KitchenAid produces a whole line of stand mixers with a range of sizes and power to suit your particular needs. Recently, we reviewed the KitchenAid Professional 600 series here and found it to be a powerhouse that can tackle truly large jobs with ease. Now we’ll take a look at the Artisan stand mixer, also a KitchenAid product.

The Artisan has a 5 quart capacity bowl which can knead 9 cups of flour with its 67 point planetary mixing action. Our first thought on seeing this beauty was that it seemed small enough to be used in most any size kitchen, yet sturdy enough to tackle any job. So we put it to work.

Let’s start with ease of use- the dough hook, flat beater, and wire whip all attach with a simple push and twist. Just reverse the maneuver to remove them. The bowl also stays put easily with a counterclockwise turn to lock it in place. The rubberized feet keep it from moving around while mixing heavy doughs. We tested this while making 9 cup batches of bread dough and this machine performed beautifully, producing a firm dough in just about 5 minutes without even getting warm. Although the Artisan weighs over 22 pounds, I did not find it too difficult to maneuver around the countertop.

We put this mixer through a range of jobs, using the whip, dough hook and flat beater all of which come with the mixer. We brought egg whites to very stiff peaks in under 5 minutes, mixed countless batches of cookies, cakes, and loaves of bread. One my new regular tasks for this mixer is making our favorite banana bread by using the flat beater to mash the bananas first, and then adding the rest of the ingredients to the bowl. It comes out great and I have only one dirty bowl to wash. Each experience endeared this machine to me more.

I am a hardcore mix-by-hand baker and use a hand mixer sparingly for jobs like meringues and whipped cream, but this mixer has changed the way I bake. If you are a frequent baker and have the space (Maybe you can make the space!) to leave this out on the counter, I believe you will find that you turn to it as your first choice for mixing.

Mixer Style		Tilt-head
All-Metal Construction
Direct Drive Transmission
Bowl Finish		Polished Stainless Steel
Bowl Handle		Contoured
Motor Wattage		325 Watts
Flour Power™ Rating		9 Cups
Mixing Bowl Capacity		5 Quart
Planetary Mixing Action		67 Point
Mixing Speeds		10
Multi-purpose Attachment Hub
Flat Beater
‘C’ Dough Hook
Wide Chute Pouring Shield
5 Qt. Stainless Steel Bowl w/Handle
Wire Whip
Weight		22.8 US pound
Depth		14 3/32 in.
Height		13 29/32 in.
Width		8 21/32 in.

If you want to read more about the Artisan Stand Mixer, click here for the Care and Use Guide.