June 6, 2010

Stand Mixers for Busy Kitchens

Most today’s cooks usually whip up a homemade cake or batch of bread for the occasional holiday, and in those cases, stirring or kneading by hand goes with the “specialness” of these holiday treats. For cooks who routinely bake, unfortunately, that phase of food preparation can be more toil than holiday cheer. If you are one of those busy cooks, your busy kitchen needs to have a good quality stand mixer. We have chosen three especially reliable appliances for you to consider. Another great model to consider is Zojirushi NS-ZCC10 Rice Cooker.

The KitchenAid Artisan Series stand mixer will usually be the model the majority of customers visualize each time they talk about stand mixers. KitchenAid has been producing some version of this mixer for generations, and it could juts provide the best all-purpose mixer that you can find today. This mixer’s 5 quart bowl and substantial motor render it ideal for large batches, and this model’s 10 variable speeds and three attachments make certain that you benefit from a large variety of functions to choose from. This Kitchenaid Artisan comes with a splash guard and a chute for pouring in ingredients, consequently KitchenAid’s mixer is furthermore a convenient mixer to use. The KitchenAid Artisan series mixers are priced at $285, and are made in a fashionable spectrum of colors, so you could have the best mixer available in your favorite color, as well.

Hamilton Beach also markets a reliable stand mixer named the Eclectrics 63221. While the Eclectrics line lacks KitchenAid’s market share, it still comes with many convenient attachments. The 4.5 quart bowl is a bit smaller, but it offers the same tools and it’s own splatter shield with pour spout. This machine can be purchased in six colors, and is a bit lighter when rated against the KitchenAid model, so it has an entertaining habit of “walking” over the tabletop when wrestling with a particularly heavy amount of dough. With all that, though, Hamilton Beach can give you a very well-made stand mixer for about $180. Another nice option is Zojirushi NP-HBC18 Rice Cooker.

Cuisinart is one more name with a respectable reputation of making reliable kitchen appliances, and the beefed-up Cuisinart SM-55 is going to keep that reputation clean. This powerful machine is lightweight enough to be toted easily, but stable enough so that your mixer doesn’t do a bread dough waltz. The SM-55 includes the predictable whisk, dough hook and paddle utensils as well as a splash guard in keeping with those other two models. One function the SM-55 incorporates which makes it stand out is its timer.

You could actually set the timer and move elsewhere to attend to another job, and the SM-55 will turn off once the mixing is done. The motor has a rather generous 5-year warranty, and one could enjoy a well-appointed selection of attachments that could be purchased separately, such as a food processor and a meat grinder. The Cuisinart SM-55 is available in black, white and brushed chrome, and sells for about $250.

If you are dedicated to cooking, but would rather complete your upper-body exercises somewhere outside of your kitchen, one of these mixers might meet your needs. Another good item to look into is Zojirushi NS-ZCC10 Rice Cooker.

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