Can a food processor slicing blade be used for

[lindag]

When I got my Cusinart many years ago I went nuts and bought up all the optional blades I could find (the main ones and another large set I bought off ebay.  I think I've only used about three of them in all this time.  

I actually only use the FP very rarely.  It's heavy and sits in a lower cabinet shelf which makes it hard tp get out.

Once I dropped while getting it out and it landed on my tile floor with a broken spindle.  That's another ugly story.

 

[chromedome]

I got all the blades as well when I bought the (still-unused) backup for my 80s-vintage Cuisinart. They came with some sort of wall-mountable plexiglass holder/display unit/organizer, which I thought was kinda cool. I have yet to use one or even remove any from the holder, but I reckon some day my arthritic knuckles will militate against knife usage. On that day, I'll pull 'em down and be grateful to have them.

[ElsieD]

46 minutes ago, chromedome said:

I got all the blades as well when I bought the (still-unused) backup for my 80s-vintage Cuisinart. They came with some sort of wall-mountable plexiglass holder/display unit/organizer, which I thought was kinda cool. I have yet to use one or even remove any from the holder, but I reckon some day my arthritic knuckles will militate against knife usage. On that day, I'll pull 'em down and be grateful to have them.

 

I have one of the super duper Breville ones and have maybe used it twice.  I have a small Cuisinart that I use quite a bit.  It's light and doesn't take up much real estate.  I wish I had not bought the Breville.

[jimb0]

I bought the breville because of the sealed jar, and I really like it. The cookie dough question makes me curious, though; while I don’t think it would work well, I kinda want to try it, now. I do like the adjustable slicing disc quite a bit, and think it works well. For me, the thing I never use is a dough blade. 

[pastryani]

Update #1:  I tried slicing a frozen log of cookie dough that had been out for maybe 5-10 mins at room temp in a food processor and this is what I got:

 

 

Kind of a mess, and tough to separate the slices from each other.  I wouldn’t try this again.

 

Update #2: I tried the deli slicer on frozen cookie dough that had been at room temp for ~15 mins (I wanted to try straight-from-freezer, but got distracted 😄).

 

Results:  the deli slicer made a single slice pretty decently, but any subsequent slices (ie - pulling the tray back and pushing again) was not happening.  I got a lot of partial slices and build-up of dough.  There was far too much friction and I had to turn the machine off and reposition the log of dough every time.  Here’s a pic:

I suspect it would’ve been MUCH better had it not thawed.  I’ll try it again. 

 

Given the friction problem, I wonder how cheese gets sliced so thinly.  Any tips to getting something like fontina or havarti sliced thinly and cleanly??  I know it’s possible... but how?!  

Edited June 26, 2020 by pastryani (log)

[MokaPot]

Not sure if you're willing to do this manually, but this knife is good for cutting different kinds of cheeses:

 

 

It's a Groovetech knife. I would put soft cheese in the freezer for a bit before slicing. I'm thinking this knife might also work on your cookie dough. I'm also thinking Pam spray.

 

[Okanagancook]

I read somewhere to use a cheese cutting wire. Not sure how that would work...I generally don’t bake.

[chromedome]

12 hours ago, Okanagancook said:

I read somewhere to use a cheese cutting wire. Not sure how that would work...I generally don’t bake.

Thread or dental floss should work for you. I've used both, though I hadn't thought of it (duh!) until you mentioned the cheese wire. Floss is the stronger of the two, and the better option IMO.

 

Some cookie doughs are harder than others when frozen, so if you find it's too much effort let the "log" soften slightly before trying it again. It's like slicing partially frozen meat...once you find the sweet spot of "thawed-ness," you can return it to the freezer occasionally as needed.

[teonzo]

Cutting wires tend to break with frozen dough. Especially if there are inclusions like chocolate chips or nut pieces. Plus it's hard to go straight if you don't have a guitar type machine.

 

If you want to do it safely and with good precision, then I suggest this. Go to your hardware store and ask for a sort of plastic half pipe, with a U shaped section. They should have a wide selection of section shapes (half circle, rectangle with 3 sides, oval, so on) and measures. The dough should be agle to rest in the pipe without moving, the pipe sides should go over the dough. When you find the correct half pipe for your needs, you ask to make an indentation on one side with a saw: the indentation should be as large as your knife blade. It should reach the bottom side of the pipe, without cutting it through of course, so your knife can cut the dough till the end. The indentation should be made near the end of one side of the pipe, at the exact width of the cookies you want to cut. So you just need to lay the dough on the pipe, so it's in line with the end of the pipe with the indentation, cut the cookie with the knife, go on. This way you get exact cuts and don't risk your fingers.

 

 

 

Teo