to think that there can’t actually be people out there who justify paying £400 plus for a kitchenaid food mixer?

[wannaBe]

just received a load of special offers from qvc for kitchenaid products. there are items such as

toasters for £295. coffee makers for £615. Food mixers upwards of £400 up to as much as £700!

Surely nobody in their right mind actually pays those kinds of obscene prices?

[VikingVagine]

Also, I know of two relationship break-ups where the man kept the KitchenAid, even though he never used it, because he knew how much the female partner loved it.

Now that's just cruel!

I have a relatively cheap Kenwood Prospero, when it dies the sooner the better I have promised myself a Kitchenaid.

I use my mixer to make all sorts, we don't eat processed food so make everything from scratch. It is very useful.

[ExitPursuedByABear]

What do you knead with? The hook thingy? I have never used that.

[OneLittleToddleTerror]

YABU. A lot of people pay that much for a smartphone anyway. I'd get a KitchenAid or Kenwood Chef if I have space in the kitchen. It's high on my list in my dream home.

[Plomino]

Yep , knead with the dough hook . I was sceptical about it , but it does work . I make icecream with mine . And pasta , because I cracked and bought the twizzly pasta attachment . And it is so mush easier to whip cream in it than anything else , even the fancy food processor.

[Shitsinger]

In the event of divorce the kitchen aid mixer is mine
It was a gift from a dear relative who I loved with all my heart
Probably my most treasured possession and in use daily.

[HopeForTheBest]

My Kenwood gets used almost every day. I cannot imagine how I cooked before we got it (I have the Chef) about 10 years ago.

The dough hook is absolutely essential for me - it gets used more than anything else!

Last summer I got the ice-cream attachment; absolutely fantastic, i can whip up the most fabulous ice-creams in exactly the flavours we want (with no crap in them) with absolute minimum effort.

[stealthsquiggle]

I bloody love mine and there is no way DH would be taking it off me even though he uses it lots too. I bake lots, he makes bread and pasta, and ours is not the fancy one that comes in lots of colours but the entry level commercial one. It has a more powerful motor and came with 2 stainless steel bowls, which is a really big bonus (more so than I would have believed).

Similarly duality toaster, still going strong after 15 years, which makes it pretty good value for money really. It's when these brands start diversifying that it goes wrong. Dualit kettles and KitchenAid blenders are nowhere near as good as the brand would suggest. (Waring for blender, and we have yet to find the definitive kettle)

[mrscumberbatch]

We use a K Mix from the 70's... it's actually older than both DP and myself but it still works perfectly!

Methinks the initial outlay MIL made 40 odd years ago was quite savvy.

[stealthsquiggle]

not that much if you say it quickly

Who am I kidding? It's a huge amount, but it will last for ever a long long time and is a life-enhancing thing to own.

[BellaVita]

I have a lovely black KitchenAid.

DH bought me it for me for Christmas. I love to bake, he knew I would adore it and I do.

[impecuniousmarmoset]

Wannabe hang on, if you own a Magimix then you're clearly not averse to spending a lot of money on a kitchen gadget?!?!

I agree, personally I don't use a mixer that often, because I'm not much of a baker, but I can completely see that if you bake all the time a mixer is essential. My granny used hers for making bread most days.

So if you own a magimix, really what you're saying is 'it's ok to spend 3-400 quid on a food processor but not on a mixer'? That's quite a different way to frame your question!

Personally I've never spent more than 700 quid on a car, but I don't think you're burning money if you prefer to spend 5k (15k on the other hand, and you've lost me:) - surely it's just priorities?

[FoundAChopinLizt]

It costs that much precisely because people are prepared to pay that much for one. The high price also gives it a certain exclusivity.

[lurkerspeaks]

I have a 30 year old kenwood chef. I don't know how much use it has had but I use it pretty regularly and love it.

[Newcupboards]

I don't cook or bake but I want a KitchenAid now! Serious question; those of you who bake a lot - are you and your family overweight? Am on a diet and trying to eat more so I need this clarified before I shell out on a KitchenAid that will look nice with my new cupboards.

[Morloth]

Mine is Cranberry.

And sits nicely with my beautiful Le Creuset pans and dishes.

I finally after many years of travelling/renting am living in my own home.

My kitchen gives me great pleasure. Just put in two ovens, a giant range, have the big farmhouse table in the middle.

My kitchenaid gets used twice a week, either for baking or bread, or the nose attachment for grinding/making pasta.

I love cooking, it calms me.

[Morloth]

We are not overweight.

If I am baking, I make them as luxurious as possible.

Then we have some, friends eat some, some go to work, some go in lunchboxes.

We mostly eat low carb, if I am going to have empty carbs then they had better taste very very good.

The working out 5 times a week probably contributes to not being overweight though.

[ZacharyQuack]

Mine is dark blue. I would have preferred grey or raspberry, but DH bought it for me knowing how much I had wanted one for years.

DD2 was born 2 weeks early, a few days before Christmas and DH and I hadn't bought presents for each other. DH went out on Xmas Eve and came back with the Kitchenaid for me and a lovely espresso machine for him. Hooray for panicky, sleep-deprived man-shopping!

[EmmaBemma]

My mum bought me a cherry red Kitchenaid three Christmasses ago. I couldn't believe how generous she'd been, I was quite gobsmacked. It's very beautiful but I'm not sure it's worth the money, and I feel bad for not using it all the time to somehow justify the expense.

For one thing I've had to footle about with the callibration so the beaters reach all the way to the bottom of the bowl without scraping it. But it's very sturdy, I can see myself having it for life. And is the best way to make sticky doughs like naan.

[LtEveDallas]

I've just 'inherited' my mums Kenwood that is older than me - she's not making cakes much now, and thought it was going to waste. It works great, but I do wish it looked a little 'prettier'. Need to give my head a shake - substance over style Eve, substance over style..

[stealthsquiggle]

EmmaBemma you need one of these

[WeAreEternal]

I have a kitchen aid a limited edition design one and it was worth every penny, IMO.

I bake a lot, almost daily. I make all of our bread, muffins and cakes.

I have owned many mixers, but none even come the kitchen aid.
I had a kenwood one that was good, but it didn't kneed bread very well.

I don't think I could live without my KA.

[WeAreEternal]

Sorry for the typos, I'm trying to MN and apply makeup at the same time.
Damn audio typing.

[Newcupboards]

meant to say "am on a diet and trying to eat more healthily", not eat more!

[BellaVita]

I have teenagers with hollow legs. We are all healthy and non of us are overweight.