The Kitchenaid Architect Series 9 Speed Hand Mixer

When my fiance came home from work today, seeing the freshly made oatmeal muffins, he asked how I liked my new hand-mixer. I'm sure he was hoping my reaction would be ecstatic, considering my last model was a simple 150 watt, 5 speed model from Procter-Silex but, after our concern that the item had been previously used and returned or refurbished (based on torn packaging and fingerprints), I'm sure my response was no surprise.

I told him that I was "admittedly disappointed." My disappointment worsened as I explained to him how I attempted to whisk the dry ingredients on both power 1 and 2 and noticed the mixer struggling several times, even stopping twice. This mixer has a dc motor, instead of the traditional ac motor, which Kitchenaid claims allows the mixer to maintain speed and power, even as heavier ingredients are added. On QVC, which was the sole carrier of this product when I was ready to purchase, this feature was compared to cruise control. Well, if this were a vehicle, I would have stopped on the highway!

I continued to tell him how, at one point, the whisk attachment actually fell out of the mixer, even though I had not hit the eject button and it had been locked in. We agreed that, while this may have been a difficult task for a whisk, if I could hand whisk the batter, the mixer should have had no problems.

It is a lovely looking mixer - shiny Candy Apple Red - and came with exciting attachments (turbo beaters, dough hooks, a "pro-whisk," and an immersion stick) and the reviews on this product were excellent - you'll soon see that I absolutely never purchase a new product without first researching it extensively. I plan to try out a few more recipes with this mixer before contacting Kitchenaid or QVC but, I must caution that this product is not living up to the Kitchenaid reputation. I hope this experience was a one-off and that the mixer will prove its worth on the next batter.

Good night all! x