A Gift for every occassion that's unique and personal - special customised cake suited to your theme and budget!!
Homemade custom design cake made by using only the fresh and premium imported quality.. no compromise on ingredients (that's our motto)
Those interested, please email: cupcakeslicious@gmail.com

Monday, May 9, 2011

Things To Consider When Buying A Kitchen Stand Mixer

It has been quite a while since I have the desire to purchase a Kitchen Stand Mixer - a heavy duty one.  You see, believe it or not, but all these while, I have been using a hand mixer for all those cake makings.  I KNOWW what went on to your head... (hahaha..yes, I soo can read your thoughts!! so please save it to yourself.. :P ).  I always wanted to buy a "Kenwood  K-Mix Stand Mixer", Im sure many bakers out there can relate why.

But.. its wayy above the budget.  Hb wanted to buy it for me last year as my birthday present though but being the rational person I am (not always though), I thought I can split the cost on rather than buying just a mixer for almost rm3000. I could perhaps make do with a cheaper mixer and maybe a new unit of oven as I have been getting quite a bigger number of order recently and my small oven just couldnt cope with it.  Im always trying to scratch my head with the baking time and how I can minimised it as once I baked for almost 8 hours and I almost fainted (*figure of speech okay.. :P ) by the end of the day! TOO EXHAUSTED!

Anyway, I went out to shop for one the past few days but couldnt seem to decide on what brand, model and budget i have to spent.  There are just too many choices.

Im not even sure on the different type of model there and the sales assistant didnt seem to know much :((   Anyway, I did a cross comparison table and will be making my decision soon .  This article has helped me in choosing the right stand mixer for me and I thought ill share it with all of  you. 

Their direct link:

1) http://www.articlesqueeze.com/article-directories-article-marketing-free-articles/home-improvement-articles/things-to-consider-when-buying-a-kitchen-stand-mixer/ 

2) http://housewares.about.com/od/mixers/bb/buyingastandmixer.htm 

Just to summarise on the main tips when choosing a mixer:

First you must ask yourself this questions:

a) Do I need to buy a stand mixer?
b) If I had a stand mixer, would I use it (on average) more than once a week?
c) Will I use my stand mixer for anything other than baking?
d) How much can I afford to spend?

Once you can justify those questions, its time to hit the shop now and you'll find that theres many options out there.  Prices obviously vary between mixer and looks too but stay true to your point (needs).  Few things to understand on the difference in price:-

1) How you intend to use the mixer is really your first consideration. Whether you bake purely for your own family (large family), extended family, social event, or doing it as a part time income, then you might need a powerful motor and a large capacity bowl - a minimum of 600 watts of power.  Make your decision depending on the capacity. 

2) A Caution Regarding Power Performance and Capacity - you may think that high waltage = more power for mixing & kneading.  Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Some mixers may use more wattage to operate than other models and power output may be less than denoted. This is why it is wiser to base your buying decision on capacity, rather than solely on advertised wattage. Manufacturers will often provide capacity (so many cups of flour, etc) guidelines which can be very helpful, but since these usually tend to be a little on the high side and may not be the best for optimum mixing, base your decision on a reduced
capacity level .


3) Look for the one that comes with the 3 basic accessories (balloon whisk, dough hook, and a beater).  I find that most of the stand mixer in shops nowadays comes with these accessories , but some has a splashguard (a plastic cover to prevent spillage during mixing).

Well I do hope the above helps you to choose the right stand mixer! I know it does help me  :)) and Im quite happy with my purchase!

 

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Very nice post. I just stumbled upon your weblog and wanted to say that I've really enjoyed browsing your blog posts. After all I'll be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again soon!


Feel free to surf to my web-site ... http://en.Wikilib.com/wiki?title=User:Benedict3