Life sure has changed at our home when Charlie was living her full time, he didn’t like use purchasing groceries at Aldi’s or Dollar Tree and now Dollar Tree is his go to place for snacks and Taquito’s for his lunches with Mikayla. Aldi’s is Charlie’s go to place for Coffee.
In Hobart there is a Dollar Tree but no, Aldi so David and I Alway’s stop by and pick up Coffee’s for Charlie and anything else we think Charlie would like. I need Mac & Cheese for dinner the other night and was going to get Kraft Original Mac & Cheese in the blue box, but David wanted to get Cheeto’s MacN’ Cheese Four Cheesy flavored Mac’N Cheese.
Because David always eats what the rest of us wants, I told David I would try the Cheetos Mac’Cheese Four Cheese for something new. This would also give Gerald the opportunity to try something new. Charlie couldn’t believe I tried it after all the times I said no, I didn’t want to try it.
This was one of the nights when dinner doesn’t start with a plan, it starts with whatever ends up in the cart, and this was one of those moments. The purple box of Cheetos Mac’ &’N Cheese came home from Dollar Tree and ended up on the stove not long after, mostly out of curiosity and partly because it just felt like an easy win for a quick meal.
The version we tried was the classic cheesy blend, the one labeled “four cheesy flavors with other natural flavors.” It cooks just like a standard boxed mac and cheese, whether you go the microwave route or the stovetop, but at home the stovetop always wins because it feels more like real cooking and less like a shortcut.
This MacN’ Cheese calls for the usual basics like butter, milk, and water, and it comes together without any trouble. The only part that really needs attention is draining the water, which is where kids definitely need an adult nearby. Even teens and adults because I can be clumsy and burn myself at times without even trying. This is why I’m not allowed to have a knife.
What surprised me most wasn’t the color or even the strong Cheetos-style flavor, but how quickly it disappeared. The first night it was made, it served as dinner, and somehow there were still enough leftovers for the next day. Even reheated, it held up well enough that nobody was complaining.
Everyone had an opinion on it, and they were all pretty consistent in a good way. David loves it. Gerald, and I all ended up liking it more than expected, and Charlie, in particular, is fully in the “this is my favorite” category. He already enjoys the spicier version of the Cheetos Mac line and has apparently been a fan for a long time, mixing in all kinds of twists like using Dorito’s Ranch-flavored Chips as a topping idea. Bradley also enjoyed this MacN’ Cheese, which says a lot because not every quick boxed meal makes the cut with everyone.
The box mentions different ways to “#CheetosMacHack” it, like topping it with crushed Cheetos for extra crunch or even mixing in vegetables like broccoli. That second idea didn’t quite fit reality here, but the creativity behind it is still fun and a good way to get kids and picky adults to eat their Veggies. At our house, it stayed simple, cheesy, and straightforward, which honestly felt right for the kind of night it was.
Each serving is listed at about 2.4 ounces, and the nutrition label sits right in that familiar comfort food range, with around 240 calories per serving and very little saturated fat. It’s not pretending to be anything other than what it is: a quick, flavorful boxed MacN’ Cheese with a bold twist.
We picked this up at Dollar Tree, though it’s also easy to find in larger stores like Walmart. With a few different flavor boxes available, it looks like one of those pantry items that will probably get revisited again, especially for quick dinners or lazy nights when something easy still needs to taste like something fun.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
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