Showing posts with label baking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label baking. Show all posts

4/02/2012

Wilton 101-pc. Decorating-Tool Set with Blue Caddy Review

Wilton 101-pc. Decorating-Tool Set with Blue Caddy
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I love this set. I bought it when I first started taking Wilton classes. It doesn't have everything you need for the courses, but it beats the heck out of buying every separate. That said, the amazon price is WAY too high and not a bargain at all. You can clip a 40-50% coupon from the sunday paper, go to your local craft store (ACM**re or M*ch**l's), and get this for around $70.

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101 Piece Tool Caddy Collection This convenient caddy contains our most complete collection of tools, colors and flavors for the cake decorator. Its a great way to organize, carry and store the essentials- tops, couplers, colors, spatulas and more. Lift-out tray holds tips, couplers, brushes and colors securely. Upright store prevents spills and make it easy to find what you need, generous storage area keeps books, spatulas, bags and other large supplies neatly organized.Set includes: 8 Icing Colors: Golden Yellow, No-Taste Red, Brown, Violet, Pink, Royal Blue, Black, Kelly Green in 1/2 oz. jars 3 Couplers (2 Standard, 1 Large) 2 Tip/Coupler Dishwasher and Storage Bags Tip Cleaning Brush 24 12-in. Disposable Decorating Bags 3 Professional Reusable Decorating Bags (8, 10 and 16 in.) 4 Tip Covers Tip Saver Flower Nail #7 Flower Lifter Garland Marker 3 Spatulas (8 and 13 in. Angled, 8 in. Tapered) Decorating Cakes Book 20 All-Purpose Disposable Decorating Gloves Practice Board with Patterns 2 Bake-Even Strips 8 oz. Clear Vanilla and No-Color Butter Flavors Cake Leveler Quick Ease Roller Easy-Glide Fondant Smoother Decorating Brush 18 Decorating Tips: Standard Round #1, 2, 2A, 3, 12 Standard Open Star #16, 18, 21, 32 Standard Basketweave #48 Standard Leaf #67,352 Standard Petal #102, 103, 104, 125 Drop Flower #2D Cake Icer #789

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1/03/2012

Zojirushi BB-HAC10 Home Bakery 1-Pound-Loaf Programmable Mini Breadmaker Review

Zojirushi BB-HAC10 Home Bakery 1-Pound-Loaf Programmable Mini Breadmaker
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The Zojirushi BB-HAC10 breadmaker is terrific for couples, singles, or apartment dwellers wanting a small loaf of bread (1 LB). While at first, its price may be offsetting, it is a fantastic device and made of high quality materials. Most breadmakers are too large and end up being stored in the closet, but this machine is small, sleek, and bakes perfect loaves of bread. It is the same width as my toaster and is small enough to keep out on an apartment kitchen counter. The loaves on regular cycles take between 3:40-3:00 to bake, but it has a timer and a "keep warm" feature. It is quiet and an 8-year old could easily operate its simple push button controls.
It has an even-heating element, and a good quality, heavy, non-stick baking pan, which is a snap to clean up. It has a pasta/cookie dough feature and a jam (!) feature. The tiny paddle is actually surprisingly efficient at making dough for cookies and such.
One caveat: It bakes a small, vertical loaf of bread and a 1 LB loaf is smaller than you think it is. So the "rounded" part on top takes up about 1/4 of the entire loaf. Also, your bottom slice will have a gaping hole where the paddle bakes into it. While this is not much of a problem for a large 2 LB loaf, for this small loaf, it is a bit of a waste.
We have had a Zojirushi since the early 90's and although we found it consistently made excellent bread, it wasn't getting used very often because it was large and the 2LB loaves simply weren't getting eaten. After downsizing, we found that this breadmaker is fabulous because it makes small enough loaves that you can experiment with tons of different recipes and throw away a botched recipe without feeling bad about waste.

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Wake up to the smell of freshly baked bread with this programmable breadmaker, which features a 13-hour advance timer for delayed baking. The unit produces one pound loaves--perfect for smaller households to enjoy the taste of freshly baked bread every day without waste. The machine provides automatic settings for preparing a wide variety of breads, cakes, and fresh fruit jams as well as doughs for rolls, croissants, pizza, pasta, cookies, and more. When time is limited, its quick baking cycle bakes bread in under two hours. The breadmaker also offers three bread textures to choose from--regular, firm, or soft, as well as a crust-control function that allows for selecting regular or light crust. The machine's nonstick kneading blade ensures that dough is thoroughly kneaded for consistent results, while its nonstick baking pan releases bread effortlessly. For added convenience, the appliance comes equipped with a viewing window, an easy-to-read control panel and LCD screen, and a sturdy handle for simple transport. Accessories include a simple-to-follow instruction video, manual, and recipe booklet. The compact breadmaker measures 8 by 11 by 12 inches and carries a one-year warranty.

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11/17/2011

KitchenAid Artisan 5-Quart Stand Mixers Review

KitchenAid Artisan 5-Quart Stand Mixers
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My wedding gift mixer (a Sunbeam Mixmaster) turned 33 a week before Christmas, and my husband thought it was time for me to have a new one. He gifted me on Christmas with the KitchenAid 5 Qt. Artisan in white. I love this mixer and leave it out on my counter, something I never did with the Mixmaster. I recently purchased the citrus juicer attachment from Amazon and am very pleased with it as well. I have not read all 109 previous reviews on this site, but I have read a few that were disgruntled because their Artisans did not mix well. I initially had the same problem with the beater/bowl clearance. It is very simple to remedy. There is a beater adjustment screw on the mixer and the manual describes how to make the adjustments. I got even better instructions by calling customer support at KitchenAid. The technician told me to drop a dime into the empty bowl, turn the mixer on (about setting 2) using the flat beater, and it should move the dime 1/4" to 1/2" each time it rotates around the bowl. This is the right clearance for the beater to mix everything at the bottom of the bowl, but not low enough to cause wear on the beater from constant friction with the bottom of the bowl during usage. I tweaked the screw setting 1/4 turn each time until I got that dime moving. At this setting, I can now beat a single egg white to stiff peaks in the 5 qt. bowl. That's impressive.
This mixer is as sturdy as a tank, and you can hear the quality as it mixes. Although I had previously purchased a KitchenAid mixer for my daughter as a gift, I would never have splurged on one for myself.I am so happy my husband thought I was worth it!

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The legendary KitchenAid® Artisan Series® Stand Mixer is incredibly versatile. With all the available attachments, you can use it to make homemade pasta, stuff fresh sausage, whip up ice cream and give fruit a squeeze. No wonder generations of cooks have cherished theirs.Accessories Include:Pouring ShieldDough HookFlat BeaterWire WhipFeatures:10-speed slide control ranges from a very fast whip to a very slow stirPower hub for additional attachmentsUnique planetary mixing action of 67 pointsPolished stainless steel bowl features a comfortable handle5-qt. bowl yields up to 4.5 bread loaves, 9 dozen cookies or 7 pounds of mashed potatoes

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10/19/2011

KitchenAid K45SS Classic 250-Watt 4-1/2-Quart Stand Mixer, White Review

KitchenAid K45SS Classic 250-Watt 4-1/2-Quart Stand Mixer, White
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Unlike many of the reviewers, I've only had this mixer for about a year, and it's this specific model, the 250W 4.5 quart mixer (the bottom of the Kitchenaid line). It was a real splurge at the time we purchased it, but it has turned out to be well worth it.
Before the Kitchenaid, I didn't do much baking. I tend towards more "manly" cooking techniques: the hotter the fire, the spicier the recipe, the better as far as I'm concerned. But this machine is as satisfying to use as any power tool in the garage -- there is something about using the *right* tool for the job, and I've found no tasks that one might consider using a mixer for that the Kitchenaid doesn't excel at. But it's especially good for baking, and once you start using it, you'll have your oven running a lot more than you used to.
The big difference between this mixer and the standard "two beater" models you may be familiar with is that it uses a single mixing attachment that rotates in two motions- it not only spins on its own axis, it also is rotated around the edge of the bowl. This does an extremely effective job of mixing ingredients without need for the bowl rotating, since the mixing motion covers the entire bowl. For most mixing jobs, it also requires no scraping of the sides with the spatula. IE: when it's mixing, you can ignore it and work on other stuff.
The first attachment I'll mention is the dough hook, which is a godsend for kneading. In the last day, I've made pizza dough, bagels, and whole wheat bread. Although this is the least powerful machine Kitchenaid makes, it kneads stiff dough (like the aforementioned bagels made with high-gluten flour) that would turn your mother's mixmaster into a smoking, stinking heap of fried motor components. Machine kneading takes a *lot* of the effort and variability out of making bread... you never "knead in" too much flour to keep it from sticking to your hands, and the 20 minutes you normally spend working the dough turns into 10 minutes you can use to clean up the kitchen.
The other two attachments are the paddle and the whisk. The paddle is the all-purpose "workhorse" beater, and works extremely well for creaming sugar and butter together, mixing cookie dough or cake batter, or any other general-purpose mixing job. With the orbital motion, it comes right up to the edge of the bowl, so it is effectively scraping as it goes. The whisk is great for egg whites and making whipped cream. I'm sure it's good for something else, but that's what I've used it for.
As for capacity, the 4.5 quart model is suitable for pretty much any "normal" home recipes. It's a "standard mixer". It will easily knead enough dough at once for two loaves of bread, or mix a double-batch of cookies.
As for downsides: this thing is HEAVY. You won't be moving it once it's in place. If you knead very stiff dough, the bowl sometimes will get tightened to the extent that it is very difficult to remove from the base. It's OK if you remember to leave it a little loose beforehand, but I always forget and I end up wrestling with the machine to twist it out. The metal trim band on the mixer right above the bowl has come a little loose on my model- the machine got a bit hot after some heavy kneading, and I think some adhesive got soft. It's held in place well by something else, but sometimes it will slip when I'm wiping the machine off. It's purely cosmetic from what I can tell, and it's the only thing that feels cheap in any way about this machine. Other than that, I honestly haven't had a single complaint.
In summary: this is an expensive mixer, but it is very well worth it. Even novice cooks will find it's use enjoyable, and it will inspire you to explore new things that you probably didn't do before because of the time and effort involved.

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Perfect for kitchens of all sizes, the classic series stand mixer delivers the power and durability to mix large batches. 8 cup flour power. Powerful 250-watt motor. Versatile 10 speed control. Durable, direct drive transmission. Multipurpose attachment hub w

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