KitchenAid 7 Quart Bowl-Lift Stand Mixer, Red

“The KitchenAid mixer is powerful and stylish, ideal for mixing, whipping and kneading. Its robust design and multiple speeds ensure consistent results. The large bowl is perfect for large recipes. Although it can be expensive, its quality and durability make it a worthwhile investment for any cooking enthusiast.”

I had the Kitchen Made Artesian first. It could not handle bread dough. The bowl kept jumping off the platform. This larger version is a dream. It can handle any dough. The problem is, it is so fun and easy to use. I am making more bread than I ought to be. For those who keep track of these things, I am a 74-year-old male who loves to cook and am a better baker than most females!

My old 325watt 5 quart Kitchenaid has been struggling with kneading bread dough. I’ve rebuilt it once but it still sometimes would stop and hum. It’s still fine for everything else, though loud. We have had it, for, I believe, over 25 years. For Thanksgiving, I made fresh bread (delicious) but had to do all the kneading by hand–this is why old-time bakers all had big muscular arms–it’s a workout! The old machine will go to one of our offspring because it still does everything else better than a hand mixer, and probably any other mixer.

This machine is 500 watts, and 7 quarts, and comes with the regular beater, squeegee beater for things like cake mixes, a wire whisk, improved pouring shield, and a pig-tail dough hook, a huge improvement on the old flat hook. First time making bread (NEVER go over the #2 speed!) it powered through the dough quietly and only after many, many minutes got a little warm, where the old one couldn’t be run for more than 2 minutes at a time (when kneading dough) with a minute or two to cool each time. I didn’t even have to do a final hand knead!

Despite being bigger and stronger it actually doesn’t take up much more real estate than the old one and feels a bit lighter surprisingly, although still very heavy. Lots of little improvements: A nice knob on the lifting jack handle, a better-looking brushed nickel knob on the speed control over the old black plastic one, and 11 speeds rather than ten. The pouring shield is now one piece rather than two and enclosed on top rather than open, and works very well. They even upgraded the power-takeoff locking screw and cover. Finally, they added a cord wrap when not using it.

So far, the only drawback is the handsome textured matte black finish: flour gets stuck on it much more easily than on the smooth finish. I do not know if the other colors are the same or smooth, but this was the right color for our kitchen.

I bought this mixer as I developed a hobby in baking. It would be my first mixer. I can’t tell if it works normal or not. It vibrates heavily after setting 5. On setting10, it shakes my counter top. The noise level is acceptable, but 5 minutes of level 2 would make it warm. Either the product is poorly put together or there are too many moving parts in design. I actually see lubricates coming out of the connector, slider and level. I don’t think flour mixed with lubricates is normal, touching the back side of slider, where paint is not present, more lubricate oil comes out. Paint is shiny on the outside, but anywhere inside metal is exposed, dirty oily lubricates leaks. Bowl lifting mechanism felt cheap, despite all metal design, the paint on the hook would dissolve into any liquid you accidently left on the inside hole. It says dishwasher safe, I haven’t tested that before returning it. But I don’t have the confidence to put the coated attachments into dishwasher. Obviously stainless steel would be better. I saw the higher end model comes with SS attachments, I immediately understand this must be some sort of cheap mass produced junk. I have to admit this is my first mixer, and it sorta of works in mixing flour, it is just I am constantly worried about lubricates leaking into my flours, so I am not sure if all mixers are like this. Although it is packaged well, but the product looks like used. Not sure the used product issue is fault by Amazon or KitchenAid. Anyway, I am gonna get the commercial series 8 for comparison from KitchenAid official website and compare them. This product is returning as I am typing this review.

You can’t beat kitchen aid quality. It is so cute, easy to clean, built well and a decent price. You pay for what you get. It mixes everything I need and gets well used. My last one I bought 2nd hand and have used almost 10 years. I just had to upgrade size for my baking needs.

Strong power. Easy to use and clean. Quiet in comparison to others. Can mix anything. Great purchase!