Kraft Homestyle Macaroni & Cheese Dinner: Old World Italian with Parmesan and Romano Cheese Sauce

Kraft Homestyle Macaroni & Cheese Dinner is the latest macaroni and cheese product from Kraft that is supposed to bring us the same product many of us have eaten since we were children but with a homemade taste.

It comes in three varieties including Hearty Four Cheese Sauce (parmesan, asiago, Colby, cheddar), Classic Cheddar Cheese Sauce, and Old World Italian with Parmesan and Romano Cheese Sauce, which is the variety I tried.

Homestyle is basically a glorified version of Kraft Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner that is supposed to appeal to those of who prefer homestyle cooking. The main difference is that Homestyle includes the macaroni and three, rather than just one, pouches including Seasoning Mix, Cheese Sauce, and Bread Crumb Topping. Each 12.6 ounce bag produces four 1-cup servings with a cooking time of 20 minutes.

How to Prepare

Preparing the macaroni and cheese is a simple four or optionally five step process that requires the package contents to be added to the following ingredients: 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1/2 cup 2% milk, 6 cups water, and, optionally, 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese.

Cook the macaroni in water, drain, and set aside. Melt the butter in a pan with the Seasoning Mix and milk until the sauce thickens. Stir in the Cheese Sauce pouch until blended. Add the macaroni to the cheese sauce. Sprinkle with the Bread Crumb Topping or do the optional oven finish -- pour macaroni and cheese into a 1-1/2 quart casserole dish, sprinkle with 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese and the Bread Crumb Topping. Bake at 425° F for 5 to 10 minutes or until the mozzarella cheese is melted.

Kraft Homestyle Macaroni & Cheese Dinner Old World Italian contains the standard wheat flour macaroni, Monterey Jack cheese (listed as part of the cheese sauce), grated Romano, parmesan cheese, seasoning blend containing garlic bread crumbs, sugar, and spice.

I really tasted very little Italian spices. It pretty much tastes like the standard Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner with a few extra spices and bread crumbs. I think Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner is creamier but perhaps it's due to the optional oven finish that I used, which probably dried it up even more. The optional shredded cheese needs to be purchased separately which is always a pain, especially since it's probably the only thing that made this Homestyle in the slightest.

Unlike the package directions, I used salted butter and whole milk and it still didn't taste very salty. Each serving contains 650 mg sodium or 760 mg with the optional extra cheese but I really didn't notice saltiness. Still, it is high for those on a low sodium diet.

Conclusion

I tasted none of the Old World Italian charm I was promised but it's not too bad if you add a few more spices and extra cheese which kind of defeats the purpose because the same thing can be done with the Deluxe version. It also did not taste any kind of Homestyle to me.

The serving size seems a bit small in comparison to the Deluxe which weighs in at 14 ounces. The prices are about the same, in the $2 range -- I paid $1.99 for the Homestyle and the Deluxe costs a little bit more than that. Homestyle is not worth anything more than $2, so if you see higher prices, you should probably go with Deluxe instead and add a few ingredients to it. Give Kraft Homestyle Macaroni & Cheese Dinner a try but don't expect Homestyle flavor.

Rating: 2/5