Grew up in Minnesota. Never heard of macaroni and cheese at Thanksgiving growing up. Also, FIL was from Missouri and Oklahoma and he married a woman from Indiana and they never had mac and cheese at Thanksgiving, although they put hardboiled eggs in the gravy.

Anonymous wrote:My WASP-y picky MIL wants me to bring a Green Bean casserole and onion dip with ruffles to Thanksgiving. *I* wanted to bring Patti LaBelle's macaroni and cheese and pimento cheese (this is a good use of the leftover cheddar).

Well, then tell her - politely - what you’d like to bring. When I host the annual potluck Thanksgiving, I make informal assignments to our mostly vegetarian relatives (with almost uniformally bad cooking skills). Otherwise, we’d wind up with ten different marginally edible salads. I’d be thrilled if someone wanted to bring a great mac and cheese. Then indulge her with the 1950s onion dip and chips.

Anonymous wrote:My white Jewish family never had it. My African American mid-western in-laws wouldn’t think of having Thanksgiving without mac and cheese. Since I’ve been with my partner I’ve added Mac and cheese and a honey baked ham to our t-day table (obviously we don’t keep kosher).

I am also white and Jewish and I have African American in-laws and it was absolutely magical when we had our first Thanksgiving together and I got to try real mac and cheese.

Anonymous wrote:Midwest thing.

Nope. I grew up in the midwest - NEVER EVER saw mac and cheese at Thanksgiving.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My WASP-y picky MIL wants me to bring a Green Bean casserole and onion dip with ruffles to Thanksgiving. *I* wanted to bring Patti LaBelle's macaroni and cheese and pimento cheese (this is a good use of the leftover cheddar).

So weird to me! Why does the onion dip have to wear ruffles? Does it have a role in the Thanksgiving play?

I can't tell if this is a joke, but Ruffles are potato chips.

DP--and I am old enough to remember "and Ruffles have ridges!"

Just maybe, MIL was giving you something super simple to bring. I would be thrilled if the hostess asked for that. And, FWIW, onion dip is the first dip I ever remember eating. And, I still like it.

I do it when I host and the kids love it. The parents of the kids love that I have it. One aunt makes a stink about it because she thinks kids and others should be forced to eat the crappy stuff she brings.

Anonymous wrote:I think it's a southern thing, but I also think it's an easy side for someone to bring to another person's house and it tastes fgood.

So you can't really bring mashed potatoes or stuffing, but Mac and cheese (and green bean casserole) are the perfect things to assign to someone else.

Also, kids eat it. So another bonus.

I think it's a southern thing, but I also think it's an easy side for someone to bring to another person's house and it tastes fgood.

So you can't really bring mashed potatoes or stuffing, but Mac and cheese (and green bean casserole) are the perfect things to assign to someone else.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My WASP-y picky MIL wants me to bring a Green Bean casserole and onion dip with ruffles to Thanksgiving. *I* wanted to bring Patti LaBelle's macaroni and cheese and pimento cheese (this is a good use of the leftover cheddar).

So weird to me! Why does the onion dip have to wear ruffles? Does it have a role in the Thanksgiving play?

I can't tell if this is a joke, but Ruffles are potato chips.

Anonymous wrote:My WASP-y picky MIL wants me to bring a Green Bean casserole and onion dip with ruffles to Thanksgiving. *I* wanted to bring Patti LaBelle's macaroni and cheese and pimento cheese (this is a good use of the leftover cheddar).

So weird to me! Why does the onion dip have to wear ruffles? Does it have a role in the Thanksgiving play?

Grew up in the Midwest and it was never a Thanksgiving side. Now living in Virginia and now can't imagine not having it.
Def. a southern thing.

My WASP-y picky MIL wants me to bring a Green Bean casserole and onion dip with ruffles to Thanksgiving. *I* wanted to bring Patti LaBelle's macaroni and cheese and pimento cheese (this is a good use of the leftover cheddar).

Anonymous wrote:My white Jewish family never had it. My African American mid-western in-laws wouldn’t think of having Thanksgiving without mac and cheese. Since I’ve been with my partner I’ve added Mac and cheese and a honey baked ham to our t-day table (obviously we don’t keep kosher).

I like you.

Anonymous wrote:Ok, conclusion: it’s a Southern thing! Now we know!

It is also an African-American thing in other parts of the country, because the tradition "went north" with them. Go to an African-American family Thanksgiving in Detroit or Cleveland, and you will get Macaroni and Cheese.

Grew up in Outside of Philly, spent Thanksgiving outside of Boston - never had it.