I remember the first time I realized that macaroni and cheese wasn't always flavored by bright orange cheese powder. The concept wasn't invented and patented by Kraft Foods. It could, in fact, be delicious.

I was in my early 20s, visiting a New York jazz singer friend. In addition to being a world-class singer my friend is also a killer cook, so it should have come as no surprise that when she set out to make some macaroni and cheese for her son, she didn't reach for a blue box in the cupboard, but rather gathered some butter, flour and milk.

"Um. I thought you were making mac and cheese," I asked.

My friend gave me a pitying look and explained that real mac and cheese starts its life as a roux, segues into a Béchamel, and eventually ends up as a Mornay sauce before being combined with pasta. Fresh out of college and still fond of what the Canadians call Kraft Dinner, I shrugged my shoulders and chalked the whole thing up to my friend being a weird New Yorker.

Of course, these days you can't step out the door without running into some variation of gourmet macaroni and cheese. Blue Tractor has their Buffalo Mac, Carlyle Grill has a Steakhouse Mac & Cheese with Bacon, and Pizza House offers a classic baked mac & cheese. You can even read an essay about the variety of upscale macaroni and cheeses available at Zingerman's Roadhouse.

I've had a strong yen for the Roadhouse Mac since my very first bite six years ago, but my current obsession is with their Macaroni, Smoked Chicken and Monterey Jack, which is made with pit-smoked local chicken, corn, cilantro, fire-roasted chiles and artisanal cheese. This dish is heaven, but at just under 20 bucks a plate it's a rare treat.

Last weekend I decided to see if I could recreate this dish at home for less. I started with a variation of my favorite macaroni and cheese recipe from Saveur magazine and added some smoked chicken from Whole Foods, some corn, chile peppers, and plenty of cilantro. The result ended up feeding six people for about the same price as a plate of Zingerman's mac.

Ingredients 6 tablespoons butter 6 tablespoons flour 1⁄2 teaspoons cayenne pepper Salt and freshly ground white pepper 3 3⁄4 cups hot milk 2 tbsp olive oil 1/4 cup diced roasted green chiles (or you can substitute diced chipotle peppers) 2 smoked chicken breasts, shredded 2/3 cup fresh-cut corn 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro 4 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese 1 pound short macaroni, cooked al dente

Directions 1. In a saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. 2. Add corn, chicken, chiles and cilantro and cook until flavors combine, about 3-4 minutes. Set aside. 3. Melt 6 tablespoons butter in a Dutch oven or large stainless-steel saucepan over low heat. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, for about 4 minutes (flour mixture must foam as it cooks, or sauce will taste of raw flour). 4. Stir in cayenne and season to taste with salt and pepper. 5. Whisk in hot milk, 1/2 cup at a time, and cook, stirring, until sauce thickens. 6. Add the chicken, corn, chiles, cilantro and cheese to the saucepan and stir over low heat until the cheese has melted. 7. Stir in the cooked pasta and top with cilantro.

Jessica Webster loves to cook and leads the Food & Drink section for the AnnArbor.com community team. You can reach her at JessicaWebster@AnnArbor.com.