ComScore

Ina Garten Swears by This Cuisinart Food Processor, So I Put It to the Test

How easy was that?

PureWow editors select every item that appears on this page, and the company may earn compensation through affiliate links within the story. All prices are accurate upon date of publish. You can learn more about the affiliate process here.

  • Value: 18/20
  • Ease of Use: 17/20
  • Aesthetics: 17/20
  • Versatility: 20/20
  • Sturdiness: 19/20
  • Total: 91/100

It’s safe to say that anything Ina Garten touches is bound to be spectacular. From her no-fail chicken recipes to *that* Beatty’s chocolate cake and even her endearing footwear choices (Allbirds Wool Runners), if she approves, people listen. As an amateur cook, I have plenty of memories watching Barefoot Contessa on Food Network, wishing I, too, could be out cooking in the Hamptons in a kitchen as big as my parents’ living room. Alas, I have traded the modest suburban kitchen for an unhinged and lilliputian New York one with no counter space. But, when I learned that the Cuisinart 14-cup food processor ($250) had a place in her kitchen, I knew I had to try it, storage be damned. (FWIW, an internet search pulls up conflicting results, but whether it’s the 11-cup or otherwise, it’s a Cuisinart, as linked on her Barefoot Contessa website.) Below is my review after putting it to the test. 

The PureWow100 is a scale our editors use to vet new products and services, so you know what’s worth the spend—and what’s total hype. Learn more about our process here.

How I Tested the Cuisinart 14-Cup Food Processor 

I spent a weekend testing the food processor by making a quiche, which would allow me to make use of all the attachments (slicing disc, shredding disc, chopping/mixing blade). While cooking, I evaluated the appliance on the PureWow100 scale, assessing the following qualities: 

  • Value: How did the machine perform, and did it merit its price? 
  • Ease of Use: Was it easy to set up out of the box and perform all the promised functions? Would it store well or require a lot of valuable space?
  • Aesthetics: Did it look nice on my (non-existent) kitchen counter? 
  • Versatility: Could it execute all the promised functions? 
  • Sturdiness: Did the base wiggle when the food processor was turned on, or stay put? 

My Cuisinart 14-Cup Food Processor Review 

First: the unboxing. This is actually where most of my woes came from. Unlike Ina, I have never used a food processor on the daily and have a pretty minimal, user-friendly, one-button blender I repurpose for all my pulverizing needs. There’s honestly not much to it. You have the base (clocking in at 17 pounds), slicing disc, shredding disc and chopping/mixing blade, plus a small and large pusher, feed tube and spatula. Easy enough, right? Yes—except the instruction manual didn’t detail how to assemble anything. It wasn’t the end of the world, but tedious to have to do an internet search for every basic question I had. 

Once I did figure out how to assemble everything, it was smooth sailing. The first thing I did, before said quiche, was make a smoothie to see how the blades would handle frozen fruit. Pulverized in about five seconds flat, ladies and gentlemen. (The bowl required scraping, but that’s to be expected.)

On to the pie crust. Truly, I was giddy as this is something I’ve always done by hand, which is stressful. (Will my hands melt the butter too much?!) The 14-cup capacity easily accommodated the recipe, which yielded two 9-inch crusts. Do note that without anything to weigh it down, I found the machine a little jumpy while pulsing the butter into the flour—and some flour did escape via the feed tubes, so be sure to keep that covered with a kitchen towel or you’ll be dusting your countertop. Otherwise, it handled the dough like a champ without stalling, jamming or skidding across the countertop as the ingredients came together seamlessly into a neat ball. 

My favorite quiche is the easy quiche lorraine, which consists of eggs, ham and cheese. However, in order to make use of the slicing disc, I also made caramelized onions. Initially, I thought I’d be able to throw whole onions into the food processor, but the instructions dictate that you need to feed it into the tube flat side down. So, I ended up cutting the onions in half, then slicing off the bottom. Friends, I have never sliced an onion so quickly in my life, and at so little risk to my fingers. In ten seconds I had perfectly thin slices ready for the sizzling pan. Same for the cheese. I’ve spent years grating by hand—but that ends now. 

Regarding clean-up, I was nervous because I don’t have a dishwasher and these attachments have tons of crevices. Especially the cheese—oh, gosh, the cheese. To my pleasant surprise, everything—from the attachments to the bowl—were easy to clean, albeit tedious. Obviously, this wouldn’t be a concern if you have a dishwasher, but it’s completely possible to thoroughly clean by hand.

What We Like

  • sturdy
  • easy to clean
  • great for batch food prep

What We Don't Like

  • on the larger side, so opt for a smaller model if you’re an infrequent cook

Cuisinart

 As for storage, well, 14 cups don’t just *disappear*, but it’s not terribly bulky, either. The discs can stack on each other to save a little space, and fully assembled, the food processor is fairly contained. It takes up a about the same space as my 6-quart KitchenAid stand mixer.

Fast Facts

  • Capacity: 14 cups 
  • Attachments: 3
  • Color Options: 11 

The Bottom Line

Overall, I’d recommend this food processor for frequent cooks and culinary enthusiasts of all levels, especially if you’re cooking for a crowd or batch cooking. (Otherwise, the 11- or 8- cup renditions should suffice.) It’s easy to use and intuitive once you get the hang of it, and makes food prep quick and seamless. And, everything except the base is dishwasher safe. At $250, it’s got a mid-range price point, but if you’re serious in any way about cooking, I think it’s good value for the money. My $25 blender/food processor has nothing on the power of Cuisinart’s. And, you could easily shell out double or triple for one that performs the same function, but on an industrial level. (Which, truthfully, you probably don’t need, anyway.) After trying it firsthand, you may find yourself quoting Ina at every step: “How easy is that?”


MW 10

Associate SEO Editor

  • Writes across all verticals, including beauty, fashion, wellness, travel and entertainment, with a focus on SEO and evergreen content
  • Has previously worked at Popular Photography and Southern Living, with words in Martha Stewart and Forbes Vetted
  • Has a B.S. in journalism from Boston University

Why You Should Trust Us

PureWow's editors and writers have spent more than a decade shopping online, digging through sales and putting our home goods, beauty finds, wellness picks and more through the wringer—all to help you determine which are actually worth your hard-earned cash. From our PureWow100 series (where we rank items on a 100-point scale) to our painstakingly curated lists of fashion, beauty, cooking, home and family picks, you can trust that our recommendations have been thoroughly vetted for function, aesthetics and innovation. Whether you're looking for travel-size hair dryers you can take on-the-go or women’s walking shoes that won’t hurt your feet, we’ve got you covered.