July 29, 2013 - 12:05pm
Dough Mixer Review
Is there such a thing on this website as a MIXER REVIEW? I currently have a Cuisinart 5.5 Stand Mixer. It does a good job, but. There is one muffin recipe that just about runs over. So I've been looking at different mixers. The Magic Mill (now call the Ankarsrum Original Mixer) supposed to be the Cat's Meow, then there's the Bosch Universal Plus, and the Hamilton 7 qt. So I went looking for reviews. Hard to come by.
Who has what, who likes what, and, and.
Thank you,
Bruce, (A Serious Baker, Challenged, in Brookings, OR)
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I had to look up the Anksarum, but sure enough, it's the Assistent. If the rebranding has not changed anything of the innards, then I can tell you that it is a wonderful mixer. As you may know from your research, it works very differently than an orbital mixer like the kitchenaid, and the order that you put in ingredients will change, i.e. liquids first, then solids. It is powerful, stable, and above all else, quiet. Quiet in the sense that you can hear the motor humming, but not the loud whine that I have from my kitchenaid.
On that note, my first mixer, before I began baking in earnest, was a kitchenaid stand mixer. I still have it, but hardly use it. For my doughs now, working with higher hydration, it would probably do fine, but it's still too loud. My wife and I sometimes have opposite schedules and I just can't use it because it will wake her up.
At any rate, check out these Amazon reviews: http://www.amazon.com/Electrolux-White-Assistent-Stand-Mixer/product-reviews/B00006WNNH
There used to be hundreds of reviews, but Amazon changed something. Seeing how it is now the Anksarum, better read these reviews while you can before Amazon changes their listing.
Thank you, I went and read a lot of the reviews at Amazon. Like you say, the order you put things in, is very important. It is a very expensive piece of equipment, and my Cuisinart does the job except for that one recipe where things are close to getting out of the bowl. One thing for sure, they sure are not available at too many locations. Pleasant Hill Grain has them. Oh yeah, they've gone through a couple name changes haven't they? Electrolux, Magic Mill, Assistant, and. But I guess this is still the one. I guess some time ago it used to have a 800 watt motor, but now has a 600 watt.
Well, I know where you are. May I keep in touch if I do go ahead and get one? Pick your brain so to speak.
Bruce
I'm sure all of us here would be happy to help you out. Check youtube for Breadbeckers Assistent and a very informative video will come up regarding the mixer.
Just about any mixer you're interested in has a thread devoted to it on site. Use the search box. A recent thread comparing Thermomix and the Assistent is here.
Being redundant to that thread, I cannot express enough how pleased I am with my Assistent, bought from Pleasant Hill Grain.
cheers,
gary
I recently replaced my 30-year-old 5-qt. Hobart KitchenAid with the Assistent and I love it! Can handle over 5 lbs. of flour with total ease. The old Hobart practically shook itself apart on more than 8 c. of flour.
I was considering a Commercial 8-qt KitchenAid but I am glad that I chose the Assistent which has a small footprint and easy to move.
Totally worth it!
Thank you all for your sharing your knowledge and experience with mixers, i.e. the Ankarsrum. Followed someone's advise and looked up YouTube videos. That was a new experience. They even have one on how to replace your Pantry Flip Lid Cover for your frig, something I have to do. Plus, in my clicking I found an article on the speed/rpm relationship of the Ankarsrum.
Again, thank you all for steering me in a very educational direction.
Bruce, Brookings, OR
For anyone else shopping for a stand mixer and comparing models, Pleasant Hill Grain has a Stand Mixer Comparison Chart on their website that you might find useful.