From banana bread to sourdough loaves, there's no denying the baking bug attracted most of the UK last year (and continues to do so). Brits took to baking to beat lockdown boredom, and thanks to social media, are trying out new tasty recipes to see where their skills (or lack there-of!) can take them. With a vast variety of baking-tech on the market, it can be tricking knowing where to start.
Stand mixers are definitely an iconic baking must-have. Thanks to shows such as GBBO and social feeds full of Instagram bakers, no longer are stand mixers stored at the back of your Grandmothers cupboard. Instead, they're placed proudly on your kitchen tops to really show everyone you mean baking business. Not only do they look the part, but they can also become a very useful appliance for baking, cooking, and more. We wanted to test out one of the leading stand mixers on the market, and attempt 'veganising' a classic British recipe- to celebrate Veganuary, of course!
Vegan Classic Cranberry Scones
Who doesn't love a scone? This classic recipe gets a vegan-twist by switching out the dairy for a plant-based alternative. From ingredients to the table in about 20 minutes, they're perfect for when you fancy a quick treat on the weekend. We've adapted this BBC Good Foods recipe for classic scones- carry on reading below for the recipe!
Ingredients:
- 350g self-raising flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 85g butter (we used the vegan Flora salted block style!) cut into cubes
- 3 tbsp caster sugar
- 175ml plant milk (we used oat milk) + a little extra for glazing
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- A squeeze of lemon juice
Method - Using the Kenwood KMix Stand Mixer
- Pre-heat your oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.
- In the Kenwood KMix mixing bowl, add the flour, salt and baking powder. Using the K Beater adjustment, turn the stand mixer onto the lowest setting to mix all of the dry ingredients together.
- Add the butter cubes slowly while the mixer is on, to make a crumb consistency.
- Add in the sugar and continue mixing.
- Add in 70g of cranberries (or similar dried fruit) if you want to add those too like we did.
- Heat your plant-based milk for 30 seconds in a microwave or on the hob. Stir in the lemon juice and vanilla and leave for 5-10 min.
- Slowly add the wet mix into the dry to form a wet/sticky dough. We tried using the dough hook for this part but found the K Beater was more efficient for this type of mix.
- Scatter flour on a clean surface and your hands. Put the mix onto the floured surface and turn over a couple times so it's coated in flour.
- Pat down into a 4cm deep circular round. Cut scones using a 5cm cutter and put onto a lined baking tray.
- Brush tops with milk, then bake for 10-15 mins or until golden.
- Enjoy!
Review - Kenwood KMix Stand Mixer
The Kenwood KMix definitely lived up to its expectations. Not only did it look and feel high quality, it performed to a high standard and made mixing ingredients a breeze. Setup was easy, and operating the machine is simple using the dial on the side, giving you full control over the speed the machine was going at. Changing the attachments was straight forward, requiring just a slight push and turn of the adjustment to remove and replace. The K Beater attachment worked really well at reaching all areas of the mixing bowl, and will definitely come in use for many more recipes. The overall iconic design of the mixer is an obvious selling point also! With a choice of three colours, you're sure to find one which matches your current kitchen aesthetic.
Do you own a stand mixer? If not, perhaps now is the time to invest in one of these high-quality mixers, and get experimenting in the kitchen!