Mac 'n Cheese
Although recent trends in American dining have elevated the ordinary macaroni and
cheese to a lofty fine dining experience with add-ins like truffle, lobster, and expensive and
(1) rare cheeses. For decades, the ubiquitous Kraft brand macaroni and
cheese was not only a family dinner staple, but also a quick, convenient snack easy
enough for nearly anyone to prepare. This signature dish made (2) its debut,
along with many other markedly less-successful (3) products during the Great Depression
when Americans suffered economic hardship and (4) there wasn’t much food around.
Other less successful products and (5) recipes are also developed during the Great
Depression. This inexpensive, grainy mixture of fine-ground cornmeal and powdered
milk could be mixed with water to make a (6) gruel-like slurry; that was
served at breakfast or mixed into ground meat and nut-butters to stretch more
expensive products and make meals seem more filling. (7) Looking to fill the empty stomachs
of the masses, scientists at Cornell developed a product called Milkorno.
(8) After the stock market crash, and the windy, drought-filled years that led to the
Dust Bowl, jobs, money, and food items were in short supply. Even when fresh dairy
and produce was available, transient families (9) living in caravans and camps
had no access to refrigeration or food preservation. Kraft ingeniously crafted a highly
stable, non-perishable, powdered dairy product that took the place of milk and cheese. (10)
(11) This filling dinner was shelf-stable, the dried ingredients could be reconstituted
in one pan by just adding boiling water, and the box was easy to carry. It was the perfect food for the times.
Mothers waxed creative with their recipes as well. Limited by the rationing of many staples
(12) with sugar and produce, women turned to products like vinegar and
crackers to replace typical pie ingredients like fresh fruits and berries. Austerity
even hit the White House (13) which Eleanor Roosevelt used the naturally
sweet dried prunes to concoct a dessert pudding that was served to visiting dignitaries.
Kraft’s world-famous dinner in a box shines as the star of Depression Era food. Many of the other
products and recipes understandably slipped into (14) not being known
when the economy recovered and normal food items once again became widely available. (15)
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[ . . . ] the Great Depression when Americans suffered economic hardship and (4) there wasn’t much food around.
If the writer were to change the underlined phrase to "famine" in the preceding sentence, this change would
Elimination Tool
Select one answer
A
indicate the importance of inexpensive yet filling products like Mac 'n Cheese.
B
take on a less threatening tone that correctly reflects the lightheartedness of the passage.
C
become an effective counterclaim that introduces the opposing viewpoints on the product.
D
suggest that Mac n' Cheese was responsible for feeding and saving the American people.