KitchenAid Classic 4.5 Quart Tilt-Head Mixer, Black

KitchenAid has three main models of stand mixer: the 4.5 quart Classic tilt-head ($188, or $226 for the slightly more powerful “Plus”), the 5 quart Artisan tilt-head ($298), and the 6 quart fixed-head Professional ($359). The prices are Amazon prices; MSRP is considerably more, and B&M retailers have trouble matching Amazon even with Black Friday sales.

I’m sure the bigger mixers are, in some ways, better, but don’t underestimate what an enormous step up even the lowly Classic model is from a hand mixer or plastic food processor. This is a very solid product. And most of us, while we value the convenience of a big stand mixer when baking things, don’t exactly use these things every day. Even if you think that at some point in the future, you have reason to get a bigger one, remember that the bigger ones take up a lot more space, and these things actually have decent resale value, so if you want to upgrade later, your previous investment isn’t necessarily lost altogether.

I bought this because I’d been baking Dutch-style appeltaart a number of times, and people really like it, but it was a lot of work to make. At some point, I looked into how to make it faster, and I ended up getting a $20 peeler/corer/slicer for the apples, as well as this mixer. Appeltaart involves a heavy shortbread pasty crust (what the Germans call “Mürbeteig”), which is a challenge for a lot of kitchen equipment and traditionally has to be kneaded by hand, so if I was going to get a device to make it for me, it would have to be a pretty heavy-duty one.

The dough has a 3:2:1 flour/butter/sugar ratio (by weight) and just a little bit of egg. Usually, I’d cut the butter into small pieces to make it easier, but to put this mixer to the test, I just dumped in the ingredients and pulled the delightfully solid-feeling lever to the slowest speed. It wasn’t a small amount of dough either; the bowl was filled pretty much to capacity and a little bit of flour spilled out initially. At first, it looked like the dough was never going to come together, but I just left it running for a few minutes and before long I had a perfect dough. I had worried that maybe the dough would be too crumbly because the mixer can’t do the typical squeezing motion that you do by hand to really make the dough cohesive, but it turns out that once everything is thoroughly mixed, it only takes 10 seconds of hand-kneading to make the dough really come together. The hard work is really in the mixing and the mixer does it extremely well.

It’s clear that these things have been on the market for a long time and a lot of minor issues have been worked out over the years. The shape of the attachments and the shape of the bowl, for instance, are well matched to each other so the thing will beat even a single egg or a small amount of whipping cream just fine, and doughs don’t stick to the bowl when using the paddle attachment. The bayonet type bowl attachment really locks the bowl in place without making it hard to remove, things don’t splatter into spots that are hard to clean, etc.

Two nit-picks:

1. The mixer works if you don’t lock it in the down position. I can’t imagine this is good for the internal gearing, though then again the head is heavy enough that it might not matter very much. Still, it would be good to have some sort of interlock so that it didn’t operate when you don’t lock it down. Meanwhile, just remember to double-check that you have it locked down before turning it on.

2. The whisk attachment oxidizes a lot when you put it in a dishwasher, especially if you use a copious amount of strong detergent (e.g. Cascade brand). This leaves a black powdery residue that rubs off easily. I don’t think it’s particularly dangerous if it were to end up in your food in small quantities, but it has a metallic smell and taste and it’s unsightly. I’m sure it says somewhere in the manual that the whisk attachment shouldn’t go in the dishwasher, but it would be nice if the manufacturer could either make it so this doesn’t happen in the first place, or alternatively attached a label to the thing with a warning so you can’t miss it.

What can I say other than I love using this mixer. I have always wanted one. This thing is sturdy and weighs a bit. Even with thick cookie dough it won’t slow down. I used to use an electric hand mixer that always sounded like it was going to give up making Toll House cookies.
One recommendation is to get the mixing paddle with the side scraper. Not that is absolutely needs but it will save time by not having to stop and lift the mixer top to get to the sides of the bowl to scrape thing into the batter your mixing with a rubber spatula. That is going to be the next accessory I add to it.

For health reasons, I began making my own bread and finally decided I needed a stand mixer. After reading all the reviews on the various makes and models available I went with the Kitchenaid Classic with the 4.5 quart bowl. I figured the smaller size bowl would be adequate for my needs. The mixer is heavy (22 lbs) and rather expensive ($330), but I am pleased with the quality of this product and ease of use. The main, and so far only, problem is with the bowl. The lack of a handle proved to be more of a problem than I had anticipated but the real problem is the tendency for this bowl to become firmly attached to the base after mixing dough at or above medium speeds. A couple of the reviews I had read described this problem but I figured ‘How bad can it be’. Unfortunately I found out. Prolonged (3 or 4 minutes) at medium speed (#3) mixing bread dough with a paddle or dough hook hammers the base of the bowl so hard against the metal in the stand mixer base that it is exceedingly difficult to remove the bowl. It is almost as if the two pieces of metal became welded or super-glued together. Without a handle, it is very difficult to firmly grasp the bowl to twist it loose from the base. Using a couple of rubber jar-opener grippers on the sides of the bowl is the only way I can get enough torque to twist the bowl. free from the base. Putting a bit of lubricant on the areas where the bowls metal and stand base metal makes contact helps some but I shouldn’t have to do this considering the price paid for this mixer. It may be that a larger bowl (possibly a glass bowl) with a handle will not have this problem. This bowl-removal-problem is the reasons down-graded the number of stars given this product. It is easy to use, very powerful, does a great job mixing and the weight is actually a benefit since it stabilizes the mixer during use. Now if I can just get the bowl unstuck from the mixer base so I can get the dough out and continue baking my bread . . . .

Love this kitchen aid! It is sturdy and smooth, classic look! Runs great everytime, easy to clean, fun to use. Lots of attachments available. I keep it on my counter because it is so beautiful, it fits my decor and a definite conversation piece.

It works. It mixes. It beats. Good purchase, good price.

I brought this mixer for a birthday present for the man in my life. He like to bake a lot and needed a good mixer to make great cakes and cookies. This will help him alot Thank you.

Fácil de utilizar y excelente calidad, nos ayudó a hacer unas deliciosas roscas.