Kitchen Mixer Help

My wife and I make lots of bread every week and our Kitchen Aid was struggling with a recipe that calls for 5 1/2 cups of flour. We read several reviews including those for the Magic Mill, the Viking and the Delonghi.

WHAT’S THE 411 ON THIS PRODUCT?

First, let me start by saying that I’m very satisfied with my two wonderful K’Aid Stand Mixers, and that I have no intention of getting rid of them and that I had absolutely no intention of even getting this product. That is, until I read Epinions.com member Caprig’s outstanding review on the machine.

I, at first, was not going to buy this mixer at all because I felt that I was very satisfied with my two present stand mixers, which I still am. So I paid it no mind. Then I visited the company’s website, read some rave reviews on the mixer and it then struck me that curiosity was just killing the cat!!

I bought the K5SS several years ago for bread. I’d been grinding my own grain and baking bread was a hobby. At the time I really didn’t know much about mixers and it was the largest and most expensive one I saw in the stores.

Product

MM337

Key Features
Mixer Type
Stand

Other Features
Power Output
450 Watts
Bowl Size
8 quart (7.6 liter)

Miscellaneous
22437045

Details

The AEG/Magic Mill Assistant has been a Swedish secret for over 50 years. This machine is one of the most versatile units on the market, with an excellent reputation for long term reliability

My wife and I decided we wanted to start making focaccia, bread, and pizza on a regular basis. Although we’re both in our mid 30s we didn’t enjoy the time and effort it took to knead the dough. The thinking was: if it takes too long and it tires us out, we won’t do it very often.

The search for a stand mixer began. I wanted a mixer that worked well for dough. That was the main purpose for us. We considered the Kitchen-Aid, but three things bothered us. One, the reports on Epinions about burnt motors by those who attempted to work large amounts of dough. Two, the unbelievably short warranty of one year. Three, the low power of 300 watts (325 and 525 are also available).

Okay so it sounds a little like a pretty big drill press or maybe a radial arm saw. But when you’re working with 525 watts of mixing torque and power you shouldn’t be surprised that this mixer sounds like a power tool. When I got my Professional, (I purchased a re-furbished unit), I had a choice of black, grey or white. An easy enough choice, and now a black matte “stealth” mixer resides on my counter. Before picking up the KA Pro, I checked into other large mixers like the Kenwood and the Magic Mill, and I’m sure they are extremely capable machines, they just aren’t Kitchenaid.

I have owned and used mixers for nearly 40 years, all the major brands. I have already written reviews for the Magic Mill/Electrolux DLX, the Sunbeam stand mixer and the Bosch Compact, all of which I own. I bought a Bosch universal because I like appliances, and have used the Compact for many years successfully. It’s true, the Bosch is quite different than the conventional American mixer, e.g. K’Aid. Unlike a prior reviewer, I’ve had no problem whatsoever with the center post on the Bosch. It is no harder to work around that post than working around the head on an American mixer! I have the same type of whisk bowl on my DLX; it will indeed make a cup-and-a-half of meringue from a single egg white. It covers the mixing area much better than the K’Aid or Bosch’s own Compact with a single beater. Like the DLX, there is a high-torque outlet (where the mixing bowl sits) and a high-speed outlet (where the blender and other accessories sit). This is a design that Bosch has developed over a half-century and it shows. The mixing bowl comes with a dough hook and two weights of whisks. One of my few reservations with this machine in the past was the lack of a beating paddle, but this has been remedied with available Delrin paddles now, produced in America and quite inexpensive. I’ve used them for heavier things such as cookie batters and mashing potatoes and they’ve worked beautifully–and they have a lifetime warranty. After several years living with a DLX I appreciate having no mixer head to try and peek around while I’m working. I’ve found the bowl ring on the Bosch to be no problem, it serves the same function that the splatter ring does on the K’Aid. The design of the Bosch cleans the bowl much better than the K’Aid so that little scraping is required, at least for the recipes I’ve done. The dough hook has worked very well for me, running a dozen and more cups of whole wheat flour at a time. This is of course not possible on the K’Aid, where the motor will just burn out with this type of duty. Breadmaking was what made the Bosch popular in this country, back in the seventies, and it still excels at all breads. Incidentally, the Bosch blender is a real standout. The blades are set quite differently than my Waring or Oster blenders and it has power and speed almost like a Vita-Mix. Plus, it’s a six-cup capacity. I haven’t bought any of the other accessories for this machine because I’ve got the shredder, food processor, grinder, etc. on the Compact. I expect this machine would match and/or exceed the Compact in ease of use and quality.

I bought this mixer off the internet because I thought the photo was intriguing! Stupid reason? Probably, but I’m an appliance freak and I use stand mixers constantly for bread and cake recipes. After receiving the mixer I was amazed at its similarity to my Bosch Compact. The planetary motion is the same, the whisk, paddle and hook are almost identical (though not quite). My Bosch has a flexible plastic bowl, this one has stainless. The Bosch has 4 speeds, this one has 8. However, this machine has only 300 Watts whereas the Bosch has 450. Plus, this mixer weighs much more.

I have owned this product for about a year now, and was so thrilled when I first got it! As a cake decorator, the increased capacity from my smaller KA mixer was going to save me a lot of time and effort. (I have had my smaller 4.5 qt KitchenAid for 12+ years, and never had a problem–I love it!!)

Our Magic Mill is now ten years old. It accompanies a Braun 5 in 1 kitchen machine and a Rival/Kenwood KM250 as our fleet of stand mixers. It was purchased primarily for yeast doughs and it does the best job of mixing and kneading of any machine we have had including Bosch, KitchenAid, and Moulinex.

The roller and scraper perform beautifully for any recipe up to about twelve cups of flour. The dough hook is used when recipes call for larger amounts. This unit will not “walk” no matter how large the recipe. The unique action of the bowl rotating instead of a mixer head keeps everything stable and smooth. The mixer also does a great job with large batches of stiff cookie dough and it does not break chocolate chips when they are added. For cakes, it creams fat and sugar to a light airy consistency and performs all other mixing chores with ease. The plastic bowl with wire whips does a better job for whipping cream and egg whites than the metal bowl with roller and scraper, this option is included in the purchase price with many retailers. This machine has never disappointed us. It is manufactured in Sweden by Electrolux with typical Swedish high quality standards.