food processors

I've decided to make my own baby food so I pulled out my food processor today to find it's no longer working for some reason. As I'm going to have to buy a new one anyway, are there any features I should be on the lookout for?

fiance to Keison (1/10); mama to Mila (2/12)

I have a cuisinart that I love, it came with a slicing and shredding disk as well as a chopping and dough blade. I also like the fact that I can get more disks for different size of slices and shredds. The disks make it so much more versatile, I probably wouldn't use it as much if it didnt have those.

Laura - Mom to DS 5/05, DD 4/07, DD 9/10, DS EDD 4/13

I have this 14 cup Cuisinart one:

http://www.cuisinart.com/discontinued/food_processors/mp-14n.html

which is unfortunately no longer made. Like mentioned above, I think the slicing and shredding discs and dough hook make it much much more versatile. Mine has a ridiculously powerful motor in it that I have yet to see anything that it can't power through. I'm pretty sure that if you could somehow manage to get around all the safety features (which is impossible) and get your hand in there, it would take your fingers clean off. If you're just planning on using it for baby food, you could probably get away with one of the simpler more inexpensive ones. If you would like to use it for other purposes though, I would look for one that either comes with or has other discs available and has a large powerful motor.

~Elizabeth

Daughter of the King of Kings, wife to an amazing man(6/12/04), mother of DS(7/11), and furkids Charlotte (6/05) & Athena (5/07)

I just used a blender and mini chopper to make baby food in the past, but lately I've been eyeing food processors just for general cooking purposes so I'm curious about them too.

What is the dough blade on a food processor do anyway?

Julie-

USAF Wife, Married to an Amazing Man, Mama to Dude (6/08), Spudder (1/10) & Jet (4/12)

Thanks for the explanation Elizabeth! I don't own a stand mixer either, but really want one, or thought I did. Now I'm thinking maybe just a nice food processor would meet my needs.

Julie-

USAF Wife, Married to an Amazing Man, Mama to Dude (6/08), Spudder (1/10) & Jet (4/12)

Author	Message Topic Search Topic Options Post Reply Create New Topic Printable Version Translate Topic
shiara51.4 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List P'invisible Joined: 27 Mar 2012 Points: 17	Post Options Post Reply Quote shiara51.4 Report Post Quote Reply Topic: food processors Posted: 20 Apr 2012 at 6:03pm
	I've decided to make my own baby food so I pulled out my food processor today to find it's no longer working for some reason. As I'm going to have to buy a new one anyway, are there any features I should be on the lookout for?
	fiance to Keison (1/10); mama to Mila (2/12)

gourami Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List P'infatuated Member Rating(10) Perennial Pinner 2 years 168 days Joined: 09 Dec 2010 Location: Kentucky Points: 540	Post Options Post Reply Quote gourami Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 21 Apr 2012 at 1:17am
	I just bought one not too long ago, it is a little mini kitchen aid brand one. It was around $20 and works great. The button to run it is on the top part that goes in the dishwasher which is nice because my old one was on the front and collected grime. I don't cook much so I didn't need anything fancy.
	Amy, married to Josh (2002), mommy to Amelia (2011)

lstols Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List P'infatuated Member Rating(1) Perennial Pinner 5 years 318 days Joined: 06 Aug 2007 Points: 663	Post Options Post Reply Quote lstols Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2012 at 12:43pm
	I have a cuisinart that I love, it came with a slicing and shredding disk as well as a chopping and dough blade. I also like the fact that I can get more disks for different size of slices and shredds. The disks make it so much more versatile, I probably wouldn't use it as much if it didnt have those.
	Laura - Mom to DS 5/05, DD 4/07, DD 9/10, DS EDD 4/13

minneapolismama Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List P'invaluable Member Rating(4) P'insane Perennial Pinner 6 years 38 days Joined: 13 May 2007 Location: United States Points: 16674	Post Options Post Reply Quote minneapolismama Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2012 at 1:01pm
	I have one like Istols said- its an 11 cup. i use it all the time. but unless you're making a good amount of baby food you might want a smaller one. i have a baby food processor that was about $20 from BRU that I used for dd and still use it for small amounts or a kid size smoothie.
	Katie, mama to Alexander 2-8-07 and Maggie Rose 5-3-10

GoldenEmpress Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List P'insightful P'insane Perennial Pinner 2 years 124 days Joined: 16 Feb 2011 Location: Indiana Points: 2658	Post Options Post Reply Quote GoldenEmpress Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2012 at 2:05pm
	I have this 14 cup Cuisinart one: http://www.cuisinart.com/discontinued/food_processors/mp-14n.html which is unfortunately no longer made. Like mentioned above, I think the slicing and shredding discs and dough hook make it much much more versatile. Mine has a ridiculously powerful motor in it that I have yet to see anything that it can't power through. I'm pretty sure that if you could somehow manage to get around all the safety features (which is impossible) and get your hand in there, it would take your fingers clean off. If you're just planning on using it for baby food, you could probably get away with one of the simpler more inexpensive ones. If you would like to use it for other purposes though, I would look for one that either comes with or has other discs available and has a large powerful motor.
	~Elizabeth Daughter of the King of Kings, wife to an amazing man(6/12/04), mother of DS(7/11), and furkids Charlotte (6/05) & Athena (5/07)

3boysMom Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List P'infamous Member Rating(27) Perennial Pinner 4 years 187 days Joined: 16 Nov 2008 Location: Husker Country Points: 21809	Post Options Post Reply Quote 3boysMom Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2012 at 2:27pm
	We also have a cuisinart with all the blades and disks. And we use it ALL the time. Used it twice today to shred cheese and make dough for crackers. When I used it for baby food I would puree in giant batches. And I still use pureed veggies to increase the nutritional value in some of our other foods. Plus we make apple sauce in bulk and can it. Having a quality one with a good motor is great.
	Samantha

jberrec Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List P'incredible Member Rating(1) Perennial Pinner 4 years 234 days Joined: 27 Oct 2008 Points: 4991	Post Options Post Reply Quote jberrec Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2012 at 3:22pm
	I just used a blender and mini chopper to make baby food in the past, but lately I've been eyeing food processors just for general cooking purposes so I'm curious about them too. What is the dough blade on a food processor do anyway?
	Julie- USAF Wife, Married to an Amazing Man, Mama to Dude (6/08), Spudder (1/10) & Jet (4/12)

GoldenEmpress Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List P'insightful P'insane Perennial Pinner 2 years 124 days Joined: 16 Feb 2011 Location: Indiana Points: 2658	Post Options Post Reply Quote GoldenEmpress Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2012 at 4:07pm
	Julie, it's just like a dough hook on a stand mixer. You can use it to make bread or dough so you don't have to knead it by hand. I used to make a lot of dog biscuits with special flours and if I mixed it by hand it would take 20 minutes. In the food processor? 3 minutes, tops. And actually I think if I was going to make bread or some sort of dough I would use my food processor over my Kitchenaid mixer simply because the food processor has more torque and a 20 year warranty on the motor. I know that some of the kitchenaid mixer's are known for having the motor's burn out if you make a lot of dough. Edited by GoldenEmpress - 24 Apr 2012 at 4:13pm
	~Elizabeth Daughter of the King of Kings, wife to an amazing man(6/12/04), mother of DS(7/11), and furkids Charlotte (6/05) & Athena (5/07)

jberrec Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List P'incredible Member Rating(1) Perennial Pinner 4 years 234 days Joined: 27 Oct 2008 Points: 4991	Post Options Post Reply Quote jberrec Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 24 Apr 2012 at 4:13pm
	Thanks for the explanation Elizabeth! I don't own a stand mixer either, but really want one, or thought I did. Now I'm thinking maybe just a nice food processor would meet my needs.
	Julie- USAF Wife, Married to an Amazing Man, Mama to Dude (6/08), Spudder (1/10) & Jet (4/12)

patsyruss Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Just Pinned Joined: 13 Oct 2012 Points: 9	Post Options Post Reply Quote patsyruss Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 13 Oct 2012 at 1:55am
	Food processors come in many different shapes and sizes. They may be small and compact or large and in charge. They are the perfect gadget for avid cooks who love spending time in the kitchen.