Janet B. wrote:
> "sandie" > wrote in message
> enews.net...
> snip
> Just thoughts but... maybe
>> it's for the lazy or tired or hurried cooks? Many people love the
>> stuff. I can do without it for another 10 to 20 years. Nobody in
>> my neighborhood (kids included) eat much mac & cheese.
>
> I can't see it for lazy/tired cooks -- I mean you need one pot to
> boil the macaroni, a collander to drain the macaroni, another pot to
> make the white sauce (measure the milk, flour and butter), you gotta
> shred the cheese, heat the oven, find another dish to put the
> combined mixture into and then bake the stuff. There's got to be an
> easier meal if one is lazy. ;o} Unless you were thinking the making
> the boxed stuff?
> Janet

The funny thing is the boxed stuff takes about the same time and equipment,
which is why I never understood the boxed stuff. You still have to boil the
pasta; you still have to strain it. You still need a pan to mix the milk
and butter in with the powdered "cheese". And then stir it into the cooked
macaroni. If you're like me, you'll want to bake it, not eat it from the
stove-top mixture. So yes, that means you'll add some buttered crumbs on
top. Maybe even add some diced ham or bacon or (gasp!) ground beef! But
even if you don't opt to bake it, the steps are the same as when using the
boxed mix, so why not just make it from scratch rather than use powdered
cheese? The only reason I can think of is it's less expensive, which these
days means a lot to me. But I'm still going to make my own macaroni &
cheese, thanks. (Sorry, Michael!)

Jill