My experience with the KitchenAid food processor

Today Miguel Ángel, author of the blog Pimientos Verdes, tells us about the Kitchen Aid food processor. His experience has shown him that the purchase was worth it: it has become his ally and helper in the kitchen. For this reason, he wanted to share with us the most positive points of buying a Kitchen Aid.

One of the tools I use most in my kitchen is, without a doubt, my Kitchen Aid. It is a very versatile machine that has become a great ally for me, especially in my sweet recipes. Although this machine is useful for much more. Today we are going to get to know it better.

Perhaps many of you are considering buying a food processor and have a thousand doubts about which one is best to buy. That was exactly what happened to me and today, after more than two years with my Kitchen Aid, I can say that the purchase was totally satisfactory and that my experience with it is excellent.

Kitchen Aid - A bit of history

The mixer we know today as Kitchen Aid was invented in 1919 by the American company Troy Metal Products Company and was launched under the commercial name H-5.

In the 1920s, the wife of an executive at the company said to him: "I don't know what you are going to call it, all I know is that it's the best kitchen helper I've ever had in my life". So the H-5 was renamed Kitchen Aid. Quickly, KitchenAid mixers became one of the most popular food processors and the brand launched new, smaller and more manageable machines, adapting to the needs of modern homes.

In the 1930s, they launched the K series, with an aesthetic very similar to the current one. As a curious fact, many accessories from that era can still be used on current models.

Since then, KitchenAid machines have evolved to the current models, which with their wide variety of colors and accessories have become an iconic and highly demanded appliance worldwide.

Moreover, we are faced with a reliable and durable machine that is manufactured in the United States following high quality standards.

Uses of the Kitchen Aid

The main use of the KitchenAid is for working doughs; it is an excellent machine for mixing cake batters, breads and other fatty doughs. Here its performance is excellent. Of course, it is also useful for whipping cream and egg whites with exceptional results.

All these functions are carried out with the 3 accessories that come with it and that are:

- whisk: it’s useful for whipping cream, egg whites, and for beating batters that need to incorporate air, such as muffins. It’s also useful for making mayonnaise.

- Flat beater: used for mixing doughs. It's the one I use to prepare shortcrust pastry and my cakes, bundt cakes, cupcakes and other sweets. It's also perfect for making buttercream and cream cheese frostings with which I decorate my cupcakes.

- Dough hook: Used for kneading doughs, such as pizza dough, brioche or for kneading breads.

Additionally, we can acquire other accessories such as:

- Silicone beater: perfect for scraping the sides of the bowl.

- Pasta attachment: this is a comprehensive complement for preparing our own spaghetti, macaroni, bucatini…

- Meat grinder

- Glass bowl: it's always good to have an extra bowl and this one, besides being functional, is pretty.

- Ice cream maker (or ice cream attachment): This accessory is my latest acquisition and I'm sure I'll use it a lot this summer. Sorbets, granitas and ice creams can be made in just 20 minutes.

Apart from these, there are other accessories on the market, although I can't talk about them because I have no experience using them.

Thinking about the purchase

If your thing is baking and the world of doughs, don't hesitate for a moment. The Kitchen Aid is your machine.

As I have already mentioned, it is a machine that works very well. The model I have, the Artisan, gets the most out of its 300 w of power in an exceptional way. Some criticize that this power is lower than that of other machines in its category, but don't be fooled by that figure. The KitchenAid motor is super efficient and is capable of working doughs better than other machines with more power. In fact, during long kneads and with heavy doughs, like brioche, my KitchenAid's motor barely heats up and I don't notice the machine struggling at all with these tasks.

Some have told me that other machines, the ones that also cook and chop (you surely know which ones I mean), can do everything a Kitchen Aid does… well, that's not true. The work the KitchenAid does with doughs is infinitely better and I won't even mention whipping egg whites or cream. There's no comparison. After all, KitchenAids are designed for this.

Another thing I like is that it's very easy to clean. The bowl has no edges or strange shapes, and besides, it can be put in the dishwasher.

And finally, another feature that won me over was the aesthetics and the wide variety of colors. It wasn't a determining factor, of course, but it did tip the scales.

If you're looking for recipes made with the KitchenAid, you can search the Kitchen Aid tag on the blog (here you'll see them all). You'll find delicious recipes like these:

- American-style apple cake

- Pumpkin ice cream with salted caramel sauce and candied pecans

But any baking recipe can be made with the machine, as well as some others like pasta, pizza, mayonnaise, etc. as I mentioned. There is a wide variety of KitchenAid recipes, so it depends on your enthusiasm and creative genius to set the limits of innovation in the kitchen.

If you have any doubts about which Kitchen Aid might interest you more (there are more basic models and more professional models), I recommend you read the post "Is it worth buying a Kitchen Aid?", in which the differences between the different models are explained. And if you have any other questions or want advice, you can leave a comment or call us and we will gladly answer you.