Most Helpful Customer Reviews
144 of 145 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Indispensible, December 7, 2002
This review is from: KitchenAid KP2671XER Professional 6-Quart Stand Mixer, Empire Red (Kitchen)
I am not a professional chef or even a "serious" hobbyist, but I do a fair amount of cooking and I make most of my own bread. I had been thinking about buying a stand mixer for several weeks before purchasing this one, but I was uncertain as to whether it would be worth this kind of money to buy a mixer, and especially one that would take up so much of my relatively limited counter space. I was also somewhat skeptical that this would make decent bread dough, because I have not been that impressed by bread machine-made bread and I thought that this would probably produce something similar. Before I bought my mixer I had a chance to try out a couple of the smaller artisan-type machines. They work perfectly well for most routine mixing tasks, but I was not sure that a smaller unit would have the power for regular bread making. Also, one of my friends burned out the motor in her Artisan while making bread, although she was trying to make a batch much larger than the manufacturer recommends. I have now owned my 6-qt stand mixer for about a month, and it has become an indispensible kitchen tool. I have used it for everything from light-weight, high-speed tasks (meringue, whipped cream), through medium-weight mixing (cake batter, quick breads), to real heavy-weight work (several types of stiff dough, including bagel dough and two loaves of 100% high-protein whole-wheat flour bread) and I have been very impressed with its performance. There is something of a learning curve in getting the best use from it and in adapting recipes if you are used to mixing things by hand. Bread dough seems to need slightly more flour than making it by hand, or else the dough will stick to the dough mixing hook and not knead. The first couple of times this happened to me I was very discouraged about the possibility of ever getting a good loaf of bread, but once I got the hang of the technique, I have been able to make some amazing bread and pizza dough, better than I can usually accomplish with hand kneading. It is so easy to use (basically just dump the ingredients in the bowl and let it work for a few minutes) that we almost never buy bread any more, and it makes much less mess in the kitchen. I was surprised at some of the negative reviews about this mixer, in particular comments about poor power or difficulty manipulating the mixing bowl. I think the power is pretty impressive, and it will handle two loaves of stiff bread dough with no problem. I like the way the bowl is configured better than the flip-top type. The bowl snaps into sort of a cradle, which is raised to the beaters or lowered using a lever on the side. The bowl can be snapped in or lifted out of the cradle quickly and easily and can be removed with one hand (once the mixer blade is removed). It does require some scraping of the bowl, although because of the "planetary" motion design, much less than with a hand mixer. My only complaint (a small one) is that the beater, dough hook, and whisk that came with it are not dishwasher safe. Overall, this is by far the single best kitchen equipment purchase I've made. Although I think it would be great for anyone who does a lot of cooking, it is probably really most helpful for those who do a lot of baking.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
simple and easy, April 3, 2003
This review is from: KitchenAid KP2671XER Professional 6-Quart Stand Mixer, Empire Red (Kitchen)
Have had this mixer for several months and have used it 4 or 5 times a week and find it a simple and easy way to mix almost anything.The only problem for me is the bowl is so big that when you want to whip up something in small portions its seems it gets lost in the big bowl.If they could make several size bowls for this mixer it would be a more than perfect item to have in your kitchen.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best gift I've ever received!, January 6, 2004
This review is from: KitchenAid KP2671XER Professional 6-Quart Stand Mixer, Empire Red (Kitchen)
Received this as a Christmas gift this year and I couldn't be happier! I was worried by some of the reviews I read, although more encouraged than not by the overwhelming number of positive reviews! Had read that this is a very noisy machine. I can tell you that mine is very quiet. You can hear it running, but it is not loud by any stretch of the imagination. I had also read some tell about the motor burning out. One person had said others may have had a problem with motors burning out because they were using the dough hook on a higher speed than 2. Mine came with a tag and a sticker on the dough hook stating NOT to use it any higher than speed 2. Also, I read an instruction book cover to cover before I even plug something in. I do think that helps too. Only because we as consumers may not be aware of specifics that, without knowing it, could cause a product to malfunction or break. I have used this on some heavy duty mixes and it performed better than I could have imagined!!! I am VERY pleased! Oh! And, I was originally going to order mine through QVC, but Amazon.com beat their price by $90!!! I wasn't about to pass that up! Great prices, great products, and wonderful customer service! Thank you Amazon!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|