As much as I’d like to claim otherwise, I’ve come to terms with the fact that I love mac-n-cheese. I could probably eat it every day—or at least some version of pasta. But I know many people who look down their noses when a person admits they love the classic kid’s dish. In fact, many think of it as just that: a quick dish for children, not a refined meal. For me, though, there’s something about it that just hits the spot.

In college, when life gets busy, especially if you’re in school and living in a dorm room, the fallback is quick-n-easy meals. I fell into the familiar rut of microwaving lots of pasta-based dishes. After graduation, I was a middle-school teacher and my long days clustered around lesson plans and grading papers. If I cooked, it was a side dish for a holiday.

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