I got my first KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer last month — here's 3 things I've learned
Until last month, I had never used a stand mixer before. So when I got my KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer, I couldn't wait to get started. It's hands down the best stand mixer, so I knew I was in for a treat.
After over a month of playing with my new toy, I come to you with an armory of recommendations for other beginners. Some seasoned KitchenAid users will, of course, know all of these already. While some of my KitchenAid stand mixer recommendations are more common sense than hacks, I've compiled my best discoveries here for other newbies. Hopefully my findings help you out.
Buying a KitchenAid stand mixer is a major commitment. KitchenAid sales are rare, and the stand mixers are really expensive. Maybe some of these discoveries are the final push you need!
This is the model I have. It's 5 quarts with a tilt head, which means it can easily fit two loaves of sourdough, and up to 108 cookies worth of dough. I have it in passion red, but if I was to choose, I think I'd pick the cardamom or pistachio color in the picture here.
Although I've used my KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer for baking, I've discovered that it excels in other areas, too. It can be used to shred chicken or pork to make pulled chicken and pulled pork sandwiches.
All I have to do is put cooked chicken (or pork) into the mixing bowl with the paddle attachment and set it on power 1. After a few minutes, the meat is shredded perfectly for a huge range of uses.
It's also ideal for making huge batches of sandwich fillings. For example, I could throw in a few tins of tuna, some mayo, and diced veggies and save my arm muscles — the stand mixer will combine it all in minutes.
Goodbye aching biceps, hello meal-prepped sandwich fillings. I only have the basic attachments, but I can't wait to get some of the best KitchenAid stand mixer attachments to up my game even further.
Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips.
Last but not least, over the past month I've discovered that the KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer is great for making veggie burger patties or veggie meatballs.
Instead of expending all my effort mashing beans and lentils by hand, I just chuck everything into the stand mixer and use the whisk attachment to combine into a burger mixture. Then I add my spices and shape, and I've got delicious homemade veggie patties without having to sweat over a mixing bowl.
I'm an avid sourdough baker. I'm the kind of person who worries about their starter if they're away for a week or more. Is it surviving without me? Is it getting too acidic? Will a couple of big feeds help it once I get back?
Even so, making sourdough is labor. Labor of love, of course, but serious labor nonetheless. The process takes two days and requires constant babying. You have to stretch and fold the dough every half an hour during the bulk fermentation stage, and honestly, sometimes I don't have time.
So when I saw someone online claim that they could skip the stretch and fold step by just mixing in the KitchenAid before proofing, I knew I had to test it out. In all honesty, this was the first thing I did when I unboxed my stand mixer.
This is what happened the first time: I prepared my dough as usual and attached the dough hook. Then I set it on speed 3 (a fatal error) and kneaded my dough for 5 minutes.
However, the dough didn't rise. After some research, I found out that overzealous kneading can actually inhibit yeast development.
The second time, I repeated these exact steps, but kept the stand mixer on speed 1. This resulted in a perfectly fluffy, aerated crumb. My scoring still needs some work, so I won't share a picture of the loaf here, but rest assured it tasted delicious.
The bottom line is: speed 1 is more than enough — be patient.
As I mentioned earlier, some of my findings are more common sense than actual discoveries. This one definitely falls into the first category. If you've never felt a KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer, they're heavy. Like, oh-my-gosh-I'm-going-to-drop-it-right-now heavy.
With the metal bowl, it's about 30 pounds. This is definitely a good thing — the high-quality all-metal construction won't come light, after all — but please heed my warning.
Foolishly, I put the stand mixer on an upper shelf in my kitchen to keep it off my countertops. When I tried to get it down, I almost dropped it and it ripped off the top veneer of the shelf. I've fixed it with super glue, but I'm not looking forward to that being taken out of my rental deposit when I move.
The stand mixer's feet have also left little dents in the wood, so I'd recommend using a mat (like a mouse pad, tea towel, or even a place setting) underneath to prevent this.
Although I've only had my stand mixer for a month, I'm loving experimenting with it and trying to find new ways to get as much use out of it as possible.
Do you have a KitchenAid stand mixer too? Do you have any major hacks you've learned over the years — anything like the KitchenAid stand mixer dime test? Let me know in the comments. I'm all ears!
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I got my first KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer last month — here's 3 things I've learned
Until last month, I had never used a stand mixer before. So when I got my KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer, I couldn't wait to get started. It's hands down the best stand mixer, so I knew I was in for a treat. After over a month of playing with my new toy, I come to you with an armory of recommendations for other beginners. Some seasoned KitchenAid users will, of course, know all of these already. While some of my KitchenAid stand mixer recommendations are more common sense than hacks, I've compiled my best discoveries here for other newbies. Hopefully my findings help you out. Buying a KitchenAid stand mixer is a major commitment. KitchenAid sales are rare, and the stand mixers are really expensive. Maybe some of these discoveries are the final push you need! This is the model I have. It's 5 quarts with a tilt head, which means it can easily fit two loaves of sourdough, and up to 108 cookies worth of dough. I have it in passion red, but if I was to choose, I think I'd pick the cardamom or pistachio color in the picture here. Although I've used my KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer for baking, I've discovered that it excels in other areas, too. It can be used to shred chicken or pork to make pulled chicken and pulled pork sandwiches. All I have to do is put cooked chicken (or pork) into the mixing bowl with the paddle attachment and set it on power 1. After a few minutes, the meat is shredded perfectly for a huge range of uses. It's also ideal for making huge batches of sandwich fillings. For example, I could throw in a few tins of tuna, some mayo, and diced veggies and save my arm muscles — the stand mixer will combine it all in minutes. Goodbye aching biceps, hello meal-prepped sandwich fillings. I only have the basic attachments, but I can't wait to get some of the best KitchenAid stand mixer attachments to up my game even further. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Last but not least, over the past month I've discovered that the KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer is great for making veggie burger patties or veggie meatballs. Instead of expending all my effort mashing beans and lentils by hand, I just chuck everything into the stand mixer and use the whisk attachment to combine into a burger mixture. Then I add my spices and shape, and I've got delicious homemade veggie patties without having to sweat over a mixing bowl. I'm an avid sourdough baker. I'm the kind of person who worries about their starter if they're away for a week or more. Is it surviving without me? Is it getting too acidic? Will a couple of big feeds help it once I get back? Even so, making sourdough is labor. Labor of love, of course, but serious labor nonetheless. The process takes two days and requires constant babying. You have to stretch and fold the dough every half an hour during the bulk fermentation stage, and honestly, sometimes I don't have time. So when I saw someone online claim that they could skip the stretch and fold step by just mixing in the KitchenAid before proofing, I knew I had to test it out. In all honesty, this was the first thing I did when I unboxed my stand mixer. This is what happened the first time: I prepared my dough as usual and attached the dough hook. Then I set it on speed 3 (a fatal error) and kneaded my dough for 5 minutes. However, the dough didn't rise. After some research, I found out that overzealous kneading can actually inhibit yeast development. The second time, I repeated these exact steps, but kept the stand mixer on speed 1. This resulted in a perfectly fluffy, aerated crumb. My scoring still needs some work, so I won't share a picture of the loaf here, but rest assured it tasted delicious. The bottom line is: speed 1 is more than enough — be patient. As I mentioned earlier, some of my findings are more common sense than actual discoveries. This one definitely falls into the first category. If you've never felt a KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer, they're heavy. Like, oh-my-gosh-I'm-going-to-drop-it-right-now heavy. With the metal bowl, it's about 30 pounds. This is definitely a good thing — the high-quality all-metal construction won't come light, after all — but please heed my warning. Foolishly, I put the stand mixer on an upper shelf in my kitchen to keep it off my countertops. When I tried to get it down, I almost dropped it and it ripped off the top veneer of the shelf. I've fixed it with super glue, but I'm not looking forward to that being taken out of my rental deposit when I move. The stand mixer's feet have also left little dents in the wood, so I'd recommend using a mat (like a mouse pad, tea towel, or even a place setting) underneath to prevent this. Although I've only had my stand mixer for a month, I'm loving experimenting with it and trying to find new ways to get as much use out of it as possible. Do you have a KitchenAid stand mixer too? Do you have any major hacks you've learned over the years — anything like the KitchenAid stand mixer dime test? Let me know in the comments. I'm all ears!
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On doing some further research, even KitchenAid mentions how using the proof function on an air fryer can speed up bread proofing, stating, 'The Proof Function maintains a warm environment useful for rising yeast… With a range of 80-100°F temperature and lower heating elements, this setting can be used to accelerate bread proofing.' I excitedly got to work using my KitchenAid Artisan stand mixer to whip up some bread dough. First attemptTo begin with, I chose a standard white bread recipe, which I planned to use to make bread rolls. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. After mixing the ingredients and kneading the dough in my stand mixer, I transferred the dough to my Corsori TurboBlaze air fryer. I placed the dough in an air fryer liner, closed the drawer, and set the appliance to run on 'Proof' mode for 30 minutes. The standard temperature is set to 30°C (86°F), but you can adjust this if you want to increase or decrease the heat. At this stage, I wasn't sure whether to cover the dough or not, so I left it uncovered to see the result. Normally I'd place a tea towel over the dough as it rises, but this is a definite no-no when using an air fryer. After the time had expired, I removed the dough to see it had doubled in size — perfect. However, it appeared to have a slight crust on the surface, so it wasn't ideal. I made a note to myself to cover the dough next time round. However, I was still able to knock the dough back and form it into rounds, ready to proof again before baking. This time, I covered the dough with a tea towel and left it to rise on my countertop before baking the rolls in my oven. Second attemptOn my second attempt, I followed the same recipe, but rather than leaving the dough uncovered in the air fryer, I placed plastic wrap over the top. However, I was cautious to ensure the wrap was firmly secured and not too close to the air fryer fan above. I didn't want any mishaps with the plastic wrap catching onto the fan. The result? A much better rise, without a coating on the outside of the dough. And, once cooked, the rolls were fluffy and lightweight. I wasn't quite brave enough to cook the buns in the air fryer. I'll leave that for another time, but I placed them in the oven and left them to bake for 15 minutes before finishing them off with lemon icing. Cosori's TurboBlaze air fryer offers 6-quarts of capacity and five fan settings, ranging from 90°Fto 450°F. The four turbo modes offer air fry, roast, broil and frozen, with six further functions offering preheat, dry, bake, proof and warm. Despite its capacity if has a small footprint and is quiet when operating, measuring 53 dB on a high fan setting. Next up , I made a sweet dough for lemon iced buns. I wasn't sure what to expect as the recipe required a mix of flour, with only half being strong bread flour. I also added warm milk, butter, and an egg. The consistency was much heavier than the white bread dough, so I expected it would take longer to rise. I was right; instead of 30 minutes in the air fryer on the 'Proof' setting, it took a good 60 minutes, although I did check in on its progress during the process. This time, rather than placing the dough to rise on my countertop, I divided it into rounds and put the buns back in the air fryer. I think they look quite pretty! The second proof was a little shorter, but due to the nature of the sweet dough, it required more time than the white rolls. The proof is in the eating, and there haven't been any complaints yet. Would I use the air fryer proof setting again? There's no question about it. I loved being able to leave my dough to rise, knowing it was being left at the ideal temperature. The air fryer achieved the correct temperature, allowing the yeast to become active and produce carbon dioxide, which led to a well-risen and flavorful loaf. You'll no longer see me trying to find the hotspots in my house — I'll put proofing my bread in my air fryer from now on.
