Have you considered a hand mixer? They are inexpensive &, if you don't do a lot of baking, would work well for cakes but not breads.

A single loaf of bread could easily be kneaded by hand. A food processor is not the best for whole-grain mixing. Although, if you cut the whole-grain 50/50 with white flour in a single loaf recipe it might work. You could make a white flour, single-loaf recipe in a food processor being careful not to overheat the dough.

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying about the Cuisinart? You can add through the top while it's running so adding liquid for a pie crust or oil for mayo is not a problem.

Thanks Tricia. I do actually have an old sunbeam hand mixer. I used it once a couple of weeks ago for a muffin recipe that suggested a mixer - and the dry ingredients did go flying a bit (but I think that's my inexperience with technique). So I guess I can use that for cakes. Is a hand mixer preferable to a food processor - can a food processor be used for cakes? I'd like to contain my mess to inside a processor bowl, but don't think I've ever heard anyone mention using a processor for cakes.

Good point about being able to just hand-knead a single loaf. A single loaf should be fine while I'm just starting. Again, if I decide I'd like to make bread regularly, I'll look into a good stand mixer. I did not even realize that a problem with using a processor on bread dough was heating the dough itself. I thought the only problem was straining/overheat the processor motor.

About the cuisinart food processor - for some reason, I interpreted the customer reviews on Amazon to indicate that the 11 cup prep plus and 14 cup version both required the plunger in before it would operate. maybe I misunderstood that. I think the cooks illustrated reviews indicated some kind of problem people had with the chutes.

I wouldn't worry about the cakes. Maybe, you could make one in a processor. I've never done it but I don't lean towards using my Cuisinart for "floury" types of things. I have a stand-mixer for bread. I mix cakes by hand & have for 35 years. Don't know why...they're just quick & easy and it seems faster to just mix it than drag out the mixer, I guess.

I do think every kitchen should have a quality mixer of some sort though. Egg whites, for example, can actually be better done by hand in a copper bowl but it's a lot of work. A hand-mixer fits that bill fine. Stand-mixers are expensive pieces of equipment. It's similar to Le Crueset cookware........they're beautiful & do a great job with many types of cooking. But, they're expensive & you could accomplish the same thing with a $20 Lodge cast iron pot. So, while I own & enjoy LC...I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to a relatively new cook or inexperienced cook.

My recommendation to you would be to look at Kitchenaid hand-mixers. They are inexpensive (under $100, I think) and would handle most anything you are going to need for a while. I prefer Cuisinart but I think food processors all perform pretty much equally well...it's just a matter of personal choice.

As an experienced bread baker, and former teacher of bread-making...I'd strongly recommend you get your hands in the flour to start. That way, you'll learn how the dough "feels" going through it's various stages of development. A mixer does not understand how to make bread. It's just a workhorse, so to speak. What I'm saying is that a $500 mixer won't turn you into a bread baker. You'll still have to learn technique and the life-stages of yeast as well as how to manipulate time & temperature to create that perfect loaf of bread.

You have the boat motor which is a handy little gadget that you'll use frequently for making soups, sauces, etc. With the addition of a new hand-mixer you should be in pretty good shape for some time. And, maybe, your Sunbeam is working fine and you don't even need that.

Eventually, your experience in the kitchen will clarify for you what tools you need to improve your skills. And, again, remember our moms/grandmoms didn't have any of these fancy tools & they were excellent cooks.

I wouldn't worry about the cakes. Maybe, you could make one in a processor. I've never done it but I don't lean towards using my Cuisinart for "floury" types of things. I have a stand-mixer for bread. I mix cakes by hand & have for 35 years. Don't know why...they're just quick & easy and it seems faster to just mix it than drag out the mixer, I guess.

I do think every kitchen should have a quality mixer of some sort though. Egg whites, for example, can actually be better done by hand in a copper bowl but it's a lot of work. A hand-mixer fits that bill fine. Stand-mixers are expensive pieces of equipment. It's similar to Le Crueset cookware........they're beautiful & do a great job with many types of cooking. But, they're expensive & you could accomplish the same thing with a $20 Lodge cast iron pot. So, while I own & enjoy LC...I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to a relatively new cook or inexperienced cook.

My recommendation to you would be to look at Kitchenaid hand-mixers. They are inexpensive (under $100, I think) and would handle most anything you are going to need for a while. I prefer Cuisinart but I think food processors all perform pretty much equally well...it's just a matter of personal choice.

As an experienced bread baker, and former teacher of bread-making...I'd strongly recommend you get your hands in the flour to start. That way, you'll learn how the dough "feels" going through it's various stages of development. A mixer does not understand how to make bread. It's just a workhorse, so to speak. What I'm saying is that a $500 mixer won't turn you into a bread baker. You'll still have to learn technique and the life-stages of yeast as well as how to manipulate time & temperature to create that perfect loaf of bread.

You have the boat motor which is a handy little gadget that you'll use frequently for making soups, sauces, etc. With the addition of a new hand-mixer you should be in pretty good shape for some time. And, maybe, your Sunbeam is working fine and you don't even need that.

Eventually, your experience in the kitchen will clarify for you what tools you need to improve your skills. And, again, remember our moms/grandmoms didn't have any of these fancy tools & they were excellent cooks.

Tricia - thank you again. (For some reason I didn't get sent your second post, and just saw it now). If cakes can be done well by hand, I'd prefer not to buy a large, expensive stand mixer for it. I'm not a cake person, and don't imagine that changing much, except for an occasional treat for my daughter or company - and even then I prefer pie and cookies.

It make sense that there's still a lot I'd need to learn about bread making. I hadn't realized that before. So when I get around to trying bread, I'll do it by hand first.

I also think it's a great idea consider a good quality hand mixer (if my sunbeam isn't good). You're right that experience will help guide what tools I need, but I had to start somewhere until I got that knowledge. I think you've given me just the information I needed. Thanks.