Conference turris::cooks

    I have had my Oster Kitchen Center for about 12 to 15 years and
    wouldn't trade it for anything.  It has made dozens of loaves of
    wonderful bread for me.  I mostly use a recipe that has 9 cups of
    flour and makes two large loaves of bread.  I have most of the
    attachments that go with it too, the can opener, citrus juicer, ice
    cream maker, small food processor ect and use them all.  Can you tell I
    am sold on this machine?  Be glad to amswer any questions or concerns
    you may have.
    
    Julie
    dtn 341-2717

    I've had the KitchenAid mixer for a number of years now (not quite 12
    to 15...;->) and I'm hooked (dough-hooked?) on it. I guess the single
    factor that impressed me most is the quality of the machine itself; I
    had all but given up ever finding an appliance made out of METAL and
    not PLASTIC until I found this impressive beast.
    
    It makes wonderful breads; a little hand-kneading at the end doesn't
    hurt but certainly isn't necessary for a good loaf. And it'll do much
    more with a few of the attachments; I've got the slicer/dicer set, and
    there's a meat-grinder and fruit juicer attachments as well.
    
    They ain't cheap, but I don't expect to have to replace it in my
    lifetime; I don't have a lot of things in my house I could say that
    about...
    
    	/Harry

    re .2 Do you have to get the "professional" model of the KitchenAid
          in order to have a unit strong enough to knead dough or are the
          about $200. models sufficient? I've wanted one of these for years
          and am trying to justify it...again!
    
          Keith
    

    If you do a fair amount of baking of any kind, and can afford it, just
    buy the kitchen aid mixer. Don't think twice about it,it's great.
    I bought mine about 3.5 years ago, and use it all the time and haven't
    ever regretted the purchase. Once you start using it, justifying it
    won't even enter your mind, it's that good!

    I have the model that goes for around $200, and although it works
    great, if I had it to do over again, I'd get the bigger one because of
    the way the head goes up and down rather than swinging back. Also, the
    extra power wouldn't hurt, especially if you make multiple loaves of bread
    at once. Big heavy batches can get that motor hot. I don't know how
    much more capacity the "professional" models have, but being
    compulsive, I wouldn't mind having the extra horsepower, although it's
    not that necessary for me.
    
    	I hope this helps you to decide. They go on sale at Lechmere's
    pretty regularly, just wait patiently, then BUY IT!!!
    
    Roger 

    
    Yes, buy the Kitchen Aid.  We have the KS90 or something like that and
    it's great, best mixer we've ever had.  Also, if you happen to check
    out any of the cooking shows on PBS, you'll probably notice that almost
    all of them use the Kitchen Aid mixers.  They're really a quality 
    machine.
    
    Larry
    

    Another vote for the KitchenAid mixer. I never made bread until I got
    mine. In fact, I was afraid of making bread. Now I make it every week. 
    
    I have the basic low-end model, and it's fine for most bread recipes.
    I think they recommend using no more than 7 or 8 cups of flour, so if
    you use larger recipes, you might consider the larger one. 
    
    Good luck.
    
    Kate
    

    We have the Oster version "the Oster Starship" as my husband likes
    to call it because it has so many attachments. Not ever having
    tried or used anything else, I would not say I am in any way fit 
    to judge, but we have absolutely no complaints. (Except the fact
    that the newer versions, like ours, do not come with the meat-grinder
    attachments as they once did).
    
    I have heard great things about KitchenAid in general though, all the 
    fancier cookbooks I have cite them as the best.
    
    Monica
    

    I'll add a vote to the kitchen aid.  I have an older large KA and have
    made 4 loaves (10-11 cups) at once in it.  I've made 15 loaves in one
    shot.  Its really quite painless and since I make bread quite
    frequently the ingredient mix is second nature.  A couple of large
    loaves involves 5 minutes of work, a couple of minutes to punch down
    the dough, some time shaping, etc.  Its not at all time consuming.
    
    In fact I made 6 loaves to add to christmas gift packages christmas
    morning before I left for the parents.
    
    But as only a bread maker its a bit of an extravgence, of course
    if you like to grind you own meat, and make your own sausage, and 
    make light fluffy cakes, and .....
    
    -Kevin
    

    re: .3
    
    I also have the 'smaller' of the models, and it's always had enough
    oomph to make any bread I've wanted. The bowl capacity of the
    industrial-strength model is only slightly larger (5 qt vs 4-1/2 qt, I
    think), and the motor is heftier; if I didn't already have this one, I
    might be tempted, but I think it's overkill for what you're describing.
    
    Good luck,
    
    	/Harry

    I've had a kitchen aid (4 1/2 qt) works great, a real workhorse.
    
    My Cuisinart makes great bread, and quick, too.
    
    A friend has one of the breadbakers that you find for about 100 through
    the Damark catalog, and swears by it, say's it's foolproof since it
    does everything for you.
    
    I would say, determine what other interests your wife has (since a
    breadbaker would do only that, and the kitchen aid/cuisinart opens up a
    whole world of possibilities.  
    
    						Cynthia

    I have both a bread machine and Kitchen Aid mixer. If you only want
    to make bread (yeast breads only) then the bread machine is easier,
    because you throw in the ingredients and 4 hours later have a loaf
    of bread. If you plan on doing anything else, canning, lots of
    baking,... I would say get the Kitchen Aid. Mine is 10 years old
    and works as well as day one. 
    
    Also, if you live in MA. Spags has the mixers and attchment kits
    for juicing, food processing, meat grinding,... and the prices are
    good.
    
    Hope this helps, Eileen