We loved the addition of the top handle and found it worth the extra $20 cost. This made it easy to lift and move the mixer, which is convenient if you want to store it in a cabinet when you aren’t using it. If you’re a caterer or run a bakery from hamilton beach toaster oven home, you may find this machine on the small side. You can always divide your batter or make the same recipe multiple times, but that poses a risk of inconsistent mixing and is also time-consuming, especially if you’re running on a deadline.
Linda Thomson, whose loves are kids, books, music, good food and classic films, has been a professional writer her entire working life. This includes four newspapers, one magazine and plenty of online publishing. She no longer writes for Top Ten Reviews, although you’ll still see her work across a number of articles on the Top Ten Reviews site. When we moved on to a soft yeast dough, the mixer seemed to strain just a little, but it still gave us a silky smooth dough.
This test made use of the wire whisk (if provided) and high speeds. The score also considers if all the ingredients were properly whipped. Considering its 6.5-quart capacity and highly durable all-metal construction, this mixer offers exceptional value for the money.
However, you get what you pay for with many of these bargain mixers. They are not as sturdy and come with smaller work bowls. In general, they also can’t handle the same types of dough that heavy-duty workhorses can. In fact, sometimes they can hamilton beach toaster move along the counter if the beaters encounter dough that is too tough for the motor. All you have to do is unpack it, plug it into an outlet and it’s ready to go — although you should wash the bowl and mixer attachments before you use them.
Mixers that don’t have this feature will likely require you to scrape the sides periodically to reincorporate your ingredients. One of the Hamilton Beach stand mixer’s top features is undoubtedly its planetary mixing motion. The handles on the sides of the stainless steel bowl allow you to maneuver it without slipping. The mixer’s bowl doesn’t have a handle, making it less convenient to install, remove, and empty, but it snugs easily into the base. The bowl has another oddity—the hollow base has holes in the bottom.
All of the non-combo models come with a dough hook, whisk, and flat beater. Several models also have a tilt-up head to make food removal simple and easy. If you’re ready to start baking, grab one of these stylish mixers and get to work. This stand mixer comes with six speeds as well as an extra “fold” setting that you turn the control knob to and hold when you want to gently add delicate ingredients such as whipped cream. The 3.5-quart stainless steel bowl is one of the smaller ones we reviewed, but it functioned well in our tests and is durable; we just had to make smaller batches. With the Hamilton Beach mixer, you get the standard beater, whisk and dough hook, and the attachments and bowl are dishwasher safe.