The 1 ingredient I now add to boxed macaroni and cheese

Thanks to my fellow Walmart shoppers.

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There’s no denying that boxed macaroni and cheese is one of the best comfort foods. Not only is it inexpensive and easy to make, it’s buttery, cheesy, and brings back comforting memories of childhood meals. There are many ways to improve boxed mac and cheese and I recently came across a series of TikToks featuring Walmart’s smoked gouda mac and cheese.

The Walmart Mac and Cheese Upgrade That’s Got the Internet Talking

“There’s this girl I follow, Bella’s Bites, and she makes this super cheesy mac and cheese with veggies in it,” TikTok user @talibrianna explains of eating her own version of the dish. “Every time I see her eating it, I feel like I want it now.”

As a mac and cheese lover, that’s exactly how I felt. Once I saw videos paying homage to @bellas.bites’ two-ingredient mac and cheese, I wanted to try it too. Bella’s recipe looked simple enough: While the noodles are boiling, add the frozen vegetable mixture to the water. Drain, toss in a pan with butter and add the packet of cheese sauce, a little extra cheese and black pepper. The foodie TikToker frequently posts videos of herself eating this mac and cheese dish with proteins like chicken wings or sausage and it looks absolutely delicious in every video.

Bella tells Allrecipes that she started sharing her meals on TikTok because food is a “universal love language” that “brings people together and tastes different in different places.” An added bonus of seeing so many TikTokers trying his ultimate boxed mac and cheese hack? “People who try something new because they saw me eating, it makes me so happy,” she says.

How to Make Viral Walmart Mac and Cheese

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Although Walmart’s Great Value smoked gouda variety is Bella’s favorite for this dish, she says its add-ins will enhance any type of boxed macaroni dinner. “I think you should prepare your food the way you enjoy it most,” she says. “If there’s a version of mac and cheese that you prefer to the one I use, then use that, I’m sure it’s just as good.”

For Bella, the Smoked Gouda Dinner Kit simply tastes the best. “Macaroni and cheese is, and always has been, a comfort food for me,” she explains. “I tried the Great Value brand because the box looked chic and it immediately became my favorite.”

She also thinks the dish is a great way to get extra vegetables in unexpected ways. “I love vegetables, but I don’t always think of them when I think of comfort food, so I decided to incorporate them into the meal by simply adding them to the cheesy goodness,” she says. “I don’t know about you, but I would prefer vegetables covered in cheese over plain vegetables any day.”

The designer’s biggest tip for enjoying her version of Mac in a box at home? “Eat it while it’s hot,” she said. “The creamier the better, in my opinion.”

And when choosing a protein to serve with the pasta dish, Bella clearly has a preference. “You can’t go wrong with a good pair of chicken wings and mac and cheese,” she says. “It’s definitely my favorite.”

I tried the recipe and here’s what I thought

I tried Bella’s mac and cheese recipe in my own kitchen and was blown away by the bursts of crunchy flavor brought to the dish by the vegetable mix. Adding a little grated cheese and butter made the classic dinner even creamier, and the black pepper added the perfect touch of seasoning. I served my upgraded mac and cheese dinner in bowls with some chicken nuggets on the side.

@bellas.bites Mac and Cheese Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 box mac and cheese (Bella prefers the Great Value Artisan Smoked Gouda variety from Walmart)

• 2 tablespoons of butter

• 1 handful of frozen mixed vegetables

• 1 handful of grated cheese (whatever variety you prefer)

• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Bring a pot of salted water to the boil.

2. Add the pasta and noodles from the boxed macaroni and cheese to the boiling water.

3. About halfway through cooking the noodles, add a handful of frozen mixed vegetables and let them cook with the pasta for the remaining time.

4. Drain the vegetable-noodle mixture and return to the pan with the butter.

5. After stirring the butter until melted and mixed with the pasta and vegetables, add the packet of cheese sauce and mix. (You can also add a little milk.)

6. Add the black pepper and grated cheese to the mixture and stir until well combined.

Read the original article on All Recipes.