Bosch

As many of ya'll now, my Cuisinart mixer died on me.  I have some friends though that are letting me borrow their mixers and then give you my opinions on them.   This first mixer I borrowed was a Bosch.  Bread makers everywhere love the Bosch.  I borrowed Siouxsie's universal plus Bosch.  You can get more info and buy the Bosch here:  http://www.joyfullivingforyou.com/boschuniversalpluswithoptionalslicershredder.aspx
I made Italian Meringue Buttercream in the Bosch, and I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised!  I used the wire whisks on the meringue.

It has two whisks (the paddles and dough hooks are the same concept with two) and the bowl is designed to fit the shape of the whisks, therefore everything does get mixed.  I think that was my favorite feature.  I do not like the fact that the machine and bowl is plastic.  But when I poured the boiling sugar, in the heat was not trapped in a metal bowl.

The big "mouth" of the bowl without "gear" or the "arm" on top also made it easier to pour in the hot sugar.  I was able to do it all one handed!  (due to my sprained hand and wrist) My 7 qt Cuisinart bowl I would have to put the bowl in the fridge for ten minutes after mixing for ten minutes to help the meringue cool down before adding the butter, however, with the plastic bowl, after ten minutes of mixing it was ready for the butter!
The meringue mixed up well in the plastic.  I also liked the wide base that suctioned itself to the counter and did not move because it was so well balanced.  You can also mix 15 pounds of dough in it.  My cupcake recipe also called for wire whisks, so I did not test out the other hook.  It did a great job though of mixing up both things and I really liked it a lot.  My friends' say it is the best thing for baking bread.  I was not able to test that out though with only one hand!  LOL  No homemade bread for me right now!
Compared to my Cuisinart these are the cons.  It only has 4 speed settings with 800 watts.  This makes it very hard to get the exact speed you want.  My Cuisinart was 12 speeds with 1,000 watts.  The Bosch also made a whiny noise on a lower speed.  It is not easy to scoop the dough or frosting without removing the whisk.  With the Cuisinart you just pull the arm up.  But the arm gets in the way when adding ingredients on the Cuisinart.  There was no timer on the Bosch.  My Cuisinart has a timer and you can set it for ten minutes and if you don't hear the beep, it stops itself.  Which is very nice.  But my Cuisinart is tall and not very well balanced and does "jump" with heavier doughs like gingerbread and does not have suctions.
I also like on the Bosch that the place for the blender attachment is on the side rather then on top.  My blender on my Cuisinart is taller then me when added to the mixer!
My husband did not like it, because he had to take the splash gaurd off for me due to my one-handed status.  He said it is not easy to get off, it was impossible to get of with one hand.  When I asked him what else he didn't like about it he said "I just didn't like it."  LOL  He's a man of few words, unlike his wife!
So my conclusion is that I like different parts of both.  Now what am I gonna do?  LOL