Side Swipe Mixer Blade

[Baccala]

Shocked to see that this was not a figured out long before this.

http://sideswipeblade.com/index.html

[PollyG]

Shocked to see that this was not a figured out long before this.

http://sideswipeblade.com/index.html

I've ordered one and will post a review. I was tempted to order them for the whole family, but decided to test one first. Feel free to post stress test ideas.

[Malawry]

I'd try it on something super-sticky like brioche dough. Also on a buttercream to see how the ridges affect the air-whipping action. Please let me know how it goes, if you like it I'll buy one for myself.

ETA: I just realized I use the whip attachment for buttercream, so maybe that's not the best example to test this gadget.

[lperry]

This is probably the OCD scientist in me, but I'm somewhat suspicious of the video because there is so little material in the mixing bowl - I'm curious what happens with a full bowl of batter. I'll be in line to buy one if it does work.

[treznor]

This is probably the OCD scientist in me, but I'm somewhat suspicious of the video because there is so little material in the mixing bowl - I'm curious what happens with a full bowl of batter. I'll be in line to buy one if it does work.

My guess is that the small amount of matter in the bowl in the video is so you can see how well it does actually scraping the sides. With much more stuff in the bowl the side-scraping action would be obscured. Would have been nice to see both though.

[mktye]

I'd like to know how it works on a nice, stiff cookie dough. Especially one containing chunks such as nuts or chocolate chips.

[ol_ironstomach]

I'd like to know how it works on a nice, stiff cookie dough. Especially one containing chunks such as nuts or chocolate chips.

I'd be curious to know if the blade even survives a dough instead of a batter. The inventors have cleverly measured the power draw at the mixer plug and determined that the blades add about 20% to the motor's load (no indication of what's in the bowl for this test), and suggest that for batters this will still place less load on the mixer than making bread dough would. But more importantly, the blade is cast from nylon, not alloy like the KA blades. Almost any commonly encountered cast aluminum alloy has a higher tensile strength (by 20-100%) than fiber-reinforced Nylon 66, the workhorse of the cast-nylon world, and from the photos it doesn't look like the blade is any beefier than a KA blade.

[PollyG]

My guess is that the small amount of matter in the bowl in the video is so you can see how well it does actually scraping the sides. With much more stuff in the bowl the side-scraping action would be obscured. Would have been nice to see both though.

I believe a standard Tollhouse cookie dough fits that description. I have childhood memories of the handheld mixer pooping out on Tollhouse, and I still get a kick out of the way Ol' Blue powers through it. Ol' Blue now fits its name, being 21 years old, but we've never really strained the motor.

My current plan:

• Tollhouse cookies
  
• Rosemary Bread from Field's Italian baker. Obviously I'm not going to try to make this new blade do the actual kneading, but that recipe is a 2 blade affair.
  
• chocolate bourbon chess pie. This one is a much looser batter.
  

I'm out of town this weekend, but may be able to do the testing over MLK weekend, assuming timely arrival of the blade.

[treznor]

I believe a standard Tollhouse cookie dough fits that description. I have childhood memories of the handheld mixer pooping out on Tollhouse, and I still get a kick out of the way Ol' Blue powers through it. Ol' Blue now fits its name, being 21 years old, but we've never really strained the motor.

My current plan:

• Tollhouse cookies
  
• Rosemary Bread from Field's Italian baker. Obviously I'm not going to try to make this new blade do the actual kneading, but that recipe is a 2 blade affair.
  
• chocolate bourbon chess pie. This one is a much looser batter.
  

I'm out of town this weekend, but may be able to do the testing over MLK weekend, assuming timely arrival of the blade.

I'm anxiously awaiting the results of said testing. We're thinking about getting one but don't want more clutter in the kitchen unless it actually proves somewhat useful.

[mktye]

I believe a standard Tollhouse cookie dough fits that description. I have childhood memories of the handheld mixer pooping out on Tollhouse, and I still get a kick out of the way Ol' Blue powers through it. Ol' Blue now fits its name, being 21 years old, but we've never really strained the motor.

My current plan:

• Tollhouse cookies
  
• Rosemary Bread from Field's Italian baker. Obviously I'm not going to try to make this new blade do the actual kneading, but that recipe is a 2 blade affair.
  
• chocolate bourbon chess pie. This one is a much looser batter.
  

I'm out of town this weekend, but may be able to do the testing over MLK weekend, assuming timely arrival of the blade.

Sounds like a great test-plan to put it through its paces and I'm very much looking forward to the results. Thanks for doing this for us!!!

[mdt]

Sounds like a great test-plan to put it through its paces and I'm very much looking forward to the results. Thanks for doing this for us!!!

Yes, and don't forget to take pictures.

[hillvalley]

I'd be curious to know if the blade even survives a dough instead of a batter.

In the FAQ it says the blade should not be used with dough

[FunnyJohn]

The most tedious part of making the "New York" style cheesecake in America's Best Recipes is the need to constantly stop between each add of ingredient and scrape down the bowl. Even when you lower the bowl down off the mixing paddle the paddle is still in the way, it generally makes a big mess and I never succeed in getting the cream cheese entirely off the bottom. If this attachment swipes the bottom as well as the sides, I too will be in line to purchase it.

ETA Bummer. According to the website they do not yet have an attachment for my "lift bowl" model Kitchen Aid. Sigh

[porcupine]

Even when you lower the bowl down off the mixing paddle the paddle is still in the way, it generally makes a big mess and I never succeed in getting the cream cheese entirely off the bottom.

That is exactly what I don't like about the Kitchen Aid.

[PollyG]

The results of testing:

It does a good job of scraping the bowl and comes close to eliminating the need to use a spatula. I used my spatula only to scrape down the thin smear that accumulated over the upper wiping blade. The downside? All those little fins make it much harder to get all your batter off the blade. I had unpleasant flashbacks to my mother unreasonably accusing me of leaving several cookies worth of dough in the bowl.

I've bloody well given up on the spouse ever sending me the digital pics I took, so no photos.

I think it is about an equal tradeoff of the annoyance of having to scrape the bowl with a spatula several times during mixing vs the annoyance of getting all the batter off the blade. However, if I was working something delicate that could not stand overmixing, this blade would be a good idea.

We'll continue to use it but I'm not buying any more as presents for the rest of the family.

[Sthitch]

It looks like there might be another option for a self scraping blade, this one is BeaterBlade+ and is available for both types of Kitchen Aid mixers, as well as other brands. The one drawback I can see is that it is not for use with bread or thick cookie dough.