When we heard about the two new Kraft Mac & Cheese flavors, we were dubious that one in particular would be any good. One of them is Garlic Parmesan—yes, sure, great. But the other is Hot Honey and, honey, that just doesn’t sound good! Like, yes, we get it: Hot honey is huge right now and every brand is currently desperate to wedge in a little “swicy” flavor wherever they can, but why mac and cheese? Isn’t anything sacred?
Welp, now we’re over here eating our words with a big ol’ side of hot honey mac and cheese. Read on for the full review…
Pros: If hot honey mac and cheese sounds as horrible to you as it does to me, the big pro here is that they managed to make it not horrible. It’s MILDLY sweet rather than being cloying. And it’s actually spicy. It’s a pleasant, warm, cayenne-like simmering burn that’s present but still seems family friendly enough.
Cons: Well, it doesn’t taste like mac and cheese (there’s really no cheese flavor of which to speak) and it also doesn’t taste like hot honey. It tastes good, but it’s a bit of a fail on several important counts.
Credit: Liv Averett / Kraft
Rating:
7/10
Sporks
New Product!
Kraft Mac & Cheese Garlic Parmesan
Pros: This is like one of those Knorr noodle side dishes, but way better. I’m impressed that even though I used salted butter, the mac isn’t too salty. It’s really pleasant. The garlic flavor is mellow and mild—it’s roasty rather than tasting like jarred garlic or garlic powder. And there’s definitely a bit of parm flavor, although it’s pretty subdued. The whole thing is understated in a very nice way. This turns out like slightly upgraded garlic-butter noodles, and it’s a treat with the little macaroni. At home, I always make mac and cheese with roasted broccoli and a meat of some sort (usually veggie crumbles or Daring chicken), and this would be GREAT for that.
Cons: I think the flavor might be a little too subdued for some people. I think most people will want to add more parm—and you really shouldn’t need to add more cheese to boxed mac and cheese.
Credit: Liv Averett / Kraft
Rating:
8/10
Sporks
Which new Kraft Mac & Cheese flavor will you try first?
Howdy! I’m Gwynedd, Sporked’s managing editor. I live in Los Angeles and have access to the best tacos the U.S. has to offer—but I’m a sucker for a crunchy Old El Paso taco night every now and then. I’ve been at Sporked since 2022 and I’m still searching frozen mozzarella sticks that can hold a candle to restaurant sticks.
Why you should trust me: I’ve been a journalist for 20 years (yikes), a consumer of food for 40-plus years, and I’m truly hard pressed to think of foods I don’t like (or that I can’t tolerate at the very least). Oh and one time I cooked my way through Guy Fieri’s cookbook and wrote about the journey through Flavortown.
What I buy every week: Trader Joe’s Original Savory Thins. Fat free plain yogurt (usually Fage or Nancy’s). Honeycrisp apples. Sweet cream coffee creamer for my at-home Americanos. A frozen cauliflower crust pizza and some jarred mushrooms to top it with. Old El Paso Stand ‘N Stuff taco shells and Gardein Ground Be’f, even though I think “be’f” is a nightmarish contraction.
Favorite ranking: Stouffer’s frozen dinners. I don’t own a microwave (I get my cancers the old fashioned way!), so I love taste testing things that I don’t really buy to eat at home.
Least favorite ranking: Soy sauce. Don’t get me wrong, I love soy sauce—but consuming that much sodium in one sitting is probably illegal in some countries. Our frozen enchilada taste test was a close second; the smell of microwaved corn tortillas still haunts me.
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!
Gwynedd Stuart
Griffin Parker
Matt Crowley
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!