17,000 reviews - by end of November 2014?

Queezle Sister

Hi everyone, I am really back. Hopefully will have cooktop soon, and am not moved into kitchen (nor done with building drawers, lol), but I'm ready to cook.

We are 227 reviews away from a total of 17,000. If we average about 5/day, we could hit 17000 by Thanksgiving (apologies to all my friends who do not live in the US). Anyone want to help me? I think if we worked together we could do it.

southerncooker

Good to hear you're ready to cook again. Sounds like a plan to me Quezzle Sister. I'm in.

Queezle Sister

You are certainly holding up your end, Southern Cooker. Its really great to be back. I'm having fun learning the ins and outs of a convection oven and a speed oven.

kateq

I'm so far behind in posting reviews--I'll really try to catch up. You two are amazing. I love my convection oven--use it for all sorts of things--though I mostly stick with the conventional oven (with baking stone and cast iron pot for creating steam) for baking bread. I've never tried a speed oven...

Queezle Sister

kateq - I am looking forward to your reviews!

After ordering the bosch benchmark 220v speed oven, I read an on-line discussion board that said that the bosch speed ovens were not good because they don't have 200+ different built-in programs, and I started to worry that I'd wasted my $$. We initially went with it because the only spot for the microwave is above the oven, and I don't like the look of the trim kits.

But the speed oven proved its worth the first time I used it. I had cherry tomatoes roasting in the oven, 10 minutes to dinner time, and wanted to add a vegetable to my meal. We had sweet potatoes, and in the speed oven (which does have a sweet potato program), three average sized sweet potatoes were done in SIX MINUTES. Wow. It just blew me away.

I've now learned to not use convection for an oven pancake - it made the top crusty too quickly, preventing the pancake from buckling. But I think I will get the hang of it.

We are already up to 16790 reviews!

bunyip

A lot of those reviews aren't really reviews within the meaning of the act, just listings. That said, I am making an effort to catch up.

Queezle Sister

Awesome bunny! And yes, I agree that simply registering something as made but with no written commentary is a disappointment.

Still no cooktop working, but I am loving my ovens. The speed oven is interesting to play with. I can put in a plate of cold food and it runs a sensor to determine how to warm it up. So far that feature has performed flawlessly.

Queezle Sister

Hey, we are making progress! Today is largely devoted to preparing a care package for my son - so lots and lots of cookies. I am so happy to be baking again.

bunyip

While on the subject of kitchen equipment, I have just bought a Magimix Patissier Multifunction. This looks like a food processor, has the same footprint, but has attachments and extra bowls which means it also performs as a stand mixer and blender. It costs about the same as buying high end models of the separate appliances - which is what I said to hubby who has just bought himself the new iPhone.

It arrived this morning (at 7.20 am) in a box so big I could get into it! Seriously, about 4' by 3' in the old money. We'll have to find something else in which to take the old food processor to the op shop.

Queezle Sister

Wow - what an interesting thing, bunyip! It isn't available on Amazon USA (at least as far as I can tell). I hope you will report back.

I finally sprang for a large kitchenaid stand mixer. I'm in my 50s, and have longed to own one --- and decided I should stop waiting for my husband to buy me one. I did consider that a multi-functional unit would be an advantage. I gave the Bosch a good hard look, but ultimately went for the much prettier kitchen aid.

Queezle Sister

Hey guys, we are 50 reviews away from my hoped-for goal of 17,000. That is amazing - 177 reviews since October 9th. I don't think we will hit that milestone by December 1st, but we are doing great.

Queezle Sister

Bunyip - how is the Magimix Patissier Multifunction??

bunyip

Never had a stand mixer? Good heavens! When I got married - in 1977 - my father presented me with a Sunbeam Mixmaster without being asked, as Mum had had one since she got married. That and her Krups balance scales were as essential as the oven, she being a great baker. In fact, there is a family story of me at about six months becoming excited when I spotted a picture of one in a magazine.

However, I don't bake all that much these days and I've never been a great one for pavlovas, so when the Mixmaster died I didn't rush to replace it. The stick mixer actually will whip cream and cream small quantities of sugar and butter, but it's not really suitable for cakes.

The Magimix is interesting. I really like the three nesting food processor bowls. The small one is for small quantities of the usual and the medium one is for slicing and grating. The motor is very powerful so you've got to be very careful if you want something minced but not pureed! It really blitzes smoothies.

Have only used the stainless steel bowl once so far, for Nigel Slater's banana and chocolate cake (I told you I don't bake much). You've got to keep scraping the sides down when creaming the butter and sugar but generally it was more efficient than the Bamix. I put some flour in with the eggs to pre-empt curdling and it went well.

I think if I was more of a baker I might miss the speed controls you get on a stand mixer.

You can get all sorts of attachments, even ice cream makers, for stand mixers these days. It seems to me that there is a tendency to convergence, all the manufacturers are moving towards one device that is claimed to do everything. Theoretically they would take up less space, but you've got to store the attachments.

Queezle Sister

Hi bunyip,
Yes, it was a long wait for a stand mixer. I think this is because I was a student for so long - undergrad, grad school, post doc, and then finally a job

Queezle Sister

... finally a job in my 30s. Then kids came soon, and so I never felt that I had any disposable income.

And I agree with your comment about the trend for single appliances with multiple functions. I'm not sure if I like the trend - if the motor goes out, you lose all your appliances.

Anyhow, we finally reached 17,000 reviews - and just six days after my proposed deadline. Bravo one and all.

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