The Most Revolutionary Improvement to Stand Mixers in 90 Years!
The BeaterBlade™
My next book (several years hence!!!) will be several pages shorter than it might have been because I will be able to leave out that annoyingly repetitive phrase scrape down the sides of the bowl! This is because an inventive young man, Gary Fallowes of NewMetro Design (he may not be so young by the time I finish another book) has designed a flat beater for most models of the Cuisinart,KitchenAid, Kenwood, Viking and DeLonghi stand mixers, that has a flexible rubber ‘wing’ down the entire outer length of the blade which continuously and efficiently scrapes the sides and bottom of the bowl as it is beating.
I waited a long time to write about this much needed attachment because I wanted to test it out thoroughly and be certain that it would not in any way harm the mixer.
One of my concerns was regarding the hinge pin in the KitchenAid Artisan that keeps the tilt head attached to the stand. It has been a known issue that it can work its way out if subjected to extra pressure when using the dough hook. Gary showed me how easy it is to tighten the pin—a good idea no matter which attachment you use. Here’s the link to the instructions for tightening the pin.
http://webapps.easy2.com/cm2/flash/generic_index.asp?page_id=35839636
The other problem that arose with this same mixer was that due to the clockwise pressure of the blade, the bowl got locked onto the stand and it was close to impossible to remove! (I hit the handle sideways with a rubber mallet and that did the job.) Actually I’ve seen a YouTube clip of this happening with the standard flat beater attachment and the person demonstrating lifted the bowl still on the stand and turned it upside down to empty out the batter! A far simpler solution is to place a rubber band around the base of the bowl before placing it in the stand.
My main concern had been the question of whether the friction of the blades would put strain on the mixer’s motor. Gary beat me to the punch having run tests and based on the results he writes:
“I can state that the “BeaterBlade does not put any more excess strain on the mixer or mixer motor than mixing bread dough.”
He also explains that eliminating the need to turn the mixer off and on actually reduces wear of the motor.
Please note, however, that the use of third party attachments may not be supported by the mixer companies' warranties.
I find that with some mixtures, after the first minute of beating it is sometimes necessary to stir down the sides one time, especially if it is a large amount of batter and rises up the sides of the bowl a bit. Woody recommends that with some mixtures or if the butter is not quite soft enough it is a good idea to get them started by mixing them a little with a silicone spatula first. It is always a good practice to start the mixer on the lowest possible speed. This will prevent the mixture from jumping out of the bowl at the early stages of mixing. But once the butter is mixed in I found no need to do anything further. The Beaterblade is so effective they state it can shorten beating time significantly though I’ve found, at least with my recipes, that there is no harm if I adhere to my usual beating time.
The BeaterBlades are very durable. They can even be washed in the dishwasher on the upper level. Gary has just launched a Pro series (in a yellow body to distinguish it from the original which comes in white and various colors of rubber wings) for industrial use or home baker’s who bake every day or who just enjoy having professional grade equipment. The PRO is specifically made for heavy use and continuous commercial dishwasher use at any temperature or level in the dishwasher.
BeaterBlade is now in over 700 stores in the US, plus England, France, Netherlands, South Africa, Australia and Germany. You will find them in retail stores and on Amazon. They retail for about $25 to $45 depending on the model.
For more information go to the BeaterBlade site: http://www.beaterblade.com