I made cake, cookies and bread in the Ankarsrum Assistent Stand Mixer, and it's worth the learning curve
Like many American home cooks, I felt the seismic jolt when the renowned testers and tasters at America's Test Kitchen announced that KitchenAid's 7-quart bowl-lift stand mixer had been dethroned, after being ranked as the top stand mixer for 15 years. The new champion? Something called the Ankarsrum Assistent Original, a high-end model from Swedish manufacturer Electrolux, which has been popular in Europe since its introduction in 1940, but has only recently begun making waves in the U.S.As it turns out, there's a reason for that. Once I got the Assistent in my own kitchen, I, too, found myself bowled over by its power and flexibility, which manifests itself when making any and every type of baked good, no matter how big and or how hydrated. Though you'll have to shell out a lot of money, it's unquestionably one of the best stand mixers you can buy. The only thing you need to answer is whether it's the best stand mixer for you — and that's a much more complicated question than it may at first seem.
The Ankarsrum Assistent Original comes in only one size and one price: $749.99 (or £675 in the U.K.). Although I have never seen it in person at kitchenware stores in the United States, it is available from many online retailers, including Ankarsrum, Sur La Table and King Arthur Baking. You can also purchase the Royal Blue colorway at Amazon.
The Assistent looks nothing like the KitchenAid stand mixers that have dominated American kitchens for decades. With those, the motor unit and beater assembly are positioned in a cylindrical housing, which elevates above the bowl. With the Assistent, the bowl attaches to a heavy base, with only a thin, movable metal arm. It's to this that you then attach the mixing implements, which provide much better access to the bowl.
Though both the KitchenAid and the Assistent look charmingly retro, the latter's larger amounts of shiny silver (on the bowl, the arm, and the base's front) more readily recall the design aesthetics of the late 1930s and 1940s. Almost as though you're looking at a kitchen extension of a car from that era.
Aside from an 'Assistant' ID plate, the only other things on the base's front are two knobs: one for turning the mixer on and setting the timer, the other for adjusting the speed. If you wish to connect an optional accessory, such as a pasta cutter or meat mincer, you will need to turn the mixer to its left side and open a covered port on the right to do so. The power cable connects to the back of the mixer.
ColorwaysAs the base is the only colored part of the mixer, it's nice that you have a lot of choices. As of this writing, Ankarsrum's website lists 15 colors, ranging from eye-grabbing and ostentatious (Sunbeam Yellow, Coral Crush, the new Cloudy Pink) to more subdued and traditional (Red, Royal Blue, Harmony Beige). You will undoubtedly find one that matches your kitchen's décor or personal taste.
Just as the Assistent looks distinct from the KitchenAid, it works differently, too. In its default and classic configuration, the Assistent's base contains a 600-watt motor, which turns the main 8-quart stainless-steel mixing bowl at high speeds around the mixing implements connected to the arm. On the KitchenAid, the bowl stays stationary while the beater, whisk, or dough hook move in a 'planetary' motion.
Setting up for standard use involves inserting the stiff plastic dough blade, which scrapes the side of the bowl as it turns, into one of the two holes on the arm and the fluted dough roller or the large, angular dough hook into the other; and then positioning the arm and locking it into place with the tension knob. Turn the left dial on the base one click to the left for continuous operation, or turn it farther to set a timer for up to 12 minutes, after which the mixer will automatically turn off.
If you need to temporarily move the arm (to mix some errant ingredients, say), you can do so without changing the tension, and it will immediately return to its original position. There is a bit of an art to doing this (as we'll get to), but the design certainly makes it easy.
Beater bowl and whisks
Because you won't always be making large quantities of lighter items such as cookie dough, cake batter, or whipped cream or egg whites, Ankarsrum provides an alternative in the box: a 3.5-quart Tritan plastic beater bowl, with an entirely separate beater assembly.
You install this by removing the stainless-steel bowl from the base, attaching a black drive shaft, and then attaching the four-piece beater unit (this includes plastic housing, a gear, and either a single- or multi-wire whisk) to the top. It may sound complicated, but it's not much more difficult than setting up the standard assembly.
Turn on the machine now, and the whisks will move around the beater bowl in a KitchenAid-like planetary movement, mixing your ingredients as you see fit.
Other items
The package also includes a white plastic lid, which fits over both the stainless-steel bowl (so you can cover bread dough while it's raising) and the beater bowl (with the assembly still attached, so as to prevent splatters). A thin, plastic spatula completes the set: It's rounded and notched in just the right places to scrape the bowls and roller, releasing all your dough.
Finally, you will find a warranty statement, quick-start guide, a detailed 32-page user manual, and a hardcover recipe book.
If there's anything the Assistent can't do, I wasn't able to determine it during my nearly five-month testing period. I made everything I could think of, and the mixer aced every recipe I threw at it.
It mixed and kneaded the ingredients for both soft white and stiff wheat breads without an audible whine or other hint of complaint. When kneading a double-batch of wholewheat bread dough, my stalwart 7-quart KitchenAid leaped around the counter so much, I couldn't leave it unattended; the Assistent never moved at all.
Many bagel recipes explicitly advise against using a stand mixer, as kneading that style of stiff, low-hydration dough can burn out the motor. That was no issue with the Assistent, which got through it effortlessly. Thanks to the Assistent, making one of my favorite baked goods is now infinitely simpler and less exhausting than it's ever been before.
Thanks to the Assistent, making one of my favorite baked goods is now infinitely simpler and less exhausting than it's ever been before.
To be honest, I didn't notice a difference in either performance or output between the Assistent and my KitchenAid on smaller tasks such as cookie dough, cake batter, frosting, whipped cream, or meringue, though the Assistent excelled at all of these.
As these are also recipes that use different mixer speeds, I came to love the Assistent's fluid control — its speed dial doesn't have 'stops' the way the KitchenAid does, so it was a lot easier to dial into exactly the speed I needed or wanted and change it whenever necessary. The dial's position on the base also makes it easier to access.I generally preferred the stainless-steel bowl to the beater bowl, as it's faster and has a greater capacity, but the latter is a nice option. And it means you can make bread and dessert in the same afternoon, without having to wash anything in between or buy another bowl — a real time and money saver.
Cookbook
The cookbook is lovely, packed with information and mouth-watering photos. Although I didn't make every recipe in it, as many require additional accessories, which I did not have to test, I spot-checked a few.
The chocolate-chip cookies are lighter in flavor and texture than I prefer, and their idiosyncrasies — a hefty amount of coconut, chocolate chips placed atop the cookies at the end rather than integrated into the batter— will not be to everyone's liking. But the caramel cookies, made with golden syrup, were rich and textured, and something I looked forward to eating (perhaps a bit too much).
The rustic baguettes, if not as complex in flavor as their famous French cousins, were delicious, with a fine crumb and a nice crust — perfect for serving alongside soup or salad for a simple yet satisfying lunch, or with butter or cheese as a dinner accompaniment.
I learned a lot during my time with the Assistent — and those lessons raised some possible red flags for interested buyers.
Difficult to master
Most critically for users of KitchenAid mixers: The Assistent is not a set-it-and-forget-it affair — many of its fine dynamics take time and experimentation. I initially had a lot of trouble using the dough hook; it wanted to collect dough rather than stretch it, a function of being designed for higher hydration recipes than I usually prepare. Making slight tweaks to the amount of flour or water helped, as did following a Mike Greenfield technique of removing the scraping blade altogether for his New York–style pizza dough recipe.
I found the roller easier to use and more efficient in nearly all applications, but even it could be deceptively tricky. I learned the hard way how important it can be to adjust the arm's position multiple times during mixing to blend ingredients properly. The dough blade and roller can create an empty spot at the center of the metal bowl, for one thing, and as it develops, the dough may not immediately make contact with the blade in a useful way.
Dough would also sometimes cake on the rear side of the blade because it moved away from the side of the bowl, usually with smaller portions or higher-hydration recipes. My Ankarsrum contact explained this is normal behavior, but it's another example of a new method of mixing that may not come naturally to you (as it didn't to me).
The Ankarsrum doesn't work like a KitchenAid
Because nearly all American recipes calling for a stand mixer assume a KitchenAid, they don't take into account the Ankarsrum's unusual requirements — which may lead to trouble in your kitchen.
For example, the company recommends starting a recipe with all the required liquid in the bowl. This is ostensibly so you can better control the amount of flour, as the Ankarsrum's more vigorous mixing may not make it all necessary, but that's the opposite of the typical method.
You are also explicitly cautioned to use only room-temperature butter in the plastic beater bowl, lest the beaters generate too much torque and cause the bowl to crack. As not all cake or frosting recipes call for completely soft butter, you may need to make additional tweaks. (Ankarsrum sells a metal beater bowl that's likely to withstand this treatment, but it costs $125.)
Because of its different motor and mixing methods, the Assistent may take different amounts of time and run at different speeds from the KitchenAid standards. If you don't know what you're looking for and pay close attention, you may under- or overmix. Don't be surprised if some recipes you're converting fail until you get the hang of it — that happened to me.
You'll need help, but it's easy to find
The quick-start guide and user manual are helpful, but mostly just for picking up the basics. To learn how to make the most of the Assistent, your best bet is to watch the videos on Ankarsrum's YouTube channel (which the manual also links to with QR codes).
These feature an expert user showcasing and explaining the mixer's every feature, process, and eccentricity; I never understood the theory about adjusting the arm or the dough hook's unique implementation until watching these videos. I'd recommend setting aside a couple of hours to watch all of that content. You will be glad you did.
Everything except the four beaters are dishwasher safe, but the beaters are so small and simple, you'll be able to de-gunk them just by running them under hot water.
Should you buy the Ankarsrum Assistent Original? That depends entirely on what kind of baker you are.
If you're a novice or infrequent baker, my answer is a hard no. A machine this expensive, with so many parts to store and clean, and that assumes some raw familiarity with baking concepts, is a commitment you might not be ready for.
A 5-quart KitchenAid Artisan can whip up some cream or a bigger dessert with just one bowl and three attachments — and you'll save $300. Why pay for power you don't need?
But if you're a baking die-hard, the kind of person who lives for churning out large loaves of high-hydration sourdough, piles of pizza dough, or double batches of bagels, or if you have a huge family to feed and expect the mixer will run day in and day out, you can't do better than the Assistent.
It may cost a lot of money and take time to master, but it earns that investment time and time again, and it will make everything you bake easier. Simply put: The Ankarsrum Assistent Original is an incredible machine that more than lives up to the hype surrounding it.
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