Recipe Adaptation, Essay Example

The recipe to be evaluated is baked macaroni and cheese. This original recipe includes the following ingredients: butter, chopped onion, dry mustard, black pepper, flour, whole milk, salt, elbow macaroni, full fat sharp cheddar cheese, and full fat American cheese. The original recipe is baked in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. This recipe has the following nutrition information:

From http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php

Based upon the nutrition information provided in this recipe, it is important to consider a lower fat and healthier alternative that might provide greater health benefits. For example, the following nutrition information is derived from a recipe that uses nonfat milk and reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese:

Each of these recipes demonstrates some variations in the ingredients, with the latter improving the nutritional value of the macaroni and cheese dish significantly. For example, the healthier version uses skim milk instead of whole milk and reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese instead of full fat cheese. Each of these substitutions provides important nutritional benefits by reducing calories, fat, sodium, and cholesterol. Therefore, if a healthier alternative is desired, it is important to use different substitutions of the ingredients in order to achieve these outcomes.

Perhaps the most popular brand of store-bought macaroni and cheese in the United States is Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. This processed version of the popular dish is comprised of processed cheese and other ingredients and requires the addition of butter and milk for the prepared version. The nutritional content in Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is as follows:

Based upon his information, the most ideal recipe for a healthier macaroni and cheese is the lower fat version because it has less sodium, calories, and cholesterol than the other alternatives. In addition, it is important to consider the caloric intake of each version as a primary concern, but to also consider the nature of processed foods and how they ontribute to the diet of many Americans. Since many people do not have the time or do not want to make the effort to cook their own meals, they often rely upon processed foods and premade versions of their favorite foods as their primary sources of nutrition. However, these variations are not always appropriate and instead provide excess calories, cholesterol, sodium, fat, and other elements that are dangerous to the American diet. In order to improve the diet profile for many Americans, it is important and necessary to consider other feasible alternatives that might be effective in providing better nutritional value over the long term. These efforts must be considered so that issues associated with weight and nutrition are optimized because the reliance on processed foods and higher fat versions of foods is no longer the acceptable norm. It is important for individuals to cut fat, calories, sodium, and cholesterol from their diets in different forms in an effort to achieve the desired outcomes as best as possible. This involves cooking at home with a greater number of natural ingredients and lower fat versions of products so that greater health benefits are realized. The three examples of macaroni and cheese demonstrate the variations that exist in food choices and ingredients; therefore, it is important to develop a greater understanding of how to use healthier ingredients and to cook at home more frequently rather than relying on eating out on a regular basis to meet food intake needs. Over the long term, this may be detrimental to the health and wellbeing of many Americans and should be altered as best as possible to support improved nutrition and wellbeing for all persons.