So I was at a restaurant the other day (whose name shall be omitted from this blog, since I know they aren't alone), and I couldn't help but notice the calorie count on their Macaroni and Cheese - both small and large sizes. Okay... so the large portion... nearly 1000 calories! It got me thinking... it's not McDonald's that's killing us, it's macaroni and cheese!
Okay... wait... McDonald's is pretty nasty, too, as is any fast food restaurant... but hear me out.
This country is in love with macaroni and cheese. Besides myself, I can't think of anyone who doesn't search out the perfect recipe for some version, or restaurant to use as a vice. Me? Not a huge fan. I think I was turned off of any form of macaroni and cheese when I used to have to serve it every time I babysat. That stuff in a box is nasty - the powdered stuff is the worst, but the creamy, gelatinous packets are no better, really. They're both processed - one's just processed worse than the other! And it's far from healthy! It has very little nutritional value, aside from milk you might have to add. And the calories in the boxed stuff is anywhere from 250 to 500 calories a serving! Which, by the way, is only a cup.
And that's what so many people start serving their kids at a young age because they eat it. Well, yeah... usually kids eat what's not good for them! It's a kid thing, I guess. So as they grow up, they want better versions, more gourmet versions, it's ordered as a side - and it probably has more calories than the main dish! And don't get me started on the rest of the nutritional chart (ie fat!).
I'm happy to say that I don't have any of that stuff in my house. Sure... you're saying, "Well you don't have kids!" No - I don't. But I heard a good rule of thumb, once... if you won't put it in your body, then why would you put it in your kids' bodies? I'm no angel when it comes to eating, but I try to watch it. Eric likes those fancy baked macaroni and cheese sides you find at restaurants, but even he's learned not to eat the whole thing. It's worth a dramatic pause for reflection next time you order, that's for sure.
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Two excerpts from Yahoo Health today:
#8: Your food might be on its second—or third—life. The FDA allows manufacturers to "recondition" food that they don’t get quite right the first time around. This could mean incorporating a botched batch of vanilla yogurt in with another flavor, regrinding misshaped pasta, or even heat-treating moldy food and repacking it. The idea is to minimize waste, which is good in theory, but pretty gross in practice.
#5: There could be maggot particles in your macaroni
The FDA allows up to 450 insect fragments in every one-pound box of pasta. That means that if you’re like the average American, who consumes about 20 pounds of noodles every year, you could take in 9,000 bits of bug annually.
TALK S'MAC: Peruse any pasta menu and you'll likely find trouble. Between overblown portion sizes and caloric cream sauces, these bowls are often among the worst dishes. For proof, take a look at the 7 Worst Pasta Dishes in America.
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