Mixer Update

So I’ve made bagels as well as white bread and I’m primed to make some sourdough recipes as well now. I think there’s reason to be hopeful here.

The bagel recipe was a 9-cup recipe and I had the mixer work the dough for the better part of 15 minutes. It was a stiff dough as well, so it was a decent test. Heating up in the motor area wasn’t alarming, i.e. the unit wasn’t hot to the touch. I’m pretty sure the previous mixer would’ve shut down under those circumstances. I was never comfortable using it with more than 7 cups of flour, to be honest, even though it claimed it could handle 14 cups.

I’ve also made a couple more loaves of white bread with very good results. I typically knead my dough at speed 4 and the KA-7 handles the job with aplomb. The motor had no hesitation during start-up, even once the dough is pretty well developed. Also, there’s little evidence of strain as the dough hook moves through the dough, even when it wads up on the hook. Again, the Pro6 would exhibit obvious strain during at that point.

My only cause for concern is a “ticking” noise coming from the planetary once the dough starts coming together in the bowl. Interestingly, if I stop the machine and the restart it, the ticking goes away and does not return. I’ve got no idea what might be the cause of the sound, but it’s certainly not endemic to the unit.

All in all, I’m beginning to think the big test of the unit will be longevity, and only usage and time will tell that tale.

We should be good for some sourdough a little later this week. More then.