Some stand mixers create stiff peaks too fast, and the more gentle KitchenAid actually did a lovely job of staggering the process and allowing me to check as I went along. It’s the same story with egg whites - if you love to make meringue, the KitchenAid Artisan will fit the bill. I used setting six for this, which gave me plenty of control and allowed me to stop the mixer when I suspected the cream was ready before it had the chance to over-mix. What is a victoria sponge without whipped cream? I have no complaints about the Artisan’s ability to bring cream to soft peaks in minutes. When adding the eggs and flour I found the bowl was deep enough to not need the shield (although with icing sugar I’d definitely recommend it) and it brought together a well-beaten but not overworked cake batter in a relatively short amount of time. Most stand mixers do this, and it’s just a case of going in with a spatula to scrape off anything that hasn’t mixed in when your dough is assembled. I started off by creaming butter and sugar together, and found that the flat beater left a little of this mixture at the side of the bowl. It was able to integrate all my ingredients well, but definitely did a better job when more full. I really enjoyed how my cake came out when I tested the KitchenAid Artisan. Its motor isn’t bad at all, but if you want to use it purely for kneading dough, going for something with a bit more muscle will pay off. If you like to bake bread but it’s not your primary motive in buying a stand mixer, I’d recommend the Artisan for you. The dough was also warm to touch after five minutes of kneading, which is a good sign that the yeast has been activated and is doing its job.Īlthough stand mixers can come with as much as 1200 watts these days, you don’t need this much unless you’re in a professional kitchen. I wouldn’t have felt comfortable leaving it unaccompanied thanks to how much it moved around my counter, but it didn’t take long to bring the mix together and produce a smooth and glutenous dough that had plenty of fibres and stretch to it. To its credit, the dough came out wonderfully when kneaded in the Artisan. I made two loaves, which is advised as the maximum amount you can do in any one go using the KitchenAid Artisan. For such a heavy machine with a sturdy metal construction, I did not expect it to have any trouble kneading, but I suspect the 300 watt motor (which is below the industry standard) may have struggled to knead the quantities I used. Even on setting 2 though, I found that the mixer moved around my kitchen counter more than I expected. You’re advised not to go above 2 as it could damage your mixer. To make bread in the KitchenAid Artisan, use speed 1 to combine ingredients and then 2 to knead. These go up in twos, and the handbook advises you to use certain speeds with specific tasks. The controls themselves come in a scale of 1-10, but when clicking along it’s apparent that there are only six actual speeds. Because this is symmetrical to the controls on the other side, I did accidentally turn the mixer on when trying to lift the head, but after some use you should be able to tell the right one without thinking. It’s a tilt-head, meaning you need to pull a lever to the side of the machine to lift the head and switch out attachments or remove your bowl. The sponge cake was fluffy and light, but very well mixed, the cream was stiff but not too firm, and very evenly whipped, and my bread dough rose wonderfully. Right off the bat, I’ll admit that despite any critique I have of the KitchenAid Artisan, the results were some of my finest. That way I’m able to test the most common stand mixer attachments - whisk, flat beater and dough hook. I always do the same recipes when testing stand mixers, which include (but are not limited to) a victoria sponge filled with fresh whipped cream, and a loaf of white bread.
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