I enjoyed the tasty chicken fajitas, but there was a particular pleasure in eating low-carb penne mac and cheese that came from getting to enjoy something that feels wonderfully indulgent while knowing you haven’t completely abandoned your low-carb mission. The cheese is still gooey, creamy and gloriously excessive, and when you get a forkful with plenty of sauce clinging to the penne, it can hit that same comfort-food button that regular mac and cheese has been pushing for years.
Sure, the pasta may have a slightly different texture, but after a few bites you stop conducting a scientific comparison and start doing something much more important: eating it. It may not be exactly the mac and cheese your grandmother made, but when you’re sitting there with a bowl of cheesy goodness instead of a bowl of steamed vegetables, suddenly being low-carb doesn’t seem quite so tragic.