Cuisinart DFP-3 Handy Prep 3-Cup Food Processor

Nifty appliance; has a couple of bugs
Having picked this item up on an Amazon special, I must first say that the price-performance ratio is excellent. The machine comes with several blades and a chute attachment. If you have used a Cuisinart machine before, assembly and operation will be very, very simple. That the pieces are dishwasher safe is a boon, as well. I like this little processor; its small size is just right for our empty nest food prep.

There are a couple of things Cuisinart could perhaps rethink. It is awkward to remove the slicing or shredding blade. The plastic used on several of the pieces seems vulnerable to staining. The shredding blade seems, for some ingredients, to "pulverize" better than to shred. It would also be nice to have at least one other size of slicing disc and a plastic chopping blade included. Those refinements would make this machine nearly perfect for me.

Still, this sturdy workhorse is a welcome addition to our kitchen. Those who have smaller amounts of ingredients...

Best Value - Well made
The quality is amazing. Easy to use, easy to clean. This was my first Processor and I'm hooked. I use it almost every day and it's so small (or "compact") that it takes up very little counter-top space.

For the price, it's a great value. The only drawback is that I love it so much, I'm already thinking about buying one of Cuisinart's larger models that does even more stuff.

It comes with the one multipurpose blade (which does just about everything) and a separate slicing and shredding blade. The slicing and shredding blades work O.K. but not as great as on larger models I've seen - so I use the multi-purpose blade 90% percent of the time.

I wish they sold additional blades for this model but I haven't seen them. (That would probably take away from sales of the bigger models).

But I still love it. And give it my highest rating.

Good, but not stunning
This was the 2nd processor I tried and it certainly does the trick for small projects. I've had it for about a year. It's great if you want to make about a cup worth of something, which is why it's considered small. If you try to make too much of something then it will just pulverize what ever is on the bottom and leave the top unchopped or barely chopped. This can make processing anything more than a cup worth a time consuming effort, you have to put in the food, chop it, scrape it, and then repeat. I've found it especially useful for sauces and dips that need to be completely pureed. It's also great at chopping up nuts (like peanuts for Pad Thai!). I will probably graduate to a larger one eventually but for now it works for me.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Cuisinart 7116-20 Chef's Classic 20-Centimeter Universal Steamer with Cover

Nice and Roomy!
This steamer fits perfectly on Cuisinart's 4 Qt saucepan. The lid seals in every bit of steam. I used to always have to add more water when steaming batches of corn-on-the-cob, but since no steam escapes here, I can make several batches non-stop. I also like the fact that the steamer is wide; that means that the food will cook evenly (instead of other steamers where the stuff at the bottom gets overcooked and the stuff at the very top gets undercooked). I've only used the steamer five or six times but so far, there's practically no sign of dullness or staining - maybe just a little sign of dullness, but I'm more interested in function than appearance. Washing it immediately will keep it stain-free. Overall, an incredible deal for $20.00!

Perfect addition for the Chef's Classic
This steamer insert is the perfect addition for the Chef's Classic cookware. I love this line by Cuisinart - I bought the 10 piece set and was so happy with it that I have purchased 5 additional pieces to handle nearly all my cooking needs. This steamer insert has been getting lots of use in our house. We use it almost every night!

It fits the 3 and 4 quart sauce pans nicely and the lid fits well, not tight physically, but create a good seal like all the Chef's Classic line and does not leak steam! I have six different methods of steaming available to me in my kitchen (including a large counter top steamer), but this is the one I find myself using most often because it has such a large capacity and the cleanup is so easy. My counter top steamer has nearly the same capacity as the Cuisinart insert, but it has 3 parts that need to be washed PLUS the steamer base which cannot be submerged and is a bit of a hassle to clean. With the Cuisinart steamer and saucepan, it's as easy...

To fill in the missing information......
This 20 'cm' steamer fits the 2 qt., 3 qt., and 4 qt. Chef's Classic pots. I don't have the 4 qt. yet so I can't say how this steamer would fit. It fits very nicely into the 3 qt. pot. (I cannot really imagine steaming anything in a 2 qt. pot.)

The lid to the steamer seems to slide around a bit. As a result, it is hard for me to picture it sealing 'tightly'. However, when I used it to steam frozen veggies, little of the steam escaped.

All-in-all, this is a niche item, expecially since a microwave oven does such an excellent job of steaming. I purchased this as a 'completer'. You may find the attractive price draws you to add this to your cookware collection as well.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Cuisinart 744-24 Chef's Classic Stainless 6-Quart Sauce Pot with Lid

Well crafted and beautiful
I recently purchased this 12qt stockpot with a pasta insert and cover, and I couldn't be more pleased. The pot is beautifully made, with very confortable handles (another reviewer noted the finger grips -- a nice touch) and the lid fits perfectly.

I used it for the first time to cook 2 chickens and make stock. Both chickens fit easily in the pot, yet allowed enough space for adequate water. It was very easy to bring the pot to a boil and then reduce to a very slow simmer, just a bubble or two breaking the surface. I used the simmer burner on my gas stove, and for the first time was able to maintain a simmer with the lid tightly on. With my old stockpot (large enough for only one chicken) even with the simmer burner at the lowest setting I could not maintain a simmer with the lid tightly on the pot.

The pasta insert made it a breeze to remove the chickens when they were cooked, and reduce the stock while I picked the meat off the bones and returned the bones to the pot in...

The Pot to Boil the Chicken..
No I don't need the huge several gallon type pot that I use to use when my family was at home, but this is just the right size to fit and boil corn, asparagus, and the chicken for soup or stew.

The handles are very comfortable and they really DON'T get hot. It, along with my other very small Cuisinart Chef pot are the only items I can ever recall that got a comment from my husband saying.. Whatever you paid for this it was worth it.

And he doesn't cook.. just puts the food away.

Cleans up well and I don't have to worry about scratching some coating or other.

I like it. It is very functional and nice looking..can't beat that.

Most beautiful piece of cookware I have
You have to see this to understand how beautiful it is. It is a mirrored finish and you can truly see yourself in it on your stove. It just shines. The pot itself is very heavy duty and thicker than most. The lid is made of the same construction. Cuisnart is engraved on each handle and underneath the handles are impressions of fingergrips. It is very natural feeling to grip the pot. My favorite feature is the finger grips under the handle. That was a nice surprise. Also, it sets nicely on the stove. I have had some that didn't set perfect and would wobble. This is a very nice crafted stock pot. This has two and a half times the room that I am used to having. Boiling 10 lbs of potatoes for mashed potatoes will be a breeze.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Cuisinart 733-30H Chef's Classic Stainless 5-1/2-Quart Saute Pan with Helper Handle and Cover

A great pan at a great price
This Cuisinart Chef's Classic saute pan has quickly become my favorite pan. It's huge - a full 12" across - which makes it very versatile. The pan conducts heat extremely well and is oven safe to 500 degrees. The handle is very sturdy, reasonably comfortable, and stays cool (outside of the oven, of course). The lid fits tightly. Both the interior and the exterior are very shiny and attractive. All this and it's easy to clean. Yet this pan sells for just a fraction of the sexier brands like All-Clad or Calphalon.

The chief reason for the great price is due to the construction. This is known as a "disk bottom" pan because it has a highly conductive aluminum disk embedded in its base. The really expensive brands feature "cladding", where a layer of conductive metal (usually aluminum) is embedded throughout the entire pan. Although the cookware industry loves to say that disk-bottom pans are inferior, test after test proves this claim is untrue. After all, we don't cook on the sides of...

Beautiful pan!
I'm tired of those non-stick pans that eventually lose their coating and thought that I'll try stainless steel pan for almost everything but frying an egg. Boy did I pick the right pan to start with! This pan, besides being beautifully made, is the perfect size for almost everything I cook. It's very heavy, but the helper handle helps. It conducts heat very well, so I no longer use the high setting on my gas stove or the food would burn. Despite being made in China, the quality is excellent. I'm sure it will last decades. My only complaint is that sometimes I wish the stainless steel cover is made of glass so I can see through. But, I'll still give it 5 stars because I'm very very happy with the design and quality.

5-Stars for the Pan...0-Stars for Amazon Packaging
All my Chef's Classic cookware looks and cooks wonderfully well and is normally a breeze to clean up. This Monster pan is no exception. Weighing in at close to 10 lbs., it is the senior edition of the highly rated Cuisinart 3 1/2-Qt. Saute Pan. If you have a small range, the size of this (a full 12" accross) may crowd out some other burners, so beware.

I discovered thet the dome cover for the shallow Cuisinart 12" 'everything' pan also fits this pan and thus makes it a good candidate for a dutch oven.

Now for the bad news: Amazon did not see fit to ship this within a padded box. As a result, the pan arrived with a dent in the 'dripless' rim. I will likely not return it, but will give Amazon some 'direct' feedback.

(9/15 Update): Amazon made a very positive and 'generous' response to my complaint. Thank you Amazon! Also, both the 3 1/2 Qt. and 5 1/2 Qt. saute pans are on 'super' sale. Do yourselves a favor and buy both.

(9/23...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Cuisinart ICE-40 Flavor Duo Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker

makes excellent ice cream
I was so excited to finally receive this ice cream maker in the mail that I did it all: I make sorbet, frozen yogurt and ice cream. All came out very well. Note: eat the frozen yogurt immediately as it becomes very hard in the freezer and looses the smoothness commonly associated with frozen yogurt. I really enjoy having the two bowls. I've made two separate batches of desserts as well as a double batch. My freezer is stocked and I've never had so many wonderful choices of frozen dessert!

Best ice cream maker on the market!
This machine is PERFECT, it makes ice cream perfectly. I've tried other brands of ice cream machines,but this by far is the best. Right out of the box it made perfect ice cream, I am impressed. The quality of Cuisinart is superb. The cost of this ice cream maker is quite a value.
Thank you for producing a quality product that does EXACTLY as you state that it will. I will try making yogurt and sorbet next. Thank you

Very Pleased-Great Appliance
This appliance was larger than I visualized but it has worked great, is easy to use. I wish I had more recipes to try for the holidays! It has a sleek attractive look and is very well made. The concept of freezing the tubs compared to the old crank and salt method is so convenient. Don't touch the tubs with bare hands or you will get freezer burn!

Click to Editorial Reviews