I spoke with Randy Kaas, but haven’t put my dough into his scrape-a-bowl yet. In addition to the main benefit of no-scraping needed, Randy reported that mixing times are reduced by near half the recipe time since more-and-all the contents on the mixing bowl are reached. In my opinion, this will change the way all existing cookbooks are written… “stop and scrape, continue 1 more time, etc.”
There is another plus. Since the scrape-a-bowl and the even newer whisk-a-bowl can reach all the contents of the mixing bowl, now you can handle very small jobs, like beating 1 egg for example. Google for the patent application of the whisk-a-bowl, it even has a prototype picture!
I commend Randy for his extraordinary attention to design. Starting with the POURfect products, the attention to ergonomics is incredible. The fact you can lift/pour a bowl or beaker with just the palm of your hand is very ADA compliant in my opinion. Same for the scrape-less paddle, for not having to hold the scraping spatula, too.
I am curious to read what KitchenAid has to say. I’ve noticed on the KitchenAid blog, which is highly moderated, there has been recent emphasis on beater-to-bowl clearance.
On the sideswipe website, there is a FAQ regarding a concern of adding strain on the mixer’s motor. Please read carefully. Sideswipe is a similar product to Randy’s Scrape-a-Bowl. Personally I will go for Randy’s brand, he really is committed to our industry.
In the light of these scrape beaters, and since I don’t have one yet, I have changed my mixing method anytime the flat beater or dough hook are called. It works great, and it is near scrape less, and most important yet: mess-splash-less. What I do, is powering the dough hook or flat beater with my hand first, right on the mixer bowl as if I was the mixer, you have total control on speed and direction. I grab the mixer bowl with one hand (a bowl with a handle is a plus), and with the other hand I grab the dough hook or flat beater. I ‘hand-mix’ roughly until ingredients are partly incorporated, scraping the bowl with the same attachment. It works wonderfully.
