I never liked a chicken nugget and I don’t have much to say about Kraft macaroni and cheese except we used to have a thing going, but just like a bad for you boyfriend, a few years of separation took away my taste for it. Real cheese and real macaroni is real food. Orange powder in an evelope, I don’t know what to tell you except I think it’s poetic license to call that natural.
It’s not hard to make a good mac and cheese. Buy a sharp cheddar, and a monterey jack.
Get your elbow noodles going in some salted boiling water, about a half a pound, and when they are on the cusp of done, but not done, drain them.
In another sauce pan you need four Tablespoons of butter. Whisk around that around with equal amounts of flour over a low flame for three minutes, or until it doesn’t have a raw flour taste. Don’t let it get brown. Turn off the heat. Add one cup of cold milk, constantly whisking, until the flour and milk are one smooth paste. Add about another cup and a half of milk and some salt and pepper to taste. Turn the flame back on to medium, and whisk constantly for about five minutes, until the sauce has thickened. Turn off the heat. Grate in a pound of cheese (you can do less if you don ‘t like it cheesy, or even a little more if you like it really cheesy), and just a little fresh nutmeg. Add the noodles (it will look like there is a lot of sauce). If you have some old bread left over, grate that on the large holes of the grater, and sprinkle it on top of the mac and cheese. Grate a little cold butter on top of the breadcrumbs. Stick the whole thing into a 400 degree oven, uncovered until the breadcrumbs are toasty looking. Serve with a salad full of good stuff like romaine lettuce, corn, black olives, a little shallot, some fresh basil, grape tomatoes, and avocado.