KitchenAid KHM5TB Classic Plus Hand Mixer

The KitchenAid KHM5TB Hand Mixer came to live in my kitchen out of necessity, rather than want. Had not the 5-year old trusty Cuisinart HTM-7L hand mixer bit the dust by way of a frayed power cord (inherent flaw, as it turns out), I'd not have had the good fortune to get to know the KitchenAid.

Everything happens for a reason.



KitchenAid Experience

I have never purchased a KitchenAid product on my own, though have coveted several models of the stand mixer, hand mixers and assorted this-es and thats over the years, yet somehow have managed to luck out in terms of gifts.

My first KitchenAid came to me more than ten years ago in the form of a beautiful hunter green Classic Stand Mixer and followed by a few attachments in subsequent years. So, having a hand mixer of the same lineage make its way under the Christmas tree made sense.

KitchenAid holds a long and lustrous reputation in the science of mixing. Since the first thoughts of the stand mixer in 1908 to the present day, the company has done nothing more than revolutionize both commercial and home mixing.

How can a person not join that revolution?

I've owned other mixers, and each has lost its life without much of a fight. The aforementioned Cuisinart, while seemingly sturdy, had turned into a clunker, which I hadn't noticed until I powered up the KitchenAid. Bravely, frayed cord and all, I switched on the Cuisinart to compare and had a slack-jawed, wide-eyed reaction to the awful noise it produced. I had become used to it. Now, I'm happy to be rid of it.

KitchenAid purrs in comparison.



Volume Is Everything

If a mixer beat rings around other opponents that I'd take the noise along with it, but the Cuisinart required some muscle to get through thick cookie dough without running across the counter and onto the floor with the mixing bowl in tow. It creamed room-temperature butter with much help from the baker. Who knew?

The KitchenAid powers through the cookie dough and creams the butter without much effort on my part, and obviously not a lot of energy from it. The motor doesn't quaver and the beaters keep on rotating with relative ease. Creaming ingredients at speed 1 or 2 happens and happens easily.



This Mixer Is All Washed Up

The KitchenAid hand mixer requires only a wipe-down with a damp cloth to look spiffy after a mixing job. The power cord, heavy and flexible, comes with a plastic draw-lock for doing it up to store. The draw-lock might not live forever, but it works easily and releases quickly for use with just a turn and pull.

The beaters may take a dishwasher cleaning or a bath in the sink, whichever you prefer. They're sturdy, wire-style beaters, rather than the flat-form beaters of many mixers. They have no center spindle, making cleaning much easier.



Eject! Eject!

In the mixing world, easy ejection makes for a happy baker. Mixers of my past sometimes required help in actually removing the beaters from their locked positions, aside from pressing the ejector button. While this isn't the worst thing in the world, it's annoying to a degree.

My KitchenAid ejects the beaters all by itself as I press the ejector lever. It's location at the top of the mixer, just above the speed/power control is far more handy than those just under the mixer handle and doesn't risk ejecting the beaters by accident when gripping the handle for tougher mixing jobs.

If the beaters appear clean enough, I can eject them right into the flatware caddy in my dishwasher, or into the sink for a soak before washing.



Extra Beaters, Please

Husband of Mine outdid himself this time, ordering an extra set of beaters for this mixer as part of his gift. Mind you, he wrapped it in something akin to a jewelry box ...

Yet, having that extra set of beaters feels like a luxury. Not like jewelry ... but a luxury nonetheless.

When mixing multiple varieties of cookies come holiday time I can omit part of the clean-up process and move my baking along by just ejecting one set of beaters and putting in a clean one. It's a nice extra, and for those who do a lot of baking, this kind of extra means a lot.



Other Basic Information

The KitchenAid Classic Plus comes with a full one-year warranty against manufacturer defect. Pretty standard and something I've never used before in regard to an hand-held electric mixer. Mine always die quite a while after the warranty has expired, but not long enough.

However, I have high, high hopes for this mixer. It feels different from the get-to and surely that means something good.

The mixer does come with a single beater attachment for use in pureeing soups or whipping liquids, such as cream. I don't use it and probably never will. I needed a hand mixer and so I have one. End of story.

This single beater feels sturdy, appears as high quality as the rest of the product and surely does the job, but I have no need to test it. I'll keep it just in case, but it probably will become one of those kitchen relics I never discard.



One Hang-Up

The handle of the KitchenAid Classic took some getting use to for me. I have large hands, and whether this is the difference or not, I can't say, but the handle seems more square when gripping it and not molded to fit an actual human hand.

This poses no real problems, but when shopping for a mixer like this it makes sense to handle it ... test drive it, if possible, and see if it really does fit, especially if the user has special needs.




What? What?

This mixer hosts 5 speeds on the power lever. The lever serves as the on/off switch and the power really is something. Those of us equating noise with power might feel a little dubious about this small appliance at first. I certainly did. How can something this quiet possibly do the work?

It really does and it really is quiet. Husband of Mine, after hearing it for the first time queried, "What is that?" He still cannot seem to get used to it, as now our conversations over the noise of the mixer don't resemble shouting matches anymore. We can hold a discussion while the mixer hums along and it takes some getting used to, I guess. I can mix cakes and cookies while the little people in the house sleep. It wakes no one.

And so, as I used the mixer this evening after putting to bed those little people, I knew I would not meet with little noggins propped against the stair railing asking, "Mo-o-o-o-m? What's wakin' me up?"

Does this mean more cookies for me?