The Best Macaroni and Cheese

By Eva D. Coleman

Lifestyle & Culture Editor

Chef Fee and Team

The Realizing the Dream Health Living Expo Cook-off is one of the most popular features at the Expo. Last year, it was the battle of the collard greens and cornbread. This year, we found the BEST Macaroni and Cheese. The winners were: 1^st Place, Jaqueline Williams with Old School Mac & Cheese; 2^nd  Place Cheron Sneed with Mac and Cheese and 3^rd Place Felicia Guimont with Loaded Mac Attack.

The Realizing the Dream Healthy Living Expo Macaroni & Cheese Cook-off has awarded its winner Jacquline Williams delivered the first-place version of one of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s favorite dishes, as determined by celebrity judges, on January 19, 2026, during the event held at the South Dallas Cultural Center in Dallas, Texas.

   Williams’ “Old School Mac and Cheese” got top score for judges Jazzi Black of 97.9 The Beat, Scoop Jefferson of WEAA-TV, former Ms. Texas Belinda Ramsey Cavett and Food Network star Brent Reaves of Smokey John’s, Inc.

The second-place winner was Cheron Sneed’s Mac and Cheese” and third place went to Felicia “Chef Fee” Guimont’s “Smoky Mac.

Additional participation in the cook-off  was VirLinda Stanton and Alethea West.

  Healthy Living Expo Cook-off co-chairs Eva D. Coleman and Marva Sneed announced that next year’s Dr. King favorite for competition will be pecan pie.

   Congratulations to all and kudos to the judges for completing a tasty task in search of the best! See you in 2027.