Best KitchenAid attachments – accessories for pasta, ice cream, cookies, and more

Technically, this was the best ice cream maker I tested. Even against dedicated appliances, the KitchenAid made the silkiest, smoothest sorbet, ice cream, and vegan ice cream. It's bulky to store in your freezer drawer, but one of the cheapest and most effective ice cream makers you can buy (if you already own a KitchenAid).

Possibly the best attachment of them all, this is perfect for hamburgers, meat loaf, and much more. You could use a food processor to do these jobs, but this comes with three grinding plates, for a range of coarseness, allowing you to create a more precise texture. This even comes with a nozzle for sausages too.

If you dream of a making fresh pasta, your dreams have just come true. The KitchenAid attachment automates cranking, freeing up an extra hand for you to feed the dough and guide the pasta sheet to safety. My only criticism is that it rusts if you clean it with water: you have to use mineral oil (although this is the case for most pasta makers).

A specialist in slicing and grating fresh fruit, vegetables, and cheese, this attachment makes life a little easier. The different wheels can grate and slice up to 5 lbs of food in one go, but, because it sits quite high, can scatter some slices across the countertop. If I'm being cynical, this is a lot of hassle compared to a tower grater, but for big batches, it will save you lots of time.

If you love a summer snow cone, this is the best attachment to buy. It shaves ice fast, leaving flakes which are fluffy, but still a little crunchy. The ice soaks up syrup really well, so if you have kids or you're hosting a dinner party, this is a really fun attachment to have. You'll need to freeze in the ice moulds before you can use it. These can be a bit limiting, but you can if you find you're using them too often.

Juicers are incredibly popular, but the best models tend to be quite bulky. If you want a more compact way to press green juice in the morning, this could be useful. It can create sauces, jams, and juices, but most reviews say this is better on the basics. Stick to simple citrus drinks and this will be great, if not a little fiddly to clean.

Any keen baker knows, one bowl never cuts it. You might have two bakes on the go at once, or you might need one for wet and one for dry ingredients too. KitchenAid know this struggle, so have released a range of bowls in a variety of colors. This is my favorite hue, perfect for adding some glamour to your kitchen.

You'll recognise the shape of this paddle; it's almost identical to standard K-beaters, but with flexible silicone edges. I cannot stress enough how useful this is for sticky batters and bakes. The sides of your bowl will never look cleaner. It's more of a luxury than a necessity, but a lovely treat to have.

Spiralizers had their season in the spotlight: we all bought one and left it collecting dust in our cupboards. If you think you'll use one, I'd normally recommend investing in a hand-crank model. However, if you have a KitchenAid, this could be the space-saver you need. Some reviews say that it can be a little irregular in thickness, but I've never experienced any issues.

Food choppers and dicers are the appliances that sound like a good idea, but really, are more of a luxury than a necessity. This is effective, but is also pretty bulky for what is essentially a second  food processor. The feeding tube is also pretty small, so you'll still need to prep veg in advance.

The All Metal Grain mill sounds exciting. Making your own flour is taking the next greatest step away from an ultra-processed diet, allowing you more control over your food. However, reviews say this is quite slow and noisy. You also have to run the stand mixer at full speed to get it to work. 

The Gourmet pasta press is one of KitchenAid's many pasta attachments. This one is an extruder which will make rigatoni or spaghetti. It takes a lot of hands and effort to load the hopper and cut the pasta. However, lots of reviewer think the clean-up isn't worth the reward. All in all it's not much fun to use.