... When I moved into my own home with my husband we were inundated with various household items as housewarming gifts and one of those items was the Kenwood HM320 Hand Mixer, one of the few items I had specifically requested. As my children have grown old enough to understand the concept of making ... Read review
Advantages: multi tool, on board storage Disadvantages: only in white
...of those items was the Kenwood HM320 Hand Mixer, one of the few items I had specifically requested. As my children have grown old enough to understand the concept of making cakes I have begun to bake regularly for them, especially now Christopher is in full time school and has school events to supply food for, they may not be big enough to make the cakes themselves yet but they do enjoy helping mummy cook and obviously enjoy the results!
...mixer that comes with 2 different style stainless steel mixing tools, you have the traditional beaters and you also have the spiral shaped kneaders, 2 of each are supplied and click into holes on the underside of the mixer when in use, to release the tools for cleaning you simply press the circular button on the top of the mixer and they pop out, after all you wouldn't want to be plunging the whole device into your washing up bowl! The mixer also ... more
Growing up I spent a lot of time baking with my mum and sisters, we had a large family and liked to throw tea parties or Birthday celebrations, marking most celebrations in this way. I learnt the joys of baking my own cakes from a very young age and decided that when I was older and had my own family I would carry on the tradition and hopefully teach my own children just like my mum taught me. When I moved into my own home with my husband we were inundated with various household items as housewarming gifts and one of those items was the Kenwood HM320 Hand Mixer, one of the few items I had specifically requested. As my children have grown old enough to understand the concept of making cakes I have begun to bake regularly for them, especially now Christopher is in full time school and has school events to supply food for, they may not be big enough to make the cakes themselves yet but they do enjoy helping mummy cook and obviously enjoy the results!
The Kenwood HM320 is a 250watt 3 speed hand mixer that comes with 2 different style stainless steel mixing tools, you have the traditional beaters and you also have the spiral shaped kneaders, 2 of each are supplied and click into holes on the underside of the mixer when in use, to release the tools for cleaning you simply press the circular button on the top of the mixer and they pop out, after all you wouldn't want to be plunging the whole device into your washing up bowl! The mixer also comes with an ingenious "tool rack" made of flexible plastic which fits over the holes usually used for holding the beaters while in use, this allows you to store all 4 tools on the mixer ensuring that they are all in the same place and easily found when it comes to using the mixer next, there's nothing worse then spending an hour rummaging in the bottom of the odds and sods drawer trying to find a missing beater.
Another great feature of the mixer is that the cord can be wrapped around the blender and clipped into place keeping it neat during storage, this combined with it's clip on tool holder makes it the perfect self contained utensil that will keep your kitchen neat and tidy instead of messed up with trailing wires and scattered tools.
The mixer itself has a comfortable handle built into the main body which is large enough for larger built people to use with ease, it isn't the lightest of mixers and you do need a strong hand to control the mixer as it works through your ingredients (although I am a huge weedling so that might just be my problem!) I often find it easier just to hold the mixer lightly and allow it to take its own course through the ingredients. The 3 speeds allow you to tackle different thicknesses of mixture, I usually use the 2nd speed as this is ideal for most sponge mixtures, however if you're making something with added ingredients such as fruit or chocolate chips, or a thick gooey mixture like Brownies then speed 3 is better, I tend to only use the first speed for batter mix or for spinning the excess mixture from the beaters with which makes them easier to clean when you're finished and stops wasting mixture which could otherwise make up an extra cake. If you're making up a whipped cream, meringue or Angel Delight style pudding then speed 3 is great for whisking the mixture making it light and fluffy. On speed 2 the average cake mix requires around 2 minutes of beating to get the lightest consistency and the best texture for your cake.
I don't often use the Kneaders as I don't make bread however I have a issue with having messy, sticky hands which verges on obsessive compulsive and so when I'm making up pastry I can't bear putting my hands in the initial mix of ingredients to begin the kneading process. I'll use the kneaders to bring all the ingredients together to begin forming the dough and at that point I can just about handle kneading the rest of the mixture myself as I'm less likely to end up with goo all over my hands. I always start out on speed 2 for this but as the mix thickens up I'll up it to speed 3 as it needs a little more power at this point. How quickly the dough comes together will depend on how much I'm making but it's usually no more then 2 or 3 minutes before I can handle the dough myself.
I've had my mixer for a few years now and it's still in great condition despite all the use and abuse it's seen, there's no a single spot if rust on the tools and the main body of the mixer itself is still fresh and clean as I make sure I wipe it over after each use. It's quite a noisy mixer especially on speed 3 but it's always been that way, in fact I don't think I've ever used a quiet mixer of this sort. The motor still works perfectly making the little beaters spin wildly through the cake mix and I've yet to smell that tell tale burning which says the mixer should go into retirement.
For £19.99 this is a really good hand mixer, with luck and care you'll get many years out of the mixer making it great value for money. You can still pick the mixer up from electrical suppliers and it's even available on Amazon currently at £16.75, a real bargain price for such a good device, it is however only available (to my knowledge) in white.
