Annie's Homegrown Gluten Free Rice Pasta and Cheddar

Annie's Homegrown Gluten Free Rice Pasta and Cheddar
Photograph Copyright 2012 Kelsey Wyatt

Macaroni and cheese is one of the most popular comfort foods out there and what do you know? It's full of gluten. Of course it would be. Anything that tastes good seems to be full of the stuff. (Did you know tomato soup has gluten? Who'd have thought...) 

And for some reason, making a gluten-free macaroni and cheese seems to be something that requires a degree in miracles as most of the time gluten free macaroni and cheese is a disaster. It's likely that there's simply nothing quite like wheat-based pasta for that perfect consistency for holding all that cheese.

Many companies have attempted to create a gluten-free macaroni and cheese and most of them have offered a product that tastes good as long as you like paying a lot of money and you enjoy hovering over the stove, plucking a few macaroni bits out every two seconds from the pot just to make sure the concoction doesn't turn to mush.

Annie's Homegrown Gluten Free Rice Pasta and Cheddar
Photograph Copyright 2012 Kelsey Wyatt

And that's what will happen to Annie's Homegrown Gluten Free Rice Pasta and Cheddar should you walk away from the stove for more than two minutes. The box might say this stuff is done in about eight minutes, but it's MUCH FASTER than you think. Once that water is boiling and you drop that box of rice pasta into the pot, you'd better be ready to stand there, because the moment you leave it, that pasta's going to mush town on the first available train.

Rice pasta really is a delicate flower of a pasta and requires special care and attention any time the word "water" is used in its general vicinity. But as long as someone is willing to pay attention to the pasta and not leave the stove (truly, this is imperative), rice pasta is indeed a worthy base for macaroni and cheese.

Annie's Homegrown Gluten Free Rice Pasta and Cheddar
Photograph Copyright 2012 Kelsey Wyatt

For "Annie's" version of macaroni and cheese, the directions suggest that while the pasta is cooling on the stove top that you should toss in the powered cheese and the quarter cup of milk the recipe calls for into a bowl and stir it up. This is actually a good idea as it means more cheese is on the pasta in the bowl when it's eventually mixed together instead of in the stove pot.

But one thing to note: I've made this pasta several times (at least a half dozen) and every time I've made the recipe to the box's specifications, the end result has turned out too soupy as the cheese just won't connect right and stay on the pasta - even if it's left to sit for a while. Your best bet is to back off on the milk a bit unless you like your macaroni and cheese a little soupy. You can also add a bit of butter for taste, but this is completely optional and the final result is fine with or without it.

Annie's Homegrown Gluten Free Rice Pasta and Cheddar
Photograph Copyright 2012 Kelsey Wyatt

Annie's Homegrown Gluten Free Rice Pasta and Cheddar Report Card

The Good Things:

As long as you keep an eye on the stove and aren't too liberal with the milk for the cheese mixture, Annie's is a great option for macaroni and cheese and does the job extremely well. 

The basic taste of this mac & cheese is very satisfying and is worth a try. You might have to make it just a few times in order to get the recipe just right, but the end result is worth it, especially if you've had a gluten version of macaroni and cheese in the past and remember fondly what it tasted like.

What Could be Better:

One guess as to what's always on sale at the grocery store and what's never on sale. That's right. You'll never find Annie's macaroni and cheese on sale in gluten free form. Or if it is on sale, the store's offering a paltry ten cents off the massive price tag (which can hover upwards of three and a half dollars!). This means that people who are fond of wheat can enjoy macaroni and cheese for about fifty cents while the gluten free crowd has to pony up their first born.

The consistency of rice pasta is also so delicate that making this macaroni and cheese seems like a more difficult operation than it should be. But this could be a general failing of rice pasta in general and not an issue for Annie's.

Tips for Great Mac & Cheese:

DO NOT LEAVE THE STOVE WHILST THE PASTA IS COOKING. This is absolutely important. Even if you think going into the living room to catch some television for just a few minutes is okay, it's not. This pasta must be eyeballed at all times.

It's also a good idea to back off on the amount of milk that the recipe on the box calls for. Just back it off a bit and you'll have a less soupy result for your macaroni and cheese.