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Jim Elbrecht

wrote:

>I'm looking into getting a stand mixer. I'm looking at two Kitchen Aid models.
>One is a six quart, 575 watt model and the other is a five quart, 325 watt
>model. My question is,which one do I need for basic baking and hopefully bread
>making. They both come with a dough hook. It's only my wife and myself and we
>really don't do much entertaining. I'm retired and would like to get into
>baking. I already do all the other cooking :-) Any suggestions from those of
>you who own a stand mixer? Thanks.

I owned the 325watt model for 24 hours and one batch of [not
particularly stiff] bread. It had to work to knead it, the motor
got too hot to touch, and the smell was *not* pleasant.

I returned it, got the 575 and thanked my lucky stars. It has
been perfect for a year and a half. I have worked it as hard as I
could and it hasn't shown the slightest sign of bogging down or
heating up.

I disagree with Chemiker on the 6qt bowl being 'too large'. I just
did the equivalent of a single loaf tonight and don't see the
difference. If it is adjusted right it reaches to the bottom of
the bowl.

I haven't been baking for more thna a few years so maybe I'm missing
something here--

I'd take a deep breath and go for the higher wattage model--
especially if you see a grinder, shredder, juicer, pasta maker or
rollers in your future.

And personally, I'd go with a new one. For several years KA went to
nylon gears which were prone to failure. [they are back to metal
now] So if you see one on ebay, you might want to check to see which
gears it has and make allowance.

Jim