Have you ever heard the word for “food processor” in French? It is a “robot culinaire” (a culinary robot, to translate it roughly). When I were young, my parents never bought a “robot culinaire”, so this object was, for a long time, surrounded by a mystical and futuristic shadow for me (I imagined it was some kind of shiny robot standing on two legs and essential for the kitchen of rich families).

Now that I’ve grown-up, I know I was… right! A food processor is indeed essential for the kitchen (even though it doesn’t stand on two legs and that you can find long-lasting models such as this Cuisinart Pro Classic at very cheap prices) I got my Cuisinart over a year ago for Christmas, and I plan to live a long and happy life in my kitchen with it.

== Confidence in the brand ==

For having heard only good things about my friends’ long lasting Cuisinart (5 and + years) and doing some comparative research with other brands (Moulinex, Kitchen Aid), I decided to go for a Cuisinart.

The fact that their machines last very long, with only minor cosmetic changes from time to time, lead me to think I’d easily find replacement parts if I ever have need it. Compare for example with Moulinex, which is very popular here in Quebec: http://www.moulinex.com/en/products/famille.cfm?pol=TABLE&uni=PRAL&fam=ROBOT Their food processors have a very attractive design for the time being… but when the retro looks will be gone, will they still make this model? Will we find replacement parts? Maybe yes, but I didn’t want to bet my money on it, so I went with the security of Cuisinart.

== A good kit ==

The Pro Classic comes with these parts:
· 7-cup capacity bowl (heat and cold-resistant)
· Cover with feed tube
· Slicing disc
· Shredding Disc
· Dough blade
· Sharp chopping blade
· Spatula

The motor is powerful, but don’t push it too hard. The first time ever I used it, it was for making a bread. I didn’t know how to use it properly at that time, and ended up forcing the motor. It stopped for 30 minutes (during which I sweat a lot) and then, I could finish the bread.

The 7-cup capacity bowl is said to be “shatterproof, heat and cold-resistant”. Mine shows no signs of cracks after a year of use. It contained hot sauces, cut hard items (such as almonds) and went to the dishwasher. But the bowl shows some signs of wear on the sides.

The cover lets you adapt a small or large feed tube, so that you can push firmly just a few carrots if you want to, or a big potato!

My model didn’t come with the flat cover (which I intend to buy separately – it really would have its uses). If you too would like to get a flat cover, check carefully the parts’ list: I know there’s a slight variant of the Pro Classic model which includes this flat cover.

All the discs are very strongly made and none of them shows any wear.

== Things to do with a Pro Classic in the kitchen ==

When you see a list of blades, it may not be very clear what you can do with it… So let me associate different things I do with every part that comes with the Pro Classic:

Dough blade: I’m no deserts eater: I’m more on the salted side of the road (a situation very few people can understand ;-)). Still, a dough blade has its use! I’ve experienced with different type of flours and ingredients and made great breads using this blade: parmesan puffs, fougasse (a kind of big bread pretzel with black olives in it), sun-dried tomatoes bread, etc. Try it: your bread will be a lot better than you friend’s using bread machines (which cook a totally uninteresting crust in my opinion).

Sharp blade: This is what I call my lazy blade. I mainly use it when I’m too lazy to chop my vegetables with my chef’s knife. It can also crush ice, nuts and other hard aliments that would be complicated to slice manually.

Slicing disc: My homemade chips are always a success when I use this blade to cut the potatoes. In fact, the result is between the chips and the fries, and everyone loves ‘em to complete a great meal. The slicing disc is of course very practical to get slices of zucchinis, carrots, celery and so on.

Shredding disc: I use this one for shredding cheese. Also, it is perfect to shred carrots or celery-rave for a great salad.

Being in love with my Henckels chef’s knife and cutting a lot of things manually, I still have to experience a lot more with my Cuisinart Pro Classic. But one thing’s for sure: a Cuisinart will always have its place on my kitchen for all the years to come.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 140