Re: Food Processor Recommendations

[Guest guest]

-

> Does anyone have a brand they particularly like?

> I make almost everything from scratch, so I'd love something

> durable. Our price range is

> probably up to $200. Thanks!

Depending on whom you ask, either Cuisinart or KitchenAid. Many

people believe KitchenAid has surpassed Cuisinart; others are sure

Cuisinart is still better. I've never used a KitchenAid food

processor myself, so I can only say I've generally been very happy

with my Cuisinarts.

Depending on what you actually plan to do with a food processor, you

might find yourself well-served consider a good stick blender, either

instead of the food processor or as an adjunct. Though nothing

whatosever will substitute for a good food processor for certain

tasks, especially large one, a stick blender is awesome for many

things, particularly but certainly not only small jobs, and the better

and more elaborate ones come with attachments which allow them to

serve as small food processors as well.

Cook's Illustrated is a really good place for equipment reviews, BTW.

-

[Guest guest]

I never fail to recommend the following website for reviews of pretty

much everything. They combine the reviews of pretty much every

possible source into one.

http://www.consumersearch.com/

--- In , Idol <paul.idol@...>

wrote:

>

> -

>

> > Does anyone have a brand they particularly like?

> > I make almost everything from scratch, so I'd love something

> > durable. Our price range is

> > probably up to $200. Thanks!

>

[Guest guest]

Checkout the KitchenAid Professional KFP750 12-Cup ($130).

I like to cross reference two sources for kitchen product reviews.

Cook's Illustrated does an excellent job of testing gear in real world

situations. Consumer reports does a great job of reporting on

durability, safety and other quality issues.

If I want to buy something like a food processor, I first check Cook's

Illustrated. Then double check their top pick against Consumer Reports.

While both require a subscription to get at the reviews, the costs are

low compared to the money they can save you. Two examples: The top

rated Mandoline is the V Blade model from Oxo at $50 which was far

better than several, more expensive models. Another is the food

processor. The $130 KitchenAid 750 is actually better than three other

$199 models including the KitchenAid 760!

I've saved hundreds of dollars and much frustration following this

process.

> >

> > -

> >

> > > Does anyone have a brand they particularly like?

> > > I make almost everything from scratch, so I'd love something

> > > durable. Our price range is

> > > probably up to $200. Thanks!

> >

>

[Guest guest]

,

Thanks for the tips! The reviews might be available at your library. And

something to remember is that the Consumer Reports reviews regarding

durability and quality are from users of their products, as well as their

test process.

Kathy

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of paulsonntagericson

Sent: Friday, November 14, 2008 11:32 AM

Subject: Re: Food Processor Recommendations

Checkout the KitchenAid Professional KFP750 12-Cup ($130).

I like to cross reference two sources for kitchen product reviews.

Cook's Illustrated does an excellent job of testing gear in real world

situations. Consumer reports does a great job of reporting on

durability, safety and other quality issues.

If I want to buy something like a food processor, I first check Cook's

Illustrated. Then double check their top pick against Consumer Reports.

While both require a subscription to get at the reviews, the costs are

low compared to the money they can save you. Two examples: The top

rated Mandoline is the V Blade model from Oxo at $50 which was far

better than several, more expensive models. Another is the food

processor. The $130 KitchenAid 750 is actually better than three other

$199 models including the KitchenAid 760!

I've saved hundreds of dollars and much frustration following this

process.

> >

> > -

> >

> > > Does anyone have a brand they particularly like?

> > > I make almost everything from scratch, so I'd love something

> > > durable. Our price range is

> > > probably up to $200. Thanks!

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Kathy-

> And

> something to remember is that the Consumer Reports reviews regarding

> durability and quality are from users of their products, as well as

> their

> test process.

That's true... but I will say that for anything related to food or the

kitchen, I trust Cook's Illustrated VASTLY more than Consumer Reports,

except on safety and durability. Usability, effectiveness, efficiency

(and taste) all go to CI hands down. Not that either one can be

trusted for nutrition, of course. <g>

-

[Guest guest]

I agree ! I don't put as much faith in CR as most people do.

Kathy

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of Idol

Sent: Friday, November 14, 2008 12:04 PM

Subject: Re: Re: Food Processor Recommendations

Kathy-

> And

> something to remember is that the Consumer Reports reviews regarding

> durability and quality are from users of their products, as well as

> their

> test process.

That's true... but I will say that for anything related to food or the

kitchen, I trust Cook's Illustrated VASTLY more than Consumer Reports,

except on safety and durability. Usability, effectiveness, efficiency

(and taste) all go to CI hands down. Not that either one can be

trusted for nutrition, of course. <g>

-

[Guest guest]

I just remembered a recent conversation with a member of our WAPF chapter.

She said if her house was on fire, after making sure her family was safe,

the first thing she would grab would be her Kitchen Aid. J

Kathy

From:

[mailto: ] On Behalf Of Idol

Sent: Friday, November 14, 2008 12:04 PM

Subject: Re: Re: Food Processor Recommendations

Kathy-

> And

> something to remember is that the Consumer Reports reviews regarding

> durability and quality are from users of their products, as well as

> their

> test process.

That's true... but I will say that for anything related to food or the

kitchen, I trust Cook's Illustrated VASTLY more than Consumer Reports,

except on safety and durability. Usability, effectiveness, efficiency

(and taste) all go to CI hands down. Not that either one can be

trusted for nutrition, of course. <g>

-

[Guest guest]

Hi Carol!

I have a dark & rich history of blowing out MANY kitchen appliance motors,

with blenders and hand mixers as a specialty.

I wasn't even that much of a cook or baker growing up and by the time I

reached high school, my mom pretty much banned me from using her kitchen

toys. There was something about the thrill of trying to finish mixing a

batter even though I could smell the beginning of smoldering fumes drifting

from the motor. Anyway, never got a second chance with any of mom's gadgets

so I knew I'd have to acquire industrial strength machinery for my kitchen.

:-)

As for your question regarding food processors, the one I've been using for

6 years now is a Cuisinart. It's actually one from the 80s that I inherited

from my grandparents. I use it all of the time and it knows when to quit

BEFORE I do. It has made my life that much sweeter ;-)

Also, I like their basic design...2 buttons. So if you do end up going down

the Cuisinart path, the word on the street is to buy the biggest size you

can afford.

Happy shopping ( & chopping)!

Becca :-D

On Fri, Jul 8, 2011 at 9:31 PM, Carol Frisk <carolfrisk@...> wrote:

>

> So, what do my favorite foodies recommend for a food processor? I do not

> have a lot of room. I have a decent blender, but want something for baby

> food, which I am making a lot of these days. One of my sisters has

> something called the Ninja, but someone once said that too powerful of a

> food processor damages the food, but I have no idea if that person was

> accurate or not. Thanks ahead of time for your ideas!

>

> Carol

>

[Guest guest]

I second Cuisinart food processors. I have two, a classic 7-cupper that is now

18 years old and a 20-cup commercial catering model. The motors are very strong

and the appliance is well made and durable.

[Guest guest]

For baby food, I love(d) my " Happy Baby " by Omron. It is simple, single-serving

sized and uses no electricity. There are plastic parts, but you can puree cool

foods. I still use it to puree small amounts of foods, like plums for sauce.

I bought it at Linden Hills Co-op.

Linafelter

>

> So, what do my favorite foodies recommend for a food processor? I do not

> have a lot of room. I have a decent blender, but want something for baby

> food, which I am making a lot of these days. One of my sisters has

> something called the Ninja, but someone once said that too powerful of a

> food processor damages the food, but I have no idea if that person was

> accurate or not. Thanks ahead of time for your ideas!

>

>

>

> Carol

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

As far as food processors go, I have a 14 cup Cuisinart and love it. As far as

baby food goes, I would suggest you consider just nursing baby as long as

possible and then giving small pieces of avacado, raw cheese, mango, bananas,

cooked carrots, plain whole yogurt and the like when he/she is able to pick up

the food and eat it. Babies don't need pureed baby food given in the first year

like our culture tells us is typical. Look at traditional cultures and their

late introduction of foods. I've waited as long as 1 to even begin to give my

babies foods. By then there are little teeth for chewing much of what the rest

of the family is eating. It saves me a lot of extra effort and really is so

healthy for baby. Just thoughts for you to ponder.

beth

(mother of 5 amazingly healthy, strong, vibrant and rarely sick children.)

[Guest guest]

I have a kitchenAid food processor (not sure, like 10 cup?) and I love that.

The motor seems strong. Good for regular recipe-size batches of stuff. I

have grated cheese, zucchini, carrots, etc. in it. I also have a smaller

Cuisinart Mini prep PLus size that is just for a bowl of dip or something.

While my KitchenAid larger food processor also has a mini-bowl with it, I

often don't use it, probably because I have the Mini-prep Plus. And, my

kitchen is small and I can't keep either on my counter. The Mini-Prep plus

would not be the thing for doing lots off batch-freeze baby food, as I think

it heats up fairly easily.

My mom has a Cuisinart Blender and hates it. I tend to think KitchenAid is

more worth the price while Cuisinart I am not as impressed with.

One thing I liked having around was a KidcoFood Mill. That allows

single-meal grinding of many things just to get the food to a baby food

consistency. If you were looking at Gerber stages, it is not the first

stage, more like a stage 2 where the baby can handle a little bit more

texture. I borrowed this food mill, so I'm not sure I would buy it again. I

would probably do the " self feeding " thing that many are now doing. That

means they don't eat it unless they are able to eat it the same way you

prepare it for yourself. I wish I had done this with my kids.

I did do the NT inspired feeding with my second child and started egg yolk

around 8 months. Even mainstream feeding is now saying meats first! But, all

the parenting material makes me crazy. Probably best to just watch the kid

and see what he does. :-)

[Guest guest]

I've had a Cuisinart processor for 27 years, still going strong. Have no idea if

the new ones are any good; probably like everything else, don't make em like

they used to.

I used a little hand-grinder for my babies; they had pretty much whatever we had

but pureed, incrementally introduced,  after 7 or 8 months of strictly

breast-feeding.