This week, I am in Wisconsin for the national speech tournament. Now there are a lot of things to look forward to, but one thing I am really excited about is the opportunity to cross another state off my list of ones I have visited. Now if you’re not super familiar with United States lore, Wisconsin is known for a couple of things: cheese, the Packers, cheese, the Wisconsin Dells, cheese and probably other dairy-related specialties.
You may be thinking to yourself, “Cassie, you already ranked cheeses and it was absolutely riveting. As much as we loved and cherished it, please don’t write about it again.” Well, don’t you worry, because this week we’re talking about my favorite food: mac and cheese.
The three things these rankings will depend on: cheesiness, flavor and gooeyness. No, cheesiness and gooeyness are not the same thing. The former will apply to the amount of cheese in the dish, while the latter refers to how melty the cheese is and how melty it stays. So from best to worst…
Panera Mac: I’m pretty sure the creator of this dish received the Nobel Peace Prize for their humanitarian efforts because this is what world peace tastes like. There’s so much cheese, but not so overpowering that it makes me sick to eat. The flavor is phenomenal, whether you got it fresh or bought the prepackaged tubs from the store. Plus, the cheese is so gooey and reheats like a fresh bowl. For those reasons, I’ll never get tired of this dish.
Noodles & Co. Wisconsin mac and cheese: This one is just BARELY edged out by Panera’s cheese noodles. Noodles & Co. has come out and announced that their Wisconsin mac and cheese is now 50 percent cheesier, which is amazing news (unless you’re lactose intolerant). I personally feel like there could be just a tad more flavor, but what it lacks in flavor it makes up for in the handful of shredded cheese they place on top. Mixing that in makes the dish so much better, making it a solid second choice.
Kraft: If I could rename this option, I would choose the name “old reliable”. Kraft box mac and cheese is really hard to screw up, and despite using powdered cheese, it still tastes rather cheesy and delicious. There’s not necessarily any defining characteristic that makes this great, but in similar fashion, there’s nothing horribly wrong with it.
Annie’s White Cheddar: I find this mac and cheese to be very hit or miss. Sometimes it’s the perfect replica of a Panera dish, other times the cheese powder doesn’t mix in fully and it doesn’t taste like anything until you take a big old spoonful of powdered cheese and have a coughing fit for the next five minutes. I still like it, but that nasty surprise is enough for it to come in fourth.
Velveeta: While I can’t complain about the taste a whole lot, I can complain about cheese flavored goo that holds a similar consistency to lard. Plus, the second it’s not piping hot, the cheese balm starts to solidify again and creates a texture that is really hard to stomach.
Easy Mac: This is basically the half-assed version of Kraft, and therefore it scores half as well. Almost no cheese, no flavor besides the initial burning of my mouth, and the components that create the gooeyness in Kraft are lost in the Easy Mac. All in all, a last resort.
