I finally got my KitchenAid stand mixer!

We, fiddle-dee-dee, I finally broke down and bought a Kitchen Aid mixer!! They had the sale on QVC that I've been watching for and the price went down from $300 to $250 with free shipping; it also offered 6 months of flex pay, which means they bill you 1/6 of the total each month for 6 months and you pay no interest. It's the smaller one but will be perfect for Brian and me! What it includes follows:

*Includes tilt-head stand mixer, 4.5-qt stainless steel bowl with handle, 3-qt stainless steel bowl, coated dough hook, coated flat beater, wire whisk, [b]Flex Edge beater[b], cookbook, and manual
*300W motor
*10-speed control
*Electronic speed sense
*59-point planetary mixing action allows for quicker mixing
*Coated beaters, dough hook, and stainless steel bowls are dishwasher-safe
*Cookbook: 192 pages, 133 recipes with photos throughout
*Measurements: Mixer 14"H x 13"L x 8-1/4"W; Cord 46"L; weighs 19 lbs, 11 oz
*UL listed; 1-year Limited Manufacturer's Warranty

It will get here on or about 10/3 and the two of us are already excited! I got a white one instead of a color, as that's what I've been wanting.

I wanted an extra bowl and the one included is only 3 quarts with no handle but it's fine, again, for the two of us. (I'd like to pick up a glass bowl and one of those pour-thru covers as well.) And I really wanted that FlexEdge beater that's included -- Brian's boxed brownies that he's been regularly baking will become easier with that one. Plus that FlexEdge beater scrapes the bowl so nicely once you finish using it. Normally, the kind of cookbook that is included would be last on my list of desires but since I'm not used to the power of this machine, it will be nice to see what utensil and mixer speed is being called for in different recipes. It will help me educate myself!

It sure will be nice to have one finally. Can't wait to bake something that says "whip ingredients for 5 minutes," which is a long, boring time when you're dealing with a hand mixer -- plus, now I can do something else that's called for while that's being done. Yippee! There are a few things I haven't made just thinking it would be sooo much easier to make if I had one of these...

Congratulations!! Enjoy it!!

Congrats! If you have any questions about the attachments that you can buy, ask me. I have the slicer/grater, spiralizer, juicer, pasta roller, meat grinder. I will give you my opinion. I also have the scraper blade, the 3qt bowl and the glass bowl.

Bugster2 wrote:Congrats! If you have any questions about the attachments that you can buy, ask me. I have the slicer/grater, spiralizer, juicer, pasta roller, meat grinder. I will give you my opinion. I also have the scraper blade, the 3qt bowl and the glass bowl.

Wow, Debbie, you really do have a lot of the attachments! I do have a question already: Do you use the meat grinder to grind other things, or would you use the slicer/grater attachment to grind anything other than meat? Specifically, I'm thinking of grating bell peppers and jalapenos for pepper jelly. Thanks.

Thanks, Cookingirl. Wish we'd see you around here more often!

Crybaby wrote:[

Thanks, Cookingirl.  Wish we'd see you around here more often!

Oh, I am really not cooking much... just having a lot of salads... now that the weather is getting cooler, I am sure that will stop, and I will be doing a bit more cooking...still trying to eat healthy, but it is not working...last night I was too tired to make or even pick up a salad. I had an apple with peanut butter, a glass of win, some cashews, and then some popcorn.. just junk food...
Yesterday, I did some cleaning around here, and then off to help out at the humane society, feeding and cleaning, and cuddling with kitties, and talking with potential adopters....they are all so sweet, and wanting to be loved...

oh, and after the humane society, I went to Trader Joes to pick up a few things. It is right next door to PetSmart, where the cats are located...

cookingirl wrote:

Crybaby wrote:[Thanks, Cookingirl.  Wish we'd see you around here more often!

Oh, I am really not cooking much... just having a lot of salads... now that the weather is getting cooler, I am sure that will stop, and I will be doing a bit more cooking...still trying to eat healthy, but it is not working...last night I was too tired to make or even pick up a salad. I had an apple with peanut butter, a glass of win, some cashews, and then some popcorn.. just junk food...

It doesn't matter if you're not cooking much, Cyn!  Just come on by and hang out with the rest of us.  Tell us what you're busy with, or tell us an Artie story.  

To be honest, your dinner last night didn't sound too bad -- as long as you didn't go overboard on the cashews and the popcorn, and they weren't candy-coated!  

You can still eat healthy even though the seasons are changing but maybe you've just got to give salads a break for a bit so you can look forward to dinner not being so repetitive for a while.  Google "light meals for fall" or something akin to that so you get some fresh ideas.  

cookingirl wrote:Yesterday, I did some cleaning around here, and then off to help out at the humane society, feeding and cleaning, and cuddling with kitties, and talking with potential adopters....they are all so sweet, and wanting to be loved...oh, and after the humane society, I went to Trader Joes to pick up a few things. It is right next door to PetSmart, where the cats are located...

Such a nice thing to do with your time, CG.  And keeping busy when you're trying to lose some weight is ALWAYS a good idea.  There's so much stuff online about Trader Joe's that you could even google "something quick and light for dinner from Trader Joe's" and come up with some things to purchase.  I know what you mean about being tired so maybe you can pick up some stuff that won't take a lot of prep time.

I hope to start seeing more of you...

Youre going to love it. I have a lot of attachments too so if you have questions, you can let me know too.

I ended up returning the ice cream maker even though everybody else loves it. It didn't get cold enough for Phoenix summers and ice cream never froze right.

My favorite, lately, is the spiralizer. I use it all the time, and just bought the new 'angel hair' spiralizer attachment.

I use the grinder all the time. It works nicely for meat as well as grinding tomatoes, onions, etc.

I have been eyeballing the temperature bowl attachment but at $250, it doesn't get good enough reviews for me to even bother. I want it for tempering chocolate.

I also just bought the juicer/sauce attachment but haven't tried it yet.

I have the same beater with rubber on the sides that scrapes the bowl well. I wouldn't use it for making brownies, though, since most boxed mixes say 'mix 50 strokes'. The KA would annihilate it.

Even without all the fancy attachments, the KA can do a lot and you're going to be really happy you bought it.

Crybaby wrote:

Bugster2 wrote:Congrats! If you have any questions about the attachments that you can buy, ask me. I have the slicer/grater, spiralizer, juicer, pasta roller, meat grinder. I will give you my opinion. I also have the scraper blade, the 3qt bowl and the glass bowl.

Wow, Debbie, you really do have a lot of the attachments!  I do have a question already:  Do you use the meat grinder to grind other things, or would you use the slicer/grater attachment to grind anything other than meat?  Specifically, I'm thinking of grating bell peppers and jalapenos for pepper jelly.  Thanks.

Thanks, Cookingirl.  Wish we'd see you around here more often!

I have never used the meat grinder for other things.

The slicer/grater is for veggies and cheese, not meat.

I am not sure about the peppers because I don't know what they are supposed to look like. Sorry I am not much help.

JanaAZ wrote:Youre going to love it.  I have a lot of attachments too so if you have questions, you can let me know too.

I ended up returning the ice cream maker even though everybody else loves it. It didn't get cold enough for Phoenix summers and ice cream never froze right.

My favorite, lately, is the spiralizer.  I use it all the time, and just bought the new 'angel hair' spiralizer attachment.  

I use the grinder all the time.  It works nicely for meat as well as grinding tomatoes, onions, etc.  

I have been eyeballing the temperature bowl attachment but at $250, it doesn't get good enough reviews for me to even bother.  I want it for tempering chocolate.

I also just bought the juicer/sauce attachment but haven't tried it yet.  

I have the same beater with rubber on the sides that scrapes the bowl well.  I wouldn't use it for making brownies, though, since most boxed mixes say 'mix 50 strokes'.  The KA would annihilate it.  

Even without all the fancy attachments, the KA can do a lot and you're going to be really happy you bought it.

I didn't like the ice cream maker either. I used my own recipe in it and it wouldn't even turn. Too thick a mix for the machine.

I also have the spiralizer and just bought the angel hair attachment. I don't use it much because I don't have any recipes but I just ordered a book with recipes that should help. It is very well made. I peeled, cored and sliced 5lbs of apples in less than 10 minutes. Really amazing.

I resisted getting one for a long time but when I did, I wondered why I waited so long. It makes so many things easier.

JanaAZ wrote:Youre going to love it.  I have a lot of attachments too so if you have questions, you can let me know too.

I ended up returning the ice cream maker even though everybody else loves it. It didn't get cold enough for Phoenix summers and ice cream never froze right.

My favorite, lately, is the spiralizer.  I use it all the time, and just bought the new 'angel hair' spiralizer attachment.  

I use the grinder all the time.  It works nicely for meat as well as grinding tomatoes, onions, etc.  

I have been eyeballing the temperature bowl attachment but at $250, it doesn't get good enough reviews for me to even bother.  I want it for tempering chocolate.

I also just bought the juicer/sauce attachment but haven't tried it yet.  

I have the same beater with rubber on the sides that scrapes the bowl well.  I wouldn't use it for making brownies, though, since most boxed mixes say 'mix 50 strokes'.  The KA would annihilate it.  

Even without all the fancy attachments, the KA can do a lot and you're going to be really happy you bought it.

Thanks, Jana, as it's nice to know someone else I can get tips from. Some of the attachments, of course, don't appeal to me. We have two ice cream makers, including that nifty little Cuisinart one with an extra bowl that makes 1-1/2 pints, and a huge electric White Mountain one for making big batches outside (you'll laugh, but we used it in the house inside the sink once when the weather was really bad and we had people coming over who were drooling over homemade ice cream). I also have an Atlas pasta maker, though I would like to get the "pulse" attachment so I could use it without assistance from Brian.

In other words, I don't need every attachment but will keep an eye out for ones that might prove handy enough for us to justify the cost and yet one more thing to store! I might look at the grater and the grinder but all that's down the line. Right now, like you say, I can't wait for us just to enjoy the mixer and all it does by itself.

It sure is nice to know so many of you have one, as it's like being the last kid on the block to get the Chatty Cathy doll (grin). I have all of you to answer my questions!

NormM wrote:I resisted getting one for a long time but when I did, I wondered why I waited so long. It makes so many things easier.

I'm smiling, Norm, as I KNOW I waited too long. Wish I'd bought it when 20 lbs. was easier to move. I have a small area I call a "desk," which is a lowered kitchen counter in front of a window looking out into my backyard. I keep my breadmaker (which I still use!) on that desk and am pretty sure that's where this mixer will live. I also have the ice cream maker on that desk so something might have to be moved but there's a decent amount of room. There's a plug underneath the desk and about a dozen or so years ago, I had my painter drill a small hole in the desk so I could thread through a couple of electrical cords). That way I can either use the mixer on that desk or to raise it to the counter top or the nearby island will only mean lifting it up about a foot.

I also have a butcher block table (3 levels; it's really a cart with rollers) in my kitchen/dining room which has a plug strip along one side. I have my knife sharpener on there and it wouldn't be a problem to keep the KitchenAid on top of that heavy sturdy table. I have my blender on the bottom of that cart and the Cuisinart is either on the bottom of that cart or "permanently" on the counter next to the toaster and can opener. One of our past housekeepers sort of made a space for it there and I found I used it a lot more if I kept it there; recently Brian moved it back to the bottom of the cart for some reason. I'd let the KitchenAid live there but I think it's too tall to fit under the cabinets on the wall there. When I win Powerball and redo my kitchen, I will have things under the counter on those shelves that slide out and up so I won't have to lift it at all.

Well, house cleaner is coming today. I've got to pick up the stuff hanging around the bedroom waiting to be put away....

Congratulations on the coming arrival, Michelle! (sounds like you're expecting an addition to the family, doesn't it??? LOL)

You know you'll love it.

I use my grinder for German potato pancakes....grind up the raw potatoes & onions for the most divine creamy-on-the-inside-crispy-on-the-outside potato pancakes you've ever tasted. Also have used it for making my own pork breakfast sausage (good tasting but Jimmy Dean's is usually cheaper.....)

My grater is used for huge batches of zucchini bread, butternut squash casserole and anything I want to have LOTS of grated veg for.

Just remember you can 'hang' a towel over the top of the attachment/mixer and the bowl to contain spatters (unless you LIKE to wash down counters and walls.....).

bethk wrote:Congratulations on the coming arrival, Michelle!  (sounds like you're expecting an addition to the family, doesn't it???   LOL)

You know you'll love it.  

I use my grinder for German potato pancakes....grind up the raw potatoes & onions for the most divine creamy-on-the-inside-crispy-on-the-outside potato pancakes you've ever tasted.  Also have used it for making my own pork breakfast sausage (good tasting but Jimmy Dean's is usually cheaper.....)

Oooh, and we love latkes, Beth. Yeah, sausage making would've been something I tried when younger but today I'm honest enough (with myself) to admit it would be too much of a chore for too little reward (exhaustion vs. expense and eventual taste). Plus, there's such good locally made sausage, whether it's the local grocery we use or the smokehouse we get our andouille and sometimes smoked sausage from (and smoked chicken and the hogshead cheese and...)

bethk wrote:My grater is used for huge batches of zucchini bread, butternut squash casserole and anything I want to have LOTS of grated veg for.

I'd love this attachment just to make it easier to grate red and green bell peppers and jalapenos for making pepper jelly. That old grater of my mom's jury-rigged to something it will fit clamped onto and a bowl where it will end up dripping -- those days are hopefully over. I think it would be the first attachment I'd buy.

bethk wrote:Just remember you can 'hang' a towel over the top of the attachment/mixer and the bowl to contain spatters (unless you LIKE to wash down counters and walls.....).

Now THAT's the kind of advice I can see I really need! And hopefully I'll remember to lower the speed prior to adding flour, sugar, etc.!

Yeah, I'm very excited about it and appreciate all of you helping me get even more excited. Lord knows I waited long enough... Brian loves new toys, too, so I think he'll be tickled pink when it arrives (he's the one who asked when the ETA was). I'm going to have to keep him away from the list of attachments, as he'll be for getting just about everything!

I put those self-sticking felt pads on the feet of the mixer. Now all I have to do is slide it back and forth to use it instead of trying to lift it.

Bugster2 wrote:I put those self-sticking felt pads on the feet of the mixer. Now all I have to do is slide it back and forth to use it instead of trying to lift it.

Good idea, Bug!