but it's well worth it. It's simple to use and really mixes the foodpacks well.
I mix the shakes for 15-20 minutes - this makes them really frothy and eliminates any lumps. You can mix them for as long or as short a time as you like. For the soups you press the Hot Mix button and they only take about 5 minutes. They come out just like a Cup A Soup, a nice thin consistency and perfectly blended. Previous to buying the Frothie, I had been using a blender which was ok for shakes but left the soups a really unappetising foamy consistency. They tasted fine but I just found it really off-putting.
I found out about the Frothie from someone's Lighterlife blog that I read when I started the diet - thank goodness I did! I would heartily recommend it. Keep posting to let us all know how you get on.