Had to choose between a stand mixer and a hand mixer for my first real cake order

Last month I got asked to make a birthday cake for a friend's mom. Nothing fancy just a vanilla layer cake. I only had a cheap hand mixer I got for $20 at Walmart. I almost borrowed my neighbor's KitchenAid but then I thought what if I mess it up? So I stuck with the hand mixer and just took my time creaming the butter and sugar. It actually came out fine. The crumb was a little dense but nobody complained. Now I'm wondering if I should save up for a proper stand mixer or if that hand mixer was good enough for home baking. Has anyone else gone back and forth on this?

3 comments

3 Comments

baker.holly1mo ago

A buddy of mine swore up and down she needed a stand mixer for years. Finally got one and now it mostly just sits on her counter holding cookbooks. She still uses her old hand mixer for everything except heavy dough.

kimfisher1mo agoProlific Poster

Is her counter really that precious that it's worth getting worked up over a stand mixer sitting there? My sister has one that mostly just holds her coffee mug collection these days, and she's perfectly fine with it. The hand mixer does the job for cookies and cakes, and the stand mixer is there for bread or when she doubles a batch of frosting. People act like a kitchen gadget has to earn its keep every single day or it's a waste of money. Sometimes it's just nice to have the option even if you don't use it that often. Not everything needs to be a whole crisis over a mixer.

emery2901mo ago

@kimfisher's right but honestly a stand mixer is worth it just for not holding a hand mixer for ten minutes straight.