Mac & Cheese

I grew up calling the stuff in the blue box Kraft Dinner because that's what my parents grew up calling it (and as I understand, what they still call it in Canada, rumored to be because it doesn't meet their government regulations for actual cheese content to actually be able to put Cheese in the name :o)

Anyway, one of my mom's quick-and-easy specialties was Kraft Dinner & Krab Meat--she'd sautee some onions and celery in butter, heat up some of that lump imitation-crab meat in the pan, and then would mix it all in with the prepared Kraft mix. It probably sounds bizarre, but it's delightful. :D It'll probably always be a comfort food for me.

I like to add crushed red peppers to mac and cheese. Sometimes a veggie dog or veggie pepperoni/lunch meat cut up in to pieces. I separate it into two servings before I eat it so I don't eat both servings even if I could (I guess technically I split it in to 1.25 servings). I always make it with less butter, though. Sometimes we get the "deluxe" version which is great with chopped fresh red/orange peppers, and we add whatever cheese we have that we think will make it tastier (pepper jack, aged sharp white cheddar, and any sharp regular cheddar work great). It makes it higher in calories/fat, but we make less and eat less.

My brother prefers the shaped ones (toy story, spongebob, wheels, spirals) because "they hold more cheese", though fewer servings come in a box. ;)

My favorite fresh made mac and cheese is from pike place chowder, where they prepare it fresh and add dungeness crab or smoked salmon. Yum. I also have had a few tasty truffle mac and cheeses (not chocolate truffle, that would be gross ;)). My husband and I made it a couple times with smoked/white cheeses (combined smoked gouda, aged white sharp, and a couple others, I think), that was also tasty.

Mmmm, mac and cheese.

Corn... is a grain, not a vegetable. But I still love it on the cob, and the sweet white corn. We just don't eat it as often, I've switched my fam to a lot of salads and other veggies, and tried to switch potatoes to sweet potatoes (partially working).

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Originally Posted by channlluv

I read somewhere that raw corn is a vegetable; cooked corn is a starch.

Still, I mix silver queen sweet corn and English peas and tuna in my mac and cheese, and I use an organic whole grain brand I get at Henry's and Trader Joe's -- Annie's, I think, or Amy's. I forget.

My 12-year-old loves it.

Roxy

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Doesn't cooked corn release the natural sugars in some way..?

Long time since I've had Mac 'n Cheese. Years. Maybe even nearly 3 decades ago. But when I did, I mixed sauteed onions, garlic and mushrooms in cooking Mac 'n Cheese. Delicious.

Or with chopped cauliflower. Lots of other variations by cooking it with other chopped veggies.

I just couldn't resist adding something. Mac 'n Cheese by itself..is abit boring to me. I also wanted to offset the heaviness with veggies, onions or garlic cooked with it. Also a distraction from university studies at that time by cooking with abit more snap.

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Originally Posted by colby

Corn... is a grain, not a vegetable.

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Americans tend to eat it as their vegetable though - with the big pile of potato salad as their starch.

Veronica

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Originally Posted by Zen

Maybe I'll start the Mac and Cheese Truck

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Holy crap! A truck that sells different types of homemade baked mac&cheese. Brilliant!

I don't honestly know the official definition of veggie vs grain, but in my mind, grains must be cooked before they can be eaten (we are incapable of digesting them raw) and veggies can be eaten raw. Since you can eat sweet corn raw, I consider it a veggie. Dent corn is definitely a grain.

Or...that's how *I* classify it anyway. Of course, it's certainly a starchy veggie (like peas) so it's not the most nutrient dense choice, but still...better for you than french fries! :p

And for the record, I don't like 'real' mac & cheese - too creamy for me. I only like the fake Kraft stuff and only if made with skim milk and no butter. Again, I'm weird. :o

When I was little I wanted to make a sign to hang on the back of my chair announcing, "My favorite dish is macaroni and cheese."

My ever-so-helpful big brother, after helping me write "favorite" dictated how to spell "macaroni."

M-O-U-S-E

He is still just as big a wiseguy as he was a half century ago.

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Originally Posted by GLC1968

Dent corn is definitely a grain.

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Do you mean cow corn?

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Originally Posted by Zen

Do you mean cow corn?

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I guess it could be called cow corn. It's also fed to other livestock and it's used to make cornmeal for human consumption. It's usually harvested later than the sweet corn we eat on the cob and it's hard and often dried for long term storage.

To be fair, I have no idea what type of corn is grown for mass industrial uses - I only know the odd little heirloom types that we grown in our garden.

I want mac and cheese now. And corn on the cob. With chipotle butter and a bit of salt. Zen, get that mac&cheese truck out here!

Mac & cheese sounds really good after all these posts, but it's still toooooo hot to turn on the oven, even with air conditioning. And I have always made it from scratch. On the other hand, an nice cold macaroni salad with lots of crisp celery and other goodies might be just the thing for the near 100o temps looming this weekend.

Lord knows my bikes are going to forget what the sun looks like - we've been cooped up way too long this summer.

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Originally Posted by GLC1968

I don't honestly know the official definition of veggie vs grain, but in my mind, grains must be cooked before they can be eaten (we are incapable of digesting them raw) and veggies can be eaten raw. Since you can eat sweet corn raw, I consider it a veggie. Dent corn is definitely a grain.

Or...that's how *I* classify it anyway. Of course, it's certainly a starchy veggie (like peas) so it's not the most nutrient dense choice, but still...better for you than french fries! :p

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It just gets confusing from here, but from what I dug up on Wikipedia basically corn (maize) in general is a grain and "sweet corn" is a less starchy variant consumed "as a vegetable". Fascinating.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maize
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweetcorn

V's response about corn and potato salad (don't forget the white bread bun on your hamburger/hot dog, too) made me consider what a sweet potato salad (instead of a potato salad) would taste like.

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Originally Posted by withm

Mac & cheese sounds really good after all these posts, but it's still toooooo hot to turn on the oven, even with air conditioning. And I have always made it from scratch.

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Same here, but I have no AC! BF is going to want some when he gets back, though...sigh. The things I do...

I love macaroni and cheese... but hate the box mix! Ick.

It doesn't take much longer to make a quick white sauce with some sharp cheddar cheese and whatever flavorings or additions. I like it with green chile salsa, personally

Ooh, that sounds good.

Mine involves a mix of sharp cheddar and a smoked cheddar, especially if I don't have ham. Maybe I'll try adding some green onions to it as well.