choose-pastry-robot

How do I choose a Pastry Robot?

Robots have come a long way over the past few years, haven't they? From vacuuming floors to mowing lawns, they really have stepped up their game around the house. Pastry robots, aka stand mixers, add another string to the bows of robots, and can take a lot of the hard work out of bread making and home baking. Aside from making your job easier, a pastry robot will also provide better results than if you were to do everything manually, by perfectly combining ingredients such as eggs, flour, butter and sugar and creating a smooth, creamy consistency.

How do I choose a Pastry Robot ?

These beasts take a lot of the hard work and elbow grease out of home cooking. The primary goal for any pastry robot is to help make baking easier and they can perform the following functions:

  • Knead

  • Beat

  • Whisk

  • Whip

When choosing a pastry robot, firstly, consider your budget - buying a refurbished pastry robot will help you save the pennies without compromising on quality. Secondly, take a look at the options in your price range. Lastly, consider what you want to bake and check the main functions, the bowl capacity and attachments that come with an appliance before making a purchase. If you know you want to bake bread, for example, choose a pastry robot that comes with dough hooks included for kneading bread.

Prices

If you are looking for a high performing, powerful device, pastry robots from brands like KitchenAid, Kenwood and Bosch are some of the best on the market. They do not come cheap, however, and a brand new KitchenAid will set you back £500 for a mini stand mixer, and £300 for a standard-sized pastry robot. That's a fairly hefty investment! A refurbished pastry robot will cost significantly less than that. A refurbished Kenwood Kmx850rd Kmix, for example, costs less than £200. Plus, opting for this particular refurbished pastry robot also saves over 9000g of electronic waste - so it's win-win.

The Kenwood KM096 is another super high-end model that generally retails for about a grand or more. (It would want to make pretty incredible cupcakes AND do the washing up at that price.) You can save a lot of money with this Kenwood pastry robot by buying a refurbished version. This amounts to over 150 quid in savings, more than enough to buy a refurbished coffee machine too! You'll also save close to 20,000g in electronic waste.

Award-Winning Pastry Robot

If you are not sure where to start, pastry robots from the Kenwood kMix series are great all-rounders. They come highly rated and are generally easy to use. Ideal Housekeeping found Kenwood's kMix KMX754 to be the best stand mixer for easy use. Any model from the kMix range would be a great option, especially if you are new to the world of the pastry robot. Kenwood is generally quite a high-end brand so choosing to buy a refurbished pastry robot from Kenwood's range is a great way to save the pennies without compromising on quality.

Pastry Robot Features

Features to look out for when shopping for a refurbished pastry robot online include a range of functions, bowl capacity, speeds and accessories. All stand mixers should perform the 4 basic tasks mentioned previously - beat, knead, whisk and whip - but more specific functions may include electronic speed control, a pulse button and variable speed control. Accessories that may also come with a refurbished pastry robot are as follows :

  • Dough hooks for kneading dough

  • Flat beater for mashing potatoes and mixing cake batter

  • Spatula

  • Balloon whisk for whisking eggs and light cake mixes

Bowl Capacity

The vast majority of pastry robots come with a 3 L mixing bowl included as standard, while larger models may include a 4.8 L - 5 L bowl. Be sure to check these specifications before making a purchase to ensure the bowl is the right size for whatever you wish to bake, as it varies from model to model. Most mixing bowls that come included with a pastry robot are made from stainless steel which is durable and easy to maintain, though some models may have a glass bowl.

Refurbished Pastry Robot

Each refurbished pastry robot on backmarket.co.uk comes with a warranty and the condition is listed on the purchase page. A pastry robot requires a huge amount of materials and electronic parts in its production. Choosing to buy a refurbished pastry robot lets you do your bit for the environment by giving a perfect device a new lease of life. It can be tricky to find refurbished kitchen products; there seems to be an emphasis on tech and smartphones when it comes to refurbished and pre-loved products. Backmarket.co.uk has a superb range of refurbished pastry robots and other kitchen devices available. These include food processors, refurbished coffee machines and other refurbished small appliances.

Backmarket Brownies

If you want to try a recipe with your new refurbished pastry robot, we recommend making our favourite Backmarket brownies. They can be done by hand but if you want incredibly smooth and gooey brownies, let your new pastry robot beat the eggs and do the mixing! These chocolate brownies are best served alongside a fresh coffee.

👉 More reading: now you should learn how to pick your next food processor!