KitchenAid K45SS Classic 250-Watt 4-1/2-Quart Stand Mixer, White

Product Details

Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 14.1 x 13.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 25 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
ASIN: B00004SGFW
Item model number: K45SSWH

By : KitchenAid
List Price : ~~$269.99~~
Price : $170.39
You Save : $99.60 (37%)

Product Description

Amazon.com Review
KitchenAid's stand mixer is a substantial piece of equipment: 250 watts of mixing power make child's play of creaming butter, kneading dough, and whipping cream. The kid in you will appreciate how quick and easy it is to mix up a batch of cookie dough; the 4-1/2-quart bowl can hold up to 8 cups of flour, which translates into as many as 192 sweet treats.
This model comes with three attachments: a flat beater for making batter, meat loaf, and all textures in-between; a wire whip for egg whites, mayonnaise, and more air-infused creations; and a hook for mixing and kneading yeast doughs. All three are solid in construction and easily secured to the beater shaft with a simple twist; untwisting them is a bit trickier because the attachment stems are short and can be hard to grasp, especially if they get the least bit greasy. The bowl itself locks tight to the base.
Standing 14 inches high, jutting out a foot, and weighing more than a grown woman's bowling ball, this stand mixer isn't the sort of appliance you'll wipe down and put away. Better to find a square foot of free counter space for easy access; besides, this machine is as pretty as it is rugged--you'll want to show it off.
To complete the package, KitchenAid includes a spiral-bound guide with instructions, mixing tips, and 67 recipes, from crispy waffles to a caramel walnut banana torte. --Betsy Danheim
Perfect for kitchens of all sizes, the classic series stand mixer delivers the power and durability to mix large batches. 8 cup flour power. Powerful 250-watt motor. Versatile 10 speed control. Durable, direct drive transmission. Multipurpose attachment hub w

Product Features

250-watt, 10-speed mixer with tilt-up head
4-1/2-quart bowl holds dough for 2 loaves of bread
Three handy accessories: flat beater, wire whip, and dough hook
Includes a guide with instructions, mixing tips, and 67 recipes
Measures 13-8/9 by 8-2/3 by 14 inches; 1-year warranty

Customer Reviews

Unlike many of the reviewers, I've only had this mixer for about a year, and it's this specific model, the 250W 4.5 quart mixer (the bottom of the Kitchenaid line). It was a real splurge at the time we purchased it, but it has turned out to be well worth it.
Before the Kitchenaid, I didn't do much baking. I tend towards more "manly" cooking techniques: the hotter the fire, the spicier the recipe, the better as far as I'm concerned. But this machine is as satisfying to use as any power tool in the garage -- there is something about using the right tool for the job, and I've found no tasks that one might consider using a mixer for that the Kitchenaid doesn't excel at. But it's especially good for baking, and once you start using it, you'll have your oven running a lot more than you used to.
The big difference between this mixer and the standard "two beater" models you may be familiar with is that it uses a single mixing attachment that rotates in two motions- it not only spins on its own axis, it also is rotated around the edge of the bowl. This does an extremely effective job of mixing ingredients without need for the bowl rotating, since the mixing motion covers the entire bowl. For most mixing jobs, it also requires no scraping of the sides with the spatula. IE: when it's mixing, you can ignore it and work on other stuff.
The first attachment I'll mention is the dough hook, which is a godsend for kneading. In the last day, I've made pizza dough, bagels, and whole wheat bread. Although this is the least powerful machine Kitchenaid makes, it kneads stiff dough (like the aforementioned bagels made with high-gluten flour) that would turn your mother's mixmaster into a smoking, stinking heap of fried motor components. Machine kneading takes a lot of the effort and variability out of making bread... you never "knead in" too much flour to keep it from sticking to your hands, and the 20 minutes you normally spend working the dough turns into 10 minutes you can use to clean up the kitchen.
The other two attachments are the paddle and the whisk. The paddle is the all-purpose "workhorse" beater, and works extremely well for creaming sugar and butter together, mixing cookie dough or cake batter, or any other general-purpose mixing job. With the orbital motion, it comes right up to the edge of the bowl, so it is effectively scraping as it goes. The whisk is great for egg whites and making whipped cream. I'm sure it's good for something else, but that's what I've used it for.
As for capacity, the 4.5 quart model is suitable for pretty much any "normal" home recipes. It's a "standard mixer". It will easily knead enough dough at once for two loaves of bread, or mix a double-batch of cookies.
As for downsides: this thing is HEAVY. You won't be moving it once it's in place. If you knead very stiff dough, the bowl sometimes will get tightened to the extent that it is very difficult to remove from the base. It's OK if you remember to leave it a little loose beforehand, but I always forget and I end up wrestling with the machine to twist it out. The metal trim band on the mixer right above the bowl has come a little loose on my model- the machine got a bit hot after some heavy kneading, and I think some adhesive got soft. It's held in place well by something else, but sometimes it will slip when I'm wiping the machine off. It's purely cosmetic from what I can tell, and it's the only thing that feels cheap in any way about this machine. Other than that, I honestly haven't had a single complaint.
In summary: this is an expensive mixer, but it is very well worth it. Even novice cooks will find it's use enjoyable, and it will inspire you to explore new things that you probably didn't do before because of the time and effort involved.

I received a white one for an early christmas gift and just used it for the first time on he christmas cookies that are a tradition in my family. In the past years, I've used my mother's old stand-mixer, and I've also used a hand mixer, which is near impossible to do with this recipe. This year, I used my new mixer and I am blown away! These cookies, that usually take forever, were done in no time! And even though I didn't think the 4 1/2 quart bowl would be big enough for the whole recipe, I had no problem and room to spare! It's surprisingly deep. It also stayed relatively cool through the three batches of cookies I made (I'm used to beginning to smell smoke from my mothers!)
I only used the flat beater yesterday, but have some bread recpies that I'm dying to use the dough hook on.
Just a few concerns...The dough sticks to the side of the bowl, so I did have to stop from time to time and scrape it off, but that was nothing that I wasn't used to. And you cannot attach a larger bowl to this mixer...the only other bowl you can attach is one of the same size with a handle.
And definately invest in a splash guard. You only get lemon extract in your eyes once to make that decision.