MIXERS....I need help deciding

[bigred]

how would a 20 or even a 10 mix the smaller weekday batches?

[bigred]

just talked it over with my wife...realistically we may do 4 or so parties as big as 20 to 30 pies during the may thru sept summer months here on the east coast . the rest will probably be between 10 to 15 pies...so that would be two batches....thats not sounding that bad...

[heliman]

I did a 12 mix today and normally do a 6 or 7 when we have another 2 couples over (that is the usual scenario). The mixer cruises through it with ease and produces top quality dough. I use the 20 Qt for all of my dough preparation whilst the KA mixer stands idly on the side line waiting for its next opportunity to make tomato puree or butter for me!!

I believe in the "buy once buy right" principle. In this case I tended to buy slightly above what I needed, but my thinking is that a machine should be able to easily perform the tasks I have for it - with capacity to spare. This is very applicable in the case of mixer as I got tired of the burnt wire smell coming from the motor coils.

Whilst the 5 Qt you are looking at is a robustly built machine, you will be filling the bowl up quite full to do the dough preparation. My 4.8 litre KA used to throw flour all over the place too (even on the lowest speed) and I ended up having to scoop it all back in bowl. With the low ratio gears this may not be such a problem, but it still highlights some limitations in capacity.

Good luck with your purchase - I am sure that you will be very happy with whatever machine you decide on in the end.

[bigred]

I brought home my new Globe SP5 mixer from the showroom today.. I must say, it was like bringing home a new car. It looks sweet. I wanted break it in slowly so I made the first batch 500g 00 flour at 60% AR. Incorporating at speed 1 for 3 minutes than let stand for 20 minutes and mixes for 6 minutes at speed two. Looks beautiful. Will try tomorrow. The mixer is super quiet and showed no sign of any load. It is rated for 4 lbs at 60% AR. Looking forward to the summer here in the north east coast.

[magdelinewest]

You're getting advice online from a wide variety of people with different experience, needs and budgets. Decide for yourself at what level you need your stand mixer to perform at. I have a Kitchenaid Pro 5 Plus KV25GOX (you can check it on Amazon) and it does everything I need if I treat it right. I don't work in a pro kitchen or do catering (just cooking for the family etc) and it works great. Get a Hobart if you're substantially more serious than me.