Cuisinart Power Advantage 9
If you’re not ready to get a stand mixer, are short on space, or simply want a great supplementary mixer for smaller recipes, we think the Breville is a great investment. But some people might cuisinart soup maker find all of the extra Breville-ian features, which likely add to the price, unnecessary. Smitten Kitchen’s Deb Perelman said she isn’t a fan of screens on kitchen appliances, for example.
In use, it seemed a little lower on power than some of the pricier mixers we tested, and took six minutes to make whipped cream and meringue. For our sponge cake, we used the power boost to help make the batter fluffy, and the cake came out well, baking high. The cookie mix was kind of a disaster with the heavy ingredients gumming up the works and splattering mix on our clothes and face (seriously!).
Once you’ve beaten batters, whipped egg whites and kneaded homemade bread dough, it’s easy to clean—all removable parts are dishwasher safe. Includes a chef’s whisk, dough hook and extra-long beaters as well as a clear storage case. Several hand mixers include some type of storage feature, and this one doesn’t disappoint. The translucent plastic storage container easily holds the beaters, whisk, dough hooks, spatula, and 5-foot power cord easily. This mixer has six speeds and a “burst” feature that gives a quick boost of power at any speed.
The Cuisinart also isn’t as easy to handle, clean, and store as our top pick. But compared with the similarly priced KitchenAid and VonShef mixers, the Cuisinart is far more effective, comes with a longer warranty, and has a handy storage case. This is a no-frills mixer that’s good for basic tasks, but it lacks the superior design and extra features that make the Breville even easier to use. With its clever extra features, the Breville was by far the easiest and most enjoyable mixer to use of any we tested. A screen with a built-in timer helps keep track for time-sensitive recipes, which I found especially useful when making seven-minute frosting.
We like that the all-in-one system keeps the mixer’s small parts together, so that you don’t have to fumble around in a drawer for a single missing dough hook. Hand mixers are appealing appliances because they’re smaller and lighter than stand mixers. Most can also fit in a cabinet or drawer, and often come with cases to neatly store attachments. Stand mixers, however, usually live on a kitchen counter, and can be heavy to move if you need to free up space. Deb Perelman, author of the cooking blog Smitten Kitchen, said, “I love my stand mixer but I use it a fraction as much as my hand mixer. For the 2018 update, I put four hand mixers to work making batches of sponge cake, pizza dough, cookie dough, whipped cream, and seven-minute frosting.
It didn’t affect the Cuisinart’s ability to mix, but it was a noticeable difference. Hand mixers aren’t usually packed with extra features, but the Cuisinart has the basics in its best modern version. The LCD display, for example, goes well beyond basic and makes it incredibly easy to track the speed. The mechanical on/off button and trigger release may not be technologically advanced, but the one-handed design accounts for the needs of the modern baker.
A good hand mixer gives you the extra power you need to whip up your favorite frosting or a decadent cookie dough without breaking a sweat. It churns through dense cookie doughs and quickly whips delicate batters and pillowy meringues, and comes with more useful attachments and features that cheaper mixers lack. Hand mixers are great tools for smaller recipes and don’t take up as much space as larger appliances, but if you’re a serious baker you may want to check out our guide to stand mixers. This mixer is appealing to the eye and, with nine speeds, it’s plenty powerful. When we tested the functionality, it nearly came out of our hand when using the dough hooks, but we kept a good grip on the bowl and powered through.