I'm gearing up for a big baking week for a bake sale this coming weekend. Some of your book recipes will be featured and a few others I'm comfortable with. Focaccia, Wheat bread, Hearth sourdough loaf, Challah and some dinner rolls. Probably overly ambitious, but what's life without a little stress?
Sourdough pizza dough in the rice cooker again for “bread.” Actually love the skin that forms instead of a crust--less resistance than a bagel but more textural contrast than a steamed bao. Still trying to figure out how many cycles is ideal. And how many should be regular or turbo/quick. My assumption is that the turbo feature is a higher temp. So I’ve been doing a few at the start for the closest thing to oven spring. Overcooking seems impossible at present. Not being delicious, also.
I have had my Ankarsrum for more than 25 years and still love it. I've had to replace the knobs and the roller, but other than that it is perfect! So well made.
I bought it and the MagicMill grain mill at the same time. We were homeschooling at the time and the kids really enjoyed using both machines.
I would like a paid membership but can't swing it just yet. May I have the blessing of a free one?
I recently bought a Bosch Universal after having a 6 Quart Kitchenaid Pro for 20 years.
I tested it with bread dough and making butter. It does both very well. Actually the butter was even better without having to drape a towel over the bowl.
Also cookies I found it creamed the butter and sugar very well.
I had an Ankarsrum and loved it. I was able to make 5 two pound loaves in a single batch. It never overheated with the honey oat whole grain dough and the roller and scraper combo worked the dough beautifully. Unfortunately it wasn’t big enough to make 8 loaves in a single batch so I replaced it with a Famag 10S.
After my 40 year old kitchen aid died (bought in the early 70's) I got the most heavy duty kitchen aid only to overheat and kill 2 more merely but using the same recipe for my honey wheat I'd used since I began making bread I finally settled for another kitchen aid but if I'm not careful it will overheat Ialso bought a Bosch which of course had no issues with bread dough! The only issue I've had is that the metal beaters scrape the bottom of the bowl!! I only noticed when I switched from the plastic bowl to the metal I'm concerned about metal scrapings into the dough
I just ordered a Häussler NOVA Spiral Mixer through pleasant hill grains. Got rave reviews in Germany so hopefully it will deliver! I currently use a KA artisan mixer but not quite happy with yeasted breads and quality of the end product.. tried an ankarsrum but returned it as it did not mix bread flour any better than my KA.. https://pleasanthillgrain.com/haussler-nova-kneading-dough-stand-mixer
I've looked at those, and they look great, though maybe a little small, capacity-wise for the price. I'm not sure why you didn't have better results with your Ankarsrum, because I think it world's better than a KA for bread, and it can hold more dough than either of those. I only use the paddle/scraper combination, and didn't find the hook to work well (I'm told they added it for American users who didn't get how to use the paddle). I still want a spiral mixer, but if I get one it will need to hold at least 8 quarts of dough.
I watched a lot of videos about the Ankarsum and the roller still struggled with high hydration doughs.. maybe user error but nothing i did improved the dough mixing experience. I was initially planning on getting the Haeussler Alpha for its larger bowl capacity but saw mixed reviews..
With its heavy motor on the bottom, it never inches its way across the counter. I generally set mine at ~ 2:00, to slowly knead the dough. I’m not a dough hook user, but here’s a link to when the dough hook was introduced:
I am still hanging in there with KitchenAid. It is from "olden times" (as in before the low speed warning) and I have never had trouble with it, even with stiff cookie dough. The Anskarum looks pretty nice though and the name is pretty cool, too.
I had the Bosch for awhile and never really liked it. Mine tended to "walk" a bit with heavy bread doughs and took awhile to knead well. It wasn't as good at some of the non-bread recipes as my kitchenaid was. I gave it to a new aspiring baker and got a Famag for bread and have a good kitchenaid for everything else.
The suction cups helped but the surface had to be flour free and preferably damp for them to really work. I never felt comfortable leaving it to work on something else for fear I'd find it on the floor. This was several years ago so they may have improved it. For reference I have quartz countertops. Now that I'm thinking about it the Bosch did also struggle with very small recipes trying to incorporate the ingredients. I know many people really like the Bosch so a lot may come down to what you regularly bake personal preference
Revisited the chamomile sourdough recipe I had been working on for a while and remembered its utter delight! Not only is it a great way to appreciate some chamomile flavor in a different way, but I have never experienced the scent stronger than when the loaves are in the oven
Allen - I know how much you like your Vevor, that's great. Two reasons I'm not interested in it is that the bowl is fixed and the head does not tilt. If I upgrade to a spiral, I want both features.
Unfortunately, the Wilfa is not available in the US yet, though it's one I'd love to test, especially since it has the other standard stand mixer attachments of a whip and beaters. I don't have the room for multiple machines (he says, despite currently having 4 stand mixers in his kitchen right now).
I was given a magic mill mixer a while back and managed to break it (a special talent of mine)..of course I kept it knowing it's value and am looking for someone to repair it... Any thoughts? When I did use it, it was great!
I use the Ankershrum. After reading your review and subscribing to word loaf last year I bought it. I have always hated the kitchenaid. Love capacity and ease of using the Ank. I show it off every time someone comes over. It’s a focal point in my working pantry. Looks beautiful and easy to use.
I made butternut squash sourdough with some leftover purée from making butternut gnocchi 😄 admittedly i was hoping for a more intense flavour.. . Maybe it would work better with solid chunks rather than purée?
I baked cinnamon rolls yesterday. The aroma that filled the house? OMG. Looking forward to our collaboration!
I'm gearing up for a big baking week for a bake sale this coming weekend. Some of your book recipes will be featured and a few others I'm comfortable with. Focaccia, Wheat bread, Hearth sourdough loaf, Challah and some dinner rolls. Probably overly ambitious, but what's life without a little stress?
Sourdough pizza dough in the rice cooker again for “bread.” Actually love the skin that forms instead of a crust--less resistance than a bagel but more textural contrast than a steamed bao. Still trying to figure out how many cycles is ideal. And how many should be regular or turbo/quick. My assumption is that the turbo feature is a higher temp. So I’ve been doing a few at the start for the closest thing to oven spring. Overcooking seems impossible at present. Not being delicious, also.
Not being delicious being impossible is good!
I have had my Ankarsrum for more than 25 years and still love it. I've had to replace the knobs and the roller, but other than that it is perfect! So well made.
I bought it and the MagicMill grain mill at the same time. We were homeschooling at the time and the kids really enjoyed using both machines.
I would like a paid membership but can't swing it just yet. May I have the blessing of a free one?
I enjoy Wordloaf,
Karen
I recently bought a Bosch Universal after having a 6 Quart Kitchenaid Pro for 20 years.
I tested it with bread dough and making butter. It does both very well. Actually the butter was even better without having to drape a towel over the bowl.
Also cookies I found it creamed the butter and sugar very well.
I had an Ankarsrum and loved it. I was able to make 5 two pound loaves in a single batch. It never overheated with the honey oat whole grain dough and the roller and scraper combo worked the dough beautifully. Unfortunately it wasn’t big enough to make 8 loaves in a single batch so I replaced it with a Famag 10S.
After my 40 year old kitchen aid died (bought in the early 70's) I got the most heavy duty kitchen aid only to overheat and kill 2 more merely but using the same recipe for my honey wheat I'd used since I began making bread I finally settled for another kitchen aid but if I'm not careful it will overheat Ialso bought a Bosch which of course had no issues with bread dough! The only issue I've had is that the metal beaters scrape the bottom of the bowl!! I only noticed when I switched from the plastic bowl to the metal I'm concerned about metal scrapings into the dough
I just ordered a Häussler NOVA Spiral Mixer through pleasant hill grains. Got rave reviews in Germany so hopefully it will deliver! I currently use a KA artisan mixer but not quite happy with yeasted breads and quality of the end product.. tried an ankarsrum but returned it as it did not mix bread flour any better than my KA.. https://pleasanthillgrain.com/haussler-nova-kneading-dough-stand-mixer
I've looked at those, and they look great, though maybe a little small, capacity-wise for the price. I'm not sure why you didn't have better results with your Ankarsrum, because I think it world's better than a KA for bread, and it can hold more dough than either of those. I only use the paddle/scraper combination, and didn't find the hook to work well (I'm told they added it for American users who didn't get how to use the paddle). I still want a spiral mixer, but if I get one it will need to hold at least 8 quarts of dough.
I watched a lot of videos about the Ankarsum and the roller still struggled with high hydration doughs.. maybe user error but nothing i did improved the dough mixing experience. I was initially planning on getting the Haeussler Alpha for its larger bowl capacity but saw mixed reviews..
I love the Ankarsrum!
With its heavy motor on the bottom, it never inches its way across the counter. I generally set mine at ~ 2:00, to slowly knead the dough. I’m not a dough hook user, but here’s a link to when the dough hook was introduced:
https://www.ankarsrum.com/us/degrullen/
I am still hanging in there with KitchenAid. It is from "olden times" (as in before the low speed warning) and I have never had trouble with it, even with stiff cookie dough. The Anskarum looks pretty nice though and the name is pretty cool, too.
I had the Bosch for awhile and never really liked it. Mine tended to "walk" a bit with heavy bread doughs and took awhile to knead well. It wasn't as good at some of the non-bread recipes as my kitchenaid was. I gave it to a new aspiring baker and got a Famag for bread and have a good kitchenaid for everything else.
Kathryn - interesting. Even with the suction-cup feet?
The suction cups helped but the surface had to be flour free and preferably damp for them to really work. I never felt comfortable leaving it to work on something else for fear I'd find it on the floor. This was several years ago so they may have improved it. For reference I have quartz countertops. Now that I'm thinking about it the Bosch did also struggle with very small recipes trying to incorporate the ingredients. I know many people really like the Bosch so a lot may come down to what you regularly bake personal preference
Revisited the chamomile sourdough recipe I had been working on for a while and remembered its utter delight! Not only is it a great way to appreciate some chamomile flavor in a different way, but I have never experienced the scent stronger than when the loaves are in the oven
I'm still very happy with my VEVOR mixer: https://www.vevor.com/commercial-mixers-c_10669/vevor-commercial-dough-food-mixer-spiral-dough-mixer-w-7-3qt-bowl-p_010396288289 Under $500 for a tabletop spiral! Much less than an Ankarsrum.
Jimmy Griffin just alerted me to a new consumer offset spiral mixer: https://www.wilfa.com/us/product/kitchen-appliance/kitchen-machine/probaker-kjokkenmaskin/ But it's 3 times the price of the VEVOR.
Allen - I know how much you like your Vevor, that's great. Two reasons I'm not interested in it is that the bowl is fixed and the head does not tilt. If I upgrade to a spiral, I want both features.
Unfortunately, the Wilfa is not available in the US yet, though it's one I'd love to test, especially since it has the other standard stand mixer attachments of a whip and beaters. I don't have the room for multiple machines (he says, despite currently having 4 stand mixers in his kitchen right now).
I was given a magic mill mixer a while back and managed to break it (a special talent of mine)..of course I kept it knowing it's value and am looking for someone to repair it... Any thoughts? When I did use it, it was great!
I think you showed it to me! I don't know of anyone who specializes in repairing these. Anyone else?
I use the Ankershrum. After reading your review and subscribing to word loaf last year I bought it. I have always hated the kitchenaid. Love capacity and ease of using the Ank. I show it off every time someone comes over. It’s a focal point in my working pantry. Looks beautiful and easy to use.
I made butternut squash sourdough with some leftover purée from making butternut gnocchi 😄 admittedly i was hoping for a more intense flavour.. . Maybe it would work better with solid chunks rather than purée?
Been making doughnuts a bunch, did milk bread dough that sat and cold proofed for a week. Dipped them in malted milk glaze after I fried em, fun stuff