Kitchenaid Professional 600 Reviews

Showing posts with label Kitchenaid Professional 600. Show all posts

Monday, December 19, 2011

Licorice KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer KP26M1XLC

I've had this mixer for about six months and absolutely love it! I've used it for everything from making pizza dough to cookies, cakes, and icing. I got the Nickel Pearl color, and it's beautiful. I was expecting a matte finish, but it is very glossy and looks great.

The bowl is large enough that I can make a double batch of chocolate chip cookies without worrying about flour splashing out of the bowl, which happened all the time with my mom's 4.5 quart KitchenAid. I haven't had any trouble with the motor/transmission like some of the other reviewers, but I haven't made anything needing more than about 6-7 cups of flour. Just make sure you use speed 2 when kneading bread dough and you'll be okay!

One note of caution - if you're making extremely small recipes, this may not be the mixer for you. The mixing blade doesn't mix well for very small batches, like those for some kinds of spritz cookies. I may pick up the optional 3 quart mixing bowl for extra small batches. I didn't have this problem with the 4.5 quart KitchenAid, which sometimes struggled with large batches that this mixer tackles with ease.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Copper Pearl KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer KP26M1XCE

Early this year, I finally bought a new stand mixer after the old kitchenaid stand mixer I inherited from my mother finally conked out. That one was over 30 years old before it bit the bullet. I purchased the professional 6 quart model since I wanted to do some bread making and also prepare rolls. I also bake cakes quite a bit. This thing is fantastic! Bread kneads in 2 minutes. I make a lot more handicrafted gourmet type breads now, I never did that with my bread machine. In fact I gave the bread machine away since I hadn't used even one time after I got the new mixer. I like the breads I create with this machine better too. Their texture is better and all around it's a better loaf even though I use my old trusty recipes. The kneading is the hard part anyway, and this mixer makes it a breeze.

Cakes mix in about the same amount of time or less. I have found the knack with the cake mixing is just to mix until the batter just loses that 'glossy' look. This mixer is fast and thorough but doesn't create air pockets in the finished cake like over mixing with a hand mixer does. I've made dips and sauces and even whipped cream with this. I bought the slicer attachment and sliced appetizer stuff for 100 people. It handles everything I've thrown at it.

I got the licorice color and I highly recommend it. It is black and not super glossy, so it hides finger prints and still looks classy sitting on the counter. It isn't a dull finish either, kind of more like eggshell paint instead of satin or gloss. My old one was shiny and looked smudgy all the time. This one doesn't. Mine doesn't fit under the counter and I use it enough so putting it away in the pantry doesn't happen so often. I recommend the non glossy colors if you use your mixer a lot and want it to sit out all the time.

Caviar Gloss KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer KP26M1XCV

I recently purchased the Kitchenaid Professional 600 and so far it has been a wonderful addition to our kitchen. Many people have written both positive and negative reviews of this model, and that concerned me - especially since this was a gift for my wife and I didn't want it to be plagued with problems. For anyone who is considering purchasing this model (and for many who already have), you probably already know about the issue with the gearbox cover that was originally made of plastic instead of metal. Supposedly, the cover would overheat and crack, causing the gears to strip. This issue existed several years ago and due to the number of complaints, Kitchenaid has since returned to an all-metal gearbox cover.

However, after a great deal of research I have been pretty well convinced by a very educated poster on another forum that the problem did not originate with the plastic cover. This person went to great effort to disassemble his broken mixer and document what had happened and what he found (with some very interesting pictures) as he fixed his Pro 600's gearbox.

Specifically, there was one set of gears on a vertical shaft that wanted to rise upwards when placed under a load - a common phenomenon with gears due to the angle of the sides of each tooth. As he documented, there was a clip missing from the shaft directly over the gearset, and that allowed the gears to ride up the shaft and put pressure on the plastic cover from the inside. Over time, the plastic (which was never intended to be placed under pressure from underneath) cracked and the gears lost contact with each other and stripped.

I now have come to believe that a great many people who have this older design (plastic gearbox cover) and have never had a problem do have this clip properly in place, and the clip is either missing or broken for those with this design who have had issues with their gears. This is the only way to reconcile why only some people with the plastic cover have problems while many others do not.

It seems that the newer design (metal gearbox cover) now has the ability to withstand the pressure of the gears if the clip is missing, which while not a desirable way of designing the cover it does provide a certain degree of "back-up" if the clip that holds the gears down onto the shaft is missing or goes astray.

If you were one of the many people who complained to Kitchenaid about this problem, they may have been absolutely correct if you were told that the cover was truly not the issue. However, they do get a failing grade for not understanding that it was most likely this missing clip on the shaft that was the originating cause and the cracked cover and stripped gears were only a symptom (albeit fatal) of the true problem.

It also appears from some basic research that Kitchenaid has fully adopted the all-metal gearbox cover since around the first quarter of 2007, so unless the mixer you are just now purchasing is very old stock you should have no problems with the gears in you Pro 600. I have taken the time to check our mixer (which was originally purchased on November, 2008) and the cover is metal and the clip is in place. On the flip side, if you are one of the posters who are just now getting around to writing a negative review about your 2-3 year old Pro 600 with gear and plastic cover problems then you might want to have this checked out.

Saturday, December 17, 2011

White KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer KP26M1XWH

I have been using this mixer for over a year now. Its a great investment and well worth the price.

Pros: Good speed settings from high to low. Some mixers are too fast on low speed and too quick on high. This on one has many uniform steps in speed to mix anything you throw at it. The soft start function ensures you aren't painting your walls when you flip it on. It is a very well built machine that looks nice and has amazing power. We use a very stiff and heavy dough mix for our bread recipe and it churns out a 4 loaf batch with ease. I've never been concerned that it was overloaded or was going to overheat. I was originally going to purchase a Bosch mixer before I found this one and I'm very glad I didn't. Save your money and buy some of the great attachments that go with mixer instead. The pasta maker is way fun and works great!

Cons: 1)Sometimes it has problems picking up small batches like whipping two egg whites. I have to tip the mixer occasionally to get it to grab when the bowl isn't very full. 2)This is a heavy piece of equipment. Don't give it to your 80 year old grandmother and expect her to be lugging it from the counter to the pantry.

Over all I'd buy this machine over any other on the market if your a part time or full time cook. The well built quality and construction will last for many years. I'd also give it a 5 star rating and thoroghly recomend it to anyone looking to update their mixer.

Nickel Pearl KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer KP26M1XNP

I have never owned a stand mixer before, but I knew I wanted to use it to make larger amounts of bread dough than my bread maker can handle. I chose the Pro 600 after reading all the reviews that said you'll need the increased wattage to handle dough.

First of all, make sure you have enough headroom wherever you want to keep it - you'll need at least 17" under the cabinet to be able to use it in place. This may be important for many people as this mixer is bulky and heavy to move - over 30 lbs. But since it has the bowl lift feature, the head does not tilt back so you don't need extra clearance - 17" will work fine.

The first thing I used it for was an angel food cake and I have to say, the results were amazing. Using the wire whip, the egg whites whipped up higher than I have ever achieved with my hand mixer and in half the time! The cake was much higher and fluffier, too. The plastic bowl collar makes it easy to add ingredients during the mixing process without making a mess.

Next, I made a double recipe of yeast rolls. I used the spiral dough attachment and, as directed, never went above speed setting 2. It performed very well and my rolls were perfect. I referred to the tips in the owners manual for fast rise yeast breads. The machine didn't seem to strain or struggle and the resulting dough was lovely.

I also made 15 lbs. of mashed potatoes. Following the recipe and directions in the manual, the potatoes were very good. I made them in 2 batches, first using the flat beater attachment and then switching to the wire whip. It seemed like a lot of work and switching when I read the directions but actually, it is quite easy and quick to stop the machine for a moment to scrape down the sides of the bowl or change attachments. Also, the included clear plastic collar keeps things from flying up and out of the mixer when working with large batches. No more mashed potatoes across the front of my shirt!

The bowl lift mechanism works smoothly and easily and is very convenient. The 6 qt. bowl has a well designed handle and is thick, sturdy stainless steel. I love the slow start feature! The mixer starts slowly before coming up to speed so you don't get the big cloud of flour bursting up at the beginning of making dough. I got the meringue color, which is a soft white that is a matte, powder coated finish. I took mine in the back of my van to the relatives for Thanksgiving, where it got banged and bumped, and the finish suffered no damage.

The 3 included attachments are heavy aluminum and KitchenAid recommends hand washing them. The bowl is dishwasher safe. I haven't purchased any additional attachments but I plan to, along with an extra bowl, which I think would be very handy during the holidays.

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Silver KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer KP26M1PSL

I have had this model for about 4-5 years. Before I purchased this I had a 5-quart KitchenAid Artesian mixer that I got for a wedding present in 1992.

I have always baked a lot. Especially from fall through spring and the Artesian was great. However, the five-quart model just got to be too small, especially when I had kids. Since I had kids I bake more and found myself doing two to three batches back to back with the Artesian.

Now with this model I can double batches of pumpkin bread, cakes or cookies with no problem and be done in less time with less fuss. I thought I would miss the tilting head but I don't.

The only thing I did not like about this model were the aluminum blade and dough hook. So I ordered the coated ones for this machine. I always soak my blades and wash them by hand; it would be nice if they made stainless steel versions of these but enough consumers have to make noise to get them to do something.

I gave my old Artesian 5-quart to my niece who is single with no kids. She also bakes a lot but in smaller batches than I do and the Artesian is still going strong. It works great and looks like new and her friends are always trying to borrow her mixer. If you don't bake a lot or tend to bake in smaller batches the Artesian is great.

This model is a great choice for a high volume home baker like me; great quality, durable and powered to do bigger batches.

Gloss Cinnamon KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer KP26M1PGC

This is an outstanding mixer. I don't think it's terribly loud, as I have seen in other reviews. The design may have changed or it could just be that I mill my own flour in an impact mill, and the mixer seems very quiet compared to the mill! I also have 4 children, so I'm fairly desensitized to noise.

I got the mixer primarily for making bread. It is rated for 14 cups of all-purpose flour, but the manual says to only use 8 cups of whole-grain flour (2 loaves). I make 2 loaves of whole-grain bread at least once a week, usually twice. The spiral dough hook does an excellent job of kneading, and the mixer has plenty of power to handle the whole-grain dough. Just 8 minutes of kneading develpes the gluten so well, that I only have to raise the dough for 30 minutes in the bread pans and then bake it, and we end up with delicious, light, fluffy bread. I can make bread in less than an hour and a half, including the time for kneading, rising and baking. (We live over 7500 feet in altitude, and I have seen recipes that call for up to 3 rises of yeast bread at high altitude, but that is absolutely not necessary.) I used to use a bread machine, and produced many "bread bricks" with it. Since I got the KitchenAid, the bread machine has been retired.

We have mostly just made bread, but also have used it for cake, gingerbread, and whipped cream. It had no problem with any of those, as I expected. There is one major design flaw, in my children's opinions, and we discovered it when 2 of them were helping me make a birthday cake. They were very distressed when they realized there was only one beater to lick! That is our only complaint so far.

We also purchased the meat grinder and used it to grind at least 30 pounds of beef, elk, and turkey into burger. The mixer had plenty of power to be up to the task.

I am very pleased with the performance of this mixer and don't think anyone would regret purchasing it.