Tip: Store Your Standing Mixer Attachments in the Bowl

Do you do this? We've never known any other way of corralling all our mixer attachments. Our mother put hers in the bowl, and we've always done the same. Whether your mixer is a KitchenAid or something else, those whisks, dough hooks, and paddles are unwieldy and hard to shove in a drawer. So this is our solution, but we've improved on our mother's method just a bit.

She always used a paper towel to cradle the attachments in the bowl, but it tended to, eventually, get smushed down or torn up. We started using an old kitchen towel. It keeps the utensils from scratching and banging against the bowl, and it also cuts down on the dust that settles in the bottom.

When we use the mixer, we just pick up the edges of the towel and lift out all of the attachments, which sit patiently on the counter until we're finished. We can wash and toss an attachment into the bowl without hearing a loud clanging through the apartment. And we save drawer space while making use of a bowl that would otherwise sit empty.

Simple, we know. But we're sure we're not alone. Anyone have any other tips?

(Images: Elizabeth Passarella)

Comments (5)

If you have a food processor you may face a similar dilemma, only with much more dangerous pieces. I recently picked up the Cuisinart disc and blade holder: http://www.cuisinart.com/catalog/product.php?product_id=304&item_id=411&cat_id=7

It's a little bulky, but easily stores all those sharp pieces and has a nice cover with lock to keep out small hands.

posted by karenenen on April 21st 2009 at 9:08am
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What a great tip! Why didn't I think of that?

Thank You!

posted by GracieE on April 21st 2009 at 9:10am
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Also handy to stack an extra kitchenaid mixing bowl there---useful to have one for recipes that require you to beat egg yolks/whites separately.

posted by maggie (p/c) on April 21st 2009 at 9:18am
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Good idea. Thank you!

posted by rosebud on April 21st 2009 at 1:18pm
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We have a curious toddler at home, so we bought a plastic box with latching sides. We got ours at Target and it's a little more secure than this one, but you get the idea:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10841898

In that box, we put all sharp blades from our blender, immersion blender, hand mixer, our crazy pineapple cutter, etc. It's not beautiful, but it gets the job down for a few bucks.

posted by sjh100 on April 21st 2009 at 7:23pm
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