Suddenly, we’re all budding bakers! Who would have thought? The days of your mates posting Instagram pics of their pets are over. Now it’s all about epic birthday cakes, banana bread and home-made loaves.

If you want to be part of this great British bake off, you need the right equipment. And a good food mixer is top of that list. It does all the hard work for you and gives you better baking results. Not to mention, with the most exhausting part taken care of, you can dream even bigger with your creations.

Choosing the right mixer can be tougher than an unkneaded lump of dough, so here’s a handy guide…

Is a food processor the same as a mixer?

Food processors are great pieces of kitchen equipment, but they’re not made to help you bake. Think of them as a more of a general tool to cut down prep time in the kitchen, by doing all the chopping, slicing and blending.

Food mixers, on the other hand, are designed to take the hassle out of baking. Whipping eggs, folding in flour and kneading can be hard work, and food mixers can do the lot.

What’s the difference between a stand mixer and a hand mixer?

When you’re choosing a food mixer, you can choose between a stand mixer or a hand mixer. Stand mixers are perfect for serious bakes and family-sized batches, whereas hand mixers are awesome helpers for little jobs. Let’s take a closer look at each option…

Stand mixer

Stand mixers are ideal for big baking jobs. They usually come with different speed settings and functions like whisking, mixing and kneading. So, if your recipe calls for ‘slow mixing’ or ‘folding’, your stand mixer will do it perfectly. You’ll usually also find extra attachments for grating, slicing or blending ingredients.

Stand mixers typically have large capacity mixing bowls, making them the go-to option for bigger batch bakes. They also make the post-baking clean-up a lot shorter, by letting you work tidily without leaving flour, sugar and butter on your worktops.

As far as saving precious counter space while baking goes, the Bosch MUM5 stand mixer has a neat trick up its sleeve. It also has built in scales and a timer, so you don’t need to dig out all your other baking bits and bobs from the back of the kitchen cupboard. You can weigh your ingredients as you go, and you don’t have to check your watch to see how long your dough’s been kneading away.

More than anything, stand mixers remove the ‘elbow grease’ stage of the baking prep process, and that means you’re able to make bigger, more adventurous bakes. Win win.

Settled on stand mixers as the way the best way to bake? Here's everything you need to know about buying a stand mixer.

Hand mixer

For smaller baking tasks, hand mixers are as handy as it gets. They take up a lot less space than traditional stand mixers and are usually much cheaper. If you’re baking a cake or whipping cream, a good hand mixer does the hard work for you, in a fraction of the time.

We love the Kitchenaid hand mixer. For a start, look at that vibrant red! But it’s not just about the looks – this hand mixer is super versatile, with attachments to help you knead dough, beat eggs, whisk mixtures and more. It’s a real all-in-one baking hero. Plus, the soft start function slowly increases the mixing speed which’ll help keep the mess to a minimum.

Need some inspiration to go with your new mixer? Check out these great vegan baking ideas!