I bought my Cuisinart in 1981--they were made in Japan then so no way would I get rid of it today! I would have had to design a deeper cabinet for it to keep the bowl on the base, so I put it on my counter even though I didn't want to. I do find myself using it more, mainly because I'm using my DW more. In the past I felt it was easier to just use a knife and cutting board, even though it's easy to clean--no gaskets. I mainly use the chopping/mixing blade. I never use the slicing disc and will sometimes shred a block of cheese for mac and cheese. I use it maybe two or three times a month, but I don't cook very complex meals much anymore.

I use mine almost every day. I have a baby, so it comes in handy for the occasional puree, but I also use it to make pizza dough and pesto, and sometimes salad dressing, as well as to grate vegetables. I would NEVER get rid of it!!! I would love to have yours, actually! Mine's only 11 cup capacity, I would love the 14 cup one.

I have the 11 cup DLC-8, older model, it is a workhorse in my kitchen. The large bowl can store the cutting blade, dough blade, stem, and my two most commonly used discs so I keep it set up on my counter right now like that,. It is too tall to fit into any existing drawer. The extra discs are in the cabinet with their holder.

I have a 14 cup Cuisinart food processor and I would NEVER want to be without it! I use it in at least 1/3 of the meals I make- for chopping up nuts, nut butters, shredding veggies/carrots, fresh herbs to freeze, chopping up cabbage to make sauerkraut etc. It is really amazing~ although we do have a big garden, and I'm a vegetarian so we probably have a lot more veggies to chop up than the average person. It probably depends how you cook, if you would find it useful or not.

If you don't use it then it's wasting space. I have one, love it, and use it often. It lives on my counter right now but I'm having new pantry space with a counter being built and I'm thinking of moving it there. It'll be convenient but not quite so underfoot.

I do have that food processor, and I store it on a shelf in the butcher block table that I got from IKEA, which holds my electric meat slicer. I use the meat slicer a lot more than the FP, but I need the FP for when I make hummus or bean dip, which is about twice a month. I do like that the slicer blade is adjustable so that you can dial whatever thickness you want, but I still seldom use it - only when I am making huge quantities of sliced vegetables, which is almost never. (For slicing pickles, I use the meat slicer.) I use the FP to grate potatoes and onions for latkes, and I do not make those that often. For cheese grating, I prefer to use my Kitchenaid grater attachment, as it is much easier to clean, and the mixer has to live on the counter anyway. It has a place in a corner that is otherwise inconvenient, but it is perfect for the mixer and its attachments.

When I puree stuff in the FP, I put plastic wrap over the top before I put the lid on, and that way the top does not get dirty. The bowls are definitely bulky to store, and I do not have excess storage in my kitchen.

If I am chopping small quantites of vegetables for a deviled egg or deviled turkey, I use my Kitchenaid stick blender chopping attachment. It is the right size and will chop without pureeing. I do not put anything into the Cuisinart unless I want it pureed, as it will not do a coarse chop or even a mince. It does a great job of pureeing, however, and I need it for that.

Lars

I have the 14 cup Cuisinart as well and honestly it's more of a hassle to lug it out of the cabinet (although not nearly as heavy as your beast looks) and clean it afterward than it is to just chop stuff up by hand. I also have a teensy weensy (2 cup?) cuisinart FP that i love for the occasional breadcrumbs/nut chopping but for the most part I use the mandoline for slicing and shredding, a stick blender for soups and sauces, and the stand mixer for doughs. I can't even remember the last time I even pulled out the big one....

Have you looked into those neat gadgets that swing out from inside the cabinet? Could you retrofit one into your cabinet so you could keep it stowed away but not break your back bringing it out every time??

Thanks all. You've sparked lots of good thoughts.

We bought this one when we were on a pizza making kick. I haven't done it enough to know whether I prefer this or the KA for dough.

I use a mandolin for slicing potatoes mostly. I never think to use the FP. I should try it. We do sliced, roasted potatoes on a regular basis.

I used to, in previous life, shred blocks of cheese. I should start doing that again.

I'm going to have to chop some walnuts shortly, I think I'll take it out for that and leave it out. I have the counter space. I think having a DW that I run more often will be the key.

Funny that you mention meat-slicer publickman, that's the thing that I'm thinking I'll move out of the kitchen. I haven't used it in at least 25 years. I don't think I even know how to set it up anymore. I've loaned it to FIL a couple times. Maybe I should just say he should keep it.

I'm with Swentastic. I think mine's a 14-cup Cuisinart. I bought it 3-4 years ago when I decided my 1981 Sunbeam (yes, Sunbeam) was just too beat up and hideous to use anymore. I don't have dedicated counter space for it but it's certainly not as heavy as the KA stand mixer to move around.

I rarely use mine, except for making pesto or pie crust, breadcrumbs or chopping nuts. By the time I get it out and wash all the parts, I can do everything else by hand. I suppose if it was sitting right there on the counter, I'd use it more often. I have space for it in my pantry, so I wouldn't get rid of it.

I leave ours out on the counter (even though we have very limited counterspace right now) which is probably part of why we use it so much. If I had to dig it out from the closet everytime I wanted to use it, I might think otherwise! One note on cleaning- if you wash/rinse right after you use it, it makes cleaning very quick. Of course this is probably common sense, but there are times when I forget and then I have to soak, then clean...

If you've also seen my floating shelf thread, in case this is where I end up wanting to leave it, I guess it's fortuitous that I didn't mount the floating shelves at the same level as the cabinets! This monster is 17.5" h and once my light rail goes in, it will not fit under cabinets. The other place it can go, and where I bet it will end up, is on the low cabinets.

I hated that thing!!!! Too big. Too heavy. I just donated it. I had older easier to use model that broke. When I get a kitchen again not sure if I will replace it

If I keep it out, the heavy won't be a problem. But the hard-to-clean gasket might be. Thanks for the tip upthread about plastic.

If I use it AND the gasket becomes an issue, I may replace it.