Standing Mixer - keep or return? What do you think?

[piglet1979]

I love my. I have the big industrial size. I really don't need one that big. I use it for make cookies and bread doughs. I also use it for mashed potatoes when I host Christmas at my house. Any other time I will use the hand mixer because it is easier. Mine gets it most work at the holidays but since the pandemic it has gotten a work out from my daughter baking a ton. She was baking something new every week when schools shut down in March. She was 12 at the time.

You know yourself better. If you do a lot of baking, I would keep it. If not then it may not be worth it.

 

[disneyeveryyear]

I use mine frequently. We have had it 20+ years and I have had to replace the paddle 2x because of the coating flaking off.

One of my favorite uses is making cheesecakes. Even at room temp good cream cheese can destroy a mediocre hand mixer.

Another amazing use is for shredding chicken. I can cook my chicken breasts and then while still hot throw them in the KitchenAid and turn it on. In a few seconds I have perfectly shredded chicken for many uses.

This is of course in addition to the regular usage for cookies, cakes, muffins, etc.

 

[FigmentSpark]

I got a one for a wedding present. I haven't used it a lot, but that's more because I have to dig it out of the area where it's stored. I don't have enough room to just keep it on display. If I could keep it in a dedicated counter spot where I would work, I would use it a fair bit, I think. I have several attachments that came as part of my gift, like the pasta roller/cutters and the meat grinder.

They are heavy machines, but real quality, too.

Think about things you use a portable mixer for, like whipping cream, cake mixes, icing for that cake or cookie dough. You don't have to stand there and hold the mixer, because the unit does it for you. Also, because the bowl is designed for the unit, you don't have to worry as much about things splattering out (like you do with a portable and maybe a less than ideal bowl).

Clean up is just the bowl and the whichever attachment you used. While I wouldn't put my bowl in the dishwasher, it's not hard to just wash one bowl and one beater.

If you decide to keep it and you decide to buy attachments for it, look for sales on Black Friday. Well, maybe that's a tip right there. Don't unbox yours until you've checked out the Black Friday sale prices.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

I bought a 4.5 cup Kitchenaid standing mixer on sale at Target and it's still in the box. I've never had one or used one in my life (and I'm not young!). It looks cool and I see people using them on cooking shows. I like baking but I don't do tons of baking - I like making cookies, muffins, cake, etc. I have a bread maker that I still use sometimes and it works great. I can't tell if I take it out of the box will I start using it and fall in love and become a buttercream French chef extraordinarie or will it just set on the counter - haha! I've tried googling recipes to make with it but I guess mostly people just use it for the recipes they already have... as in not necessarily specially made recipes for stand mixers.

I sort of wish someone would talk me into keeping it but mostly I don't want to keep it and then find I never really use it. Thoughts?

Once you start making bread the good ole fashioned way, you'll throw your bread machine out the window. That said I think you have the classic which is a tilt head design. I rather prefer that particular design. The Artisan is also a tilt head and the stand is the pro has a bowl lift. The Classic is a good work horse. The two drawbacks are it doesn't have a handle on the bowl and it can struggle at times with larger quantities of dense dough. But for most normal breads and everything else, it does fine. The pouring shield must be purchased separately. You also get the cake paddle and the whip in addition to the dough hook.
I like the handle on the bowl of the artisan and I like that it doesn't struggle with denser doughs. The pouring shield makes no difference to me. I rarely use it. It is also 1/2 quart bigger at 5 vs 4.5.
All in all, ours mainly gets used for bread and cookies and things that require a good fast whip. The regular mixers just aren't fast enough. The kitchenaid is much better. Potatoes come out great.

Oh and helpful hint. Don't put cream in it and throw it on 10 just to see what will happen. Ours was butter within a minute. And we got everything cleaned up within 30 minutes.

 

[mumto3girls]

I got mine as a wedding gift in 1996. I use it a lot around the holidays when I do a fair amount of baking. I also make chocolate chip cookies a few times a month during volleyball tournament season (January-May) and very occasionally the rest of the year. I have the meat grinder attachment that I use a few times a year as well. I would use it more if I had the counter space for it, but I don’t so it really has to be worth it to drag it out.

 

[bethbuchall]

I used to use mine a lot. Then it broke, and I got so used to using my Kitchen Aid hand mixer for batters and kneading yeast doughs by hand. My husband fixed my stand mixer last Christmas, and I still haven't used it. I think I would if I had a dedicated counter area that it could stay in. I'll make an effort to get it out for Christmas baking to see if it really is any better than just doing it all by hand.

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I have one. I only used it during the holidays or when I made buffalo chicken dip or when my DD did a lot of baking. But then someone on Disboards mentioned using it to shred chicken. I was shredding chicken for so many recipes by hand with two forks. I hated it because it hurt my hands to do it. Now I just throw that cooked boneless chicken in my stand mixer and it does all the work. It’s been a game changer!

 

[Silvermist999]

I have a smaller stand mixer, nothing fancy like the KitchenAid one, which I got just to make cookies with my kids when they were younger. It was fun back then. My husband keeps wanting to buy me the Kitchenaid Mixer every Xmas and I tell him no thank you and then again, also on my birthday (that one is a big NO, lol). I don’t bake. I like to leave the baking to the professionals, mainly because I just don’t have any spare time to spend hours in the kitchen. If you do enjoy doing a lot of baking, I would keep it!

 

[QueenIsabella]

I've had mine for over 20 years. These days, my kids use it more than I do. It makes cookies and cakes so easy, my kids just love to do it. They won't even use cake mixes anymore--it must be homemade cake batter AND frosting! It's so cute to see DS14, sifting cocoa for his soon-to-be-world-famous double-chocolate cookies.

I haven't tried the shredding chicken thing, but I have made homemade bread, ice cream, whipped cream, quick breads, and so forth. I've never tried it for mashed potatoes, but that's because I'm lazy and don't make homemade taters (I hate peeling them!).

I would love to upgrade to a nicer one in a pretty color--mine's white, I think the other choices were red and black, back in the day. But, I can't justify the cost because mine works fine. I'm thinking I could foist it off on one of the kids and get myself a new one, but they probably want their own fun colored one. I know people sometimes own two, but I don't make enough batches of cookies to justify two.

 

[Buckeye218]

My wife really wanted one and we bought one in 2018. She uses it for all kinds of cookies and doughs, especially at the holidays as well as mashed potatoes. She is a baker extraordinaire and it's a luxury she well deserves. She never could afford one before and she absolutely loves the one she got...in a limited edition orange color. I am the lucky beneficiary of her baking prowess.

 

[Skippy918]

We have the 6qt professional KA mixer. We use it several times a month. We use it for cookies, cakes, pasta dough, and bread.

 

[fly girl]

It's a tough call.

I use mine and I really like it. (I wouldn't say love, as it isn't used all the time.) However, when I need it, I am so glad I have it over a hand mixer. Just flip that switch and let it go while I am cleaning up or getting the next step of the recipe ready.

However, as kitchen appliances go, it is a space hog. I got rid of the bread maker, rotisserie, and indoor grill so I have the space. But if you truly like your handheld mixer and don't see the need for it, take it back. (My sister is the baker in our family and she rarely uses hers. Personal preference. She learned with a handheld, and that's what she likes.)

If you're like me, this is how it will play out:
You return it.
Either you say: "Yep, I never would've used it. Good thing I got my money back!" Or ... "I really wish I hadn't returned it." And you wait it out for another sale to buy it again.
Whatever way it goes, you'll know if you really wanted it or not.

 

[ronandannette]

I absolutely detest appliances kept permanently on the counters. I was gifted a KitchenAid stand mixer and was kind of excited until I realized how heavy it was and that I had nowhere to conveniently store it between uses. I re-gifted it without ever opening the box and don't regret it for a second, even though I use my hand mixer at least 3 times a week; sometimes much more often.

 

[OrangeBirdGirl]

I've had mine about 12 years. It's something I've always wanted. I don't use it a ton maybe 1-2 times a month but they're so well made it'll last forever. I rarely use it for baking maybe 3 times a year I do it for that. Use it to shred chicken as some mentioned and do mashed potatoes. I also use it to mix up ground beef when I'm doing meatloaf or various meatloafs. I'm glad I have it. I hate stuff on my countertops so I have a slide out bottom shelf in one of my cabinets on the kitchen island so I keep it down there. I also have the pasta attachment and make all my pasta from scratch.

 

[smokeyblue]

This is one of those things that you need to own to realize you really don't want.

 

[runjulesrun]

I LOVE my Kitchen Aid! I had my first one for over 20 years and used it all the time. I used it so much that my family knew how much I loved it and last Christmas they surprised me with an upgraded Pro model. I Love it even more! I used it tonight to mix up meatloaf. I also use it for cookies, cakes, bread dough, homemade whipped cream, homemade butter and so much more. I don't think I could live without one now.

 

[RUDisney]

The never thought of mixing meatballs in it. I may have to make some Sunday sauce this weekend.

 

[mmouse37]

I am on my second. Had one when we first married back in 1979 and just got a new one two years ago. I use mine almost every day or at least several times a week. I do a lot of baking but I also use it for making tuna salad, egg salad, chicken salad, meatballs, meatloaf, cookies, cakes, scones, frostings, brownies, whipped cream, bread doughs, different fillings for lasagna or stuffed shells, salad dressings, etc. I absolutely love my mixer. I do not use the juicer attachment that I wanted for it. That was a waste but the the whisk, paddle and dough hook I use all the time.

Now, an appliance I would like to use more is my Cuisinart food processor. I find I don't use that enough.

MJ

 

[mmouse37]

I've had mine for over 20 years. These days, my kids use it more than I do. It makes cookies and cakes so easy, my kids just love to do it. They won't even use cake mixes anymore--it must be homemade cake batter AND frosting! It's so cute to see DS14, sifting cocoa for his soon-to-be-world-famous double-chocolate cookies.

I haven't tried the shredding chicken thing, but I have made homemade bread, ice cream, whipped cream, quick breads, and so forth. I've never tried it for mashed potatoes, but that's because I'm lazy and don't make homemade taters (I hate peeling them!).

I would love to upgrade to a nicer one in a pretty color--mine's white, I think the other choices were red and black, back in the day. But, I can't justify the cost because mine works fine. I'm thinking I could foist it off on one of the kids and get myself a new one, but they probably want their own fun colored one. I know people sometimes own two, but I don't make enough batches of cookies to justify two.

I also had a white one and upgraded to a silver one recently....I sold my white one for $30 bucks....I waiting and waited and compared prices and sales and finally bought the new one. At least I got something for the old one...it was close to 40 years old.

MJ

 

[AndreaDM]

I love mine, have had it for over 15 years. Not only used for baking, but for mashed potatoes and mixing meatloaf or meatballs like a pp mentioned. I also use it to make real whipped cream, a hand mixer would take ages.