Article 1 Kitchen Essentials- Kitchenaid 6 Qt. Mixer

 

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Article 1

Kitchen Essentials – The KitchenAid 6 Quart Mixer With Attachments

In the kitchen, as in life itself, the right tool for the right job makes everything go smoother. The serious cook needs the proper tools to do the job and with so many options available it is often hard to decide which item to buy. In this and upcoming articles I will be suggesting and reviewing a number of appliances and utensils that I have personally found to be effective and useful.

For those who want to get serious about baking, they will find the Kitchenaid 6 quart mixer an absolute necessity. It mixes, whips and kneads with ease and with the attachments it can make any number of kitchen chores a pleasure.

I’ve been a fan of the Kitchenaid for years. I started when I began to experiment with bread and found that with the dough hook the job of kneading my breads was so much easier and produce a better final product. However when I tried to graduate to brioche I ended up breaking the 5 quart mixer I used. The motor was just not strong enough to handle hard kneading that was required for that recipe.

When my mixer broke I called their hotline to find an authorized repair shop and ended up with a new 6 quart machine from them. While I doubt they give everyone a new mixer and upgrade it as well, I for one can’t say enough about the excellent service I received.

The 6 quart handled the brioche with no problem. It’s motor makes our holiday cookies a snap by letting us double or triple the dough recipe at a time. A large holiday stollen recipe pushes the machine to the limits, but it does the job every time. With the attachments you can grind meat, stuff sausage, slice vegetable, shred or julienne. They have a couple of different pasta attachments, an ice cream maker, a juicer. With the whisk, meringues and whipped cream are a breeze. The paddle makes doughs and batters easily.

While not cheap the number of different jobs that can be utilized by the mixer, along with it’s dependability, make it an extremely cost effective purchase. My first mixer was close to 12 years old when it broke and the one we have now has been putting out great meals for more than 15. It certainly is a wise investment, if you break it down by the number of years you’ll be using it.

I would certainly rate the Kitchenaid 6 quart mixer as the best investment you could make for your kitchen. On a scale of one to five I give it a 5 on dependability and a 5 on its usefulness. Even with the problem I had, my experience with their customer service rates them a 5 on service. The only downside is the cost. It is expensive for the average person, with attachments it can run to $800 to a $1000. If you do what my wife and I did for our first machine and combine Birthdays and Christmas for a year and put the money away you’ll end up with a gift that keeps on giving for many years to come.

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