Kenwood DL229 Cooking Chef, 6.7 L

I thought I would write a quick review of this as there seem to be very few reviews of this machine - despite it being made by a reputable company with a great (deserved) reputation for quality and engineering. This is the latest model of the Cooking Chef - but without the food processor & blender. I also didn't get the Cookbook with mine - though Kenwood kindly sent me one through the post. Because I already have a good food processor (also a Kenwood) and blender jug from my old Kenwood Chef (which conveniently also fits this machine) , I saved £300 by buying this particular model (from a different, cheaper, supplier online) and used some of the savings to buy more useful attachments (at least for me) - like the mincer and the grating/slicing/shredding attachment (which conveniently dumps the cut up/grated food into any large or small bowl rather than being restricted to a small processor bowl). Yes - this is an expensive machine - but not much more so than a Kenwood Major - and, with Kenwood's engineering expertise and reputation for product longevity (I still have my parent's Kenwood Chef from 1963 & it is still going strong) , I would say it is a good investment for anyone who likes cooking. It's cheaper than the only comparable product around (the Thermomix) and is more useful when you take into account it's about the most robust mixer on the market for home use - even without the cooking facility. Added to which it caramelises onions brilliantly (just thought I'd mention that as it was a revelation to me) saving you nearly an hour of stirring a pan over a gentle heat - something which the TM cannot do (I tried a couple of times but it just didn't get hot enough & the onions kept tangling themselves round the blade) - though it is slightly easier to make things like custard, bechamel sauce and soup in the TM because of the nature of the constantly spinning blades - even though the KCC also performs these tasks well. I have both machines and use & love them both. I think, generally speaking, the TM is more geared towards the busy housewife and it isn't necessary to know much about cooking as the machine holds your hand all the way through the process telling you what to do at every juncture (on the current model). Obviously you can adapt all the built-in recipes to your own and can use all the functions independently too. The KCC on the other hand seems more suited to someone who knows something about cooking - and even for professional chefs. Once you get the hang of all of its functions, you realise just how versatile and useful a machine this is. Makes you proud to be British!