Mixers

Mixers are used in baking to reduce labor and speed up time when combining ingredients. They can also be used to make certain beverages.

Fast Facts

1. Common uses: Mixing, kneading, whipping
2. Price range: $20-$300
3. Invented: 1870
4. Inventor: Turner Williams
5. Commercially available: 1918

Buying Guide

There are two basic mixer types: stand mixers and hand mixers.

Hand mixers are hand held mixers with one or two beaters, some come with other attachments. To use a person must stand, holding the mixer over the bowl until the job is done. This can be tiring especially when the job will take time, such as when whipping up egg whites. Hand mixers are significantly cheaper, starting at about $30.

Stand mixers have a countertop structure and often have a bowl that comes with the mixer. These have plenty of attachments. Many of these attachments are not even related to mixing but actually attaches directly to the motor to do other tasks, such as grinding meat or making pasta. Stand mixers can be quite expensive. KitchenAid mixers, a leading manufacturer of stand mixers, sells for an average of about $250 each.

Top Brands

• KitchenAid
• Braun
• Bosch
• Cuisinart
• Oster
• Waring

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