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A plate of Kraft Dinner macaroni and cheese, served with tomatoes and sliced hotdogs.

Macaroni and cheese (referred to as macaroni cheese in the United Kingdom and abbreviated to mac 'n' cheese in parts of the United States and Canada) is a common casserole, similar to the British dish cauliflower cheese. It is a combination of cooked macaroni (tubular) dried pasta and a cheese sauce. ^[1] In Scotland, it is often served with chips (fries).

History

Its popularity in the United States has been attributed to Thomas Jefferson serving it at a White House dinner in 1802, although a spontaneous and diffuse appearance of the dish is more likely.^[2] It has been popular in the United Kingdom since the Victorian era.

Modern

Packaged versions are available, consisting of boxed pasta and either a cheese powder (to which butter, margarine, milk, and/or water are added) or cheese sauce. A popular name-brand of boxed macaroni and cheese is Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, also known as "Kraft Dinner" in Canada. Extra ingredients, like ground beef, ketchup, jalapeños, sliced hot dogs, Spam, tabasco sauce, ham, bacon, tuna, tomatoes, and other vegetables are sometimes incorporated into the dish. The product can be prepared in a microwave, baked in traditional oven, or cooked on a kitchen stove top.

Health concerns and controversy

Macaroni and cheese is often vilified by people voicing concerns over obesity. The very low cost of boxed versions led to charges it targets low-income families with unhealthy food alternatives and preys on parents' limited grocery budgets. It should be noted that most manufacturers of macaroni and cheese offer "reduced calorie" options on their packages that allow cooks to omit ingredients that add to the calorie, and in particular, fat level.

In addition to concerns over marketing boxed dinners to low-income parents, macaroni and cheese is often served on menus in restaurants. Often the dishes are fresh-made and of higher quality than typical packaged macaroni and cheese. This often leaves parents to feel they are better for children. However, according to "Eat This, Not That, for Kids" (Zinczenko, 2008) fresh macaroni and cheese meals typically have more calories and fat than boxed dinners, as many as 1000 calories. Recently, many restaurants have reduced portion size and fat in their macaroni and cheese dinners.^{[citation needed]}

While the simple fact that the meal is made up of pasta and cheese means macaroni and cheese will never be considered health food,^{[citation needed]} there are several methods to reduce fat and calories in the dish, or otherwise make it healthier. Cooks can use skim milk or water and omit the butter or substitute healthier olive oil when making packaged dishes with powdered cheese mix. Homemade macaroni and cheese can be made with skim milk or canned tomatoes instead of cream. Whole wheat pasta can be used in place of white pasta.

See also

• Fettuccine alfredo

References

External links

• The Best Gourmet Macaroni and Cheese Recipes of 2009
• A brief history of mac and cheese, commentary on [[National
• Steingarten, Jeffrey (1997). The Man Who Ate Everything. New York: Vintage. ISBN 0-375-70202-4. The chapter, "Back of the Box", was first published in 1992.