Claire
Master Chef
I'll start by saying, I love to cook from scratch. That said, I certainly use box mixes when it is appropriate. In fact, many family members really like some of the potato products fromt he box. When I do it I add a touch of parm or something to turn it into "mine". I use both Good Seasons and Ranch dressing mixes, but my husband calls them "Claire's secret sauces" because I use "secret" ingredients to turn the dressings into "mine". They aren't any secrets, it is just that friends and family won't go through the trouble to make them theirs. I guess what I'm getting at is that I use these products to short-cut some of the work, but always put a personal twist on it.