Stand Mixer

[kgord]

Do you have a stand mixer? I wish I had a fancy mixer with a paddle and a dough hook. I just have a handheld electric mixer and it is limiting in terms of what you can make. I almost bought a stand mixer last year. The ones that have all the fancy attachments are quite expensive though. Anyone know where to get a good price on a stand mixer with attachements?

 

[Morning Glory]

Do you have a stand mixer? I wish I had a fancy mixer with a paddle and a dough hook. I just have a handheld rotary mixer and it is limiting in terms of what you can make. I almost bought a stand mixer last year. The ones that have all the fancy attachments are quite expensive though. Anyone know where to get a good price on a stand mixer with attachements?

Can't remember where you live so can't recommend any stores. But Amazon is usually my first port of call... I use a hand-held but mine has a dough hook (which I rarely use). If I had a huge kitchen I'd probably have a stand mixer on the counter, but sadly...

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

I only have a kenwood chef, which I think is what you call a stand mixer. I don't have a handheld, so if it is not the mixer then it is done by hand.

I used to have one of the really old models which I had had for decades literally. It had a white glass bowl and really badly chipped, so the point that it no longer clipped into the base properly... It finally failed when the motor gave up after it fell on the floor for the 2nd time in 2 days... That was a couple of years ago. It looked like this. I paid roughly £5 for it (obviously 2nd hand).



The next one only lasted a year. I picked it up 2nd hand for about £10, so I wasn't too bothered. It was slightly newer and looked like this.



When it failed I had to replace it rather quickly and ended up with a much more modern version that I had hoped for! But I still paid less than £100 for it (2nd hand again) and it is still going strong. Unless it falls on the floor I can't see that I will ever need to replace it.
This is the one I have now (or very similar). Luckily the plastic bowl from the previous one works with the new one, so the new one has 2 bowls which I find rather useful at times.

 

[Morning Glory]

I only have a kenwood chef, which I think is what you call a stand mixer. I don't have a handheld, so if it is not the mixer then it is done by hand.

I used to have one of the really old models which I had had for decades literally. It had a white glass bowl and really badly chipped, so the point that it no longer clipped into the base properly... It finally failed when the motor gave up after it fell on the floor for the 2nd time in 2 days... That was a couple of years ago. It looked like this. I paid roughly £5 for it (obviously 2nd hand).

View attachment 1758

The next one only lasted a year. I picked it up 2nd hand for about £10, so I wasn't too bothered. It was slightly newer and looked like this.

View attachment 1759

When it failed I had to replace it rather quickly and ended up with a much more modern version that I had hoped for! But I still paid less than £100 for it (2nd hand again) and it is still going strong. Unless it falls on the floor I can't see that I will ever need to replace it.
This is the one I have now (or very similar). Luckily the plastic bowl from the previous one works with the new one, so the new one has 2 bowls which I find rather useful at times.

View attachment 1757

Daft question, but what sort of thing do you use them for? Although I always think it would be great to have one on the counter, I rarely if ever, feel I need one. I mix pastry and cake mixes by hand and there is usually only one bowl to wash (and no mixing attachments!). Perhaps its just quicker?

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Daft question, but what sort of thing do you use them for? Although I always think it would be great to have one on the counter, I rarely if ever, feel I need one. I mix pastry and cake mixes by hand and there is usually only one bowl to wash (and no mixing attachments!). Perhaps its just quicker?

I have a dubious left wrist so most things are done by the mixer from bread, pastry, scones, cakes, etc...

 

[Morning Glory]

I have a dubious left wrist so most things are done by the mixer from bread, pastry, scones, cakes, etc...

Ok. My thumb joints are a bit dubious but I can still do all those things by hand and I love getting stuck in! My wrists are weak so I can't lift heavy pans. I didn't realise you were kneading bread dough in a mixer!

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Ok. My thumb joints are a bit dubious but I can still do all those things by hand and I love getting stuck in! My wrists are weak so I can't lift heavy pans. I didn't realise you were kneading bread dough in a mixer!

Yep, mostly. I did some by hand at the weekend. A nice light white sourdough foccia recipe, but the heavy 2kg lifesavers that are sunflower seed, dark rye, date syrup sourdough loaves are just too heavy for me. They have a really high water content and are 100% dark rye which is really difficult to work with successfully.

I also often use it for making breadcrumbs from flour and marg with a tea towel over the mixer to save mess. It works really well with crumble mixture as well.... The new mixer came with a complete set of hooks thankfully....

My left wrist had 11 operations on it over the course of 15 years, sometimes needing 4 or 5 procedures during each operation. Three times I was in for over a week... It took a while for me to ride again and I still need certain adjustments and careful choices to be made to keep me riding!

 

[MrsDangermouse]

Daft question, but what sort of thing do you use them for? Although I always think it would be great to have one on the counter, I rarely if ever, feel I need one. I mix pastry and cake mixes by hand and there is usually only one bowl to wash (and no mixing attachments!). Perhaps its just quicker?

I suppose if I'm being honest I don't "need" one either - they don't do anything I can't do by hand, but I'd always wanted one so I treated myself to a purple Kitchenaid a couple of years ago. I probably don't use it as often as I should (because we try not to eat too many cakes and sweet things), but now I'm getting back into bread making it will get used more: it can be kneading the bread whilst I'm doing something else. I also use it for making cakes and cookies when I do make them, and whipping up egg whites for various things. Surprisingly its also great for making mashed potatoes if you're doing a lot of them. The bowl and attachments are all dishwasher proof so cleaning up is dead easy.

And finally.....its been the inspiration for the kitchen decor in our new house ;-)

 

[kgord]

Well the advantage of stand mixers is that for one they have a built in bowl, but many of the fancier type recipes you see require the use of specialty attachments for mixers like dough hooks and paddles. I do like cooking and I think it would be very helpful to my culinary repertoire to have a mixer like this that would allow me to make more things.

 

[Berties]

At home we have a old kenwood chef and I was lucky as I have a relation that worked for kenwood so any repairs was a breeze ,but a work we use kitchen aid ,again they can be repaired easy but has to be sent back to kitchen aid,they come in all colours but ain't cheap,

 

[purplepen88]

I too only have a hand mixed and find it limiting. I do enjoy using it with my kids. They help me make muffins and enjoy using the hand mixer. But I wish I had a stand mixed too. I think I would bake more if I had one. I like that it has all the attachments for doughs. I'm waiting for a good sale on a Kitchen Aid mixer before I buy one.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Here's mine.

The Electrolux Assistant Stand Mixer.

Had it for 10 years now. It is STILL going strong as ever! Dug it out of storage a while ago. This machine uses an 8-qt mixing bowl that can make enough bread dough for up to about 8 loaves in one batch! It can accommodate a recipe containing a 5-lb bag of flour!

Has one of the biggest dough hooks that I've ever seen! Back when I bought it, it sold for just under $500. Today, the same machine, but under a different name, now sells for close to $900!! But I love this machine, and wouldn't part with it!!