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It’s not an exaggeration to say that I’m clueless when it comes to baking. Whether it’s lumpy flour or watery icing, give me anything more complex than a pasta bake recipe and it will probably end in chaos.
So when I saw TikTokers’ rave reviews for a cake mixer designed to ‘make baking as easy as pie’, it’s fair to say I was pretty skeptical.
Could it really help me produce something edible? I decided to find out.
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The basics
Morphy Richards launched its MixStar Compact Stand Mixer - a multi-purpose mixer to rival the likes of Kenwood - in 2020 and it’s become a favourite with millennials thanks to its compact design and affordable price tag (it’s still an investment but a good £200 cheaper than some of its more famous rivals).
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It’s designed for ‘baking novices’ like me and aims to take the fuss out of preparing food while keeping mess to a minimum. So did it live up to the hype?
The design
Launched in 2020, the MixStar could be described as the KitchenAid’s less sexy cousin.
Instead of a traditional tilt-head design, the motor is attached to the base and the gadget has a no-frills, functional design which means it takes up less space on the countertop (perfect for those with smaller kitchens).
Messy cooks are in luck as it’s equipped with a splash guard as well as suction pads under the base which stop the machine from sliding around and spilling ingredients when the blades are in motion.
It’s also very easy to store, with all the fixtures and fittings tucking away nicely inside the stainless steel bowl when not in use and making for a surprisingly small unit when packed up.
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The important bits
The MixStar has a decent four-litre capacity, six speeds settings, and three different attachments: rotating beaters, whisks and dough hooks.
It comes with a handy, keyring-sized manual showing which attachment to use for different recipes - for instance whisks for whipped cream, or hooks for a pizza base. There’s even a recommended setting for chopping garlic (although this strikes me as a lot of effort for a couple of cloves).
The different parts are easy enough to put together (you can easily assemble it without looking at the instructions, although I’m not sure that’s advisable), although packing it up for storage is a bit more fiddly.
The control panel is simple to operate too, featuring a number dial with different speed settings and a digital timer screen so you can keep an eye on how long it’s been stirring for.
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While the bowl cover is easy to fit, and means you can add ingredients while it’s still in motion, I had a bit of trouble getting the fiddly inlet cover on and off with my butter-covered fingers. I’ve also seen TikTok reports of the lid ‘almost flying off’ on high speed settings, so that’s something to look out for.
As for cleaning? All the attachments are dishwasher safe, although some of the smaller, fiddly parts were hard to get properly clean by hand.
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The challenge and verdict
I challenged myself to bake a moderately difficult (for me) lemon, almond and raspberry Victoria sponge, made up of two layers of cake and a cream filling.
After chucking the ingredients into the bowl, within five minutes I had a perfectly smooth batter which even my temperamental old gas oven couldn’t ruin.
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I used the MixStar for the lemon cream filling too, swapping the beaters for whisks, and it came out light and fluffy.
Once everything had cooled I assembled the cake and can confirm it tasted as good as it looked.
If you want to take the hard work out of baking but don’t want to drop the best part of £400, the MixStar is a decent option.
Paul Hollywood, if you’re reading: you can consider this my official GBBO application.
Topics: Shopping, Lifestyle, Food And Drink, The Great British Bake Off
Unity Blott