When I first started writing cookbooks over 25 years ago, I didn't know anyone who was busy. Maybe it was just the company I kept, but I suspect it was broader than that. Life was just a lot less complicated for many people. In that era, I wasn't worried about how long it might take someone to prepare one of my recipes. I assumed people would just "hang out" and happily, peacefully spend as much time in the kitchen as the dish required. But things have greatly changed.

Nowadays, I don't know anyone who isn't busy. Even though we have so many more conveniences at our fingertips. like computers and food processors, somehow we all feel even more pressed for time. (When I figure this out, I'll let you know!)

Time is now a major consideration for me when I write a recipe. I understand that most people will not make a recipe if it takes too much work (or too many ingredients, for that matter), so I've got to keep things simple and relatively streamlined. But it will still take some time and some planning on your part to have good, home-cooked food in your lives on a regular basis. If you cultivate a few new habits, this will be possible - I promise! In this month's Tip (and for several months to come) I will be addressing this issue, to help you organize the streamlining (or perhaps we should call it the Taming) of your kitchens. I hope my ideas are helpful, and I certainly hope you'll send me feedback with your reactions - and your own solutions as well.

TIME-SAVING TIPS: PLANNING AHEAD

Always keep some cooked grains in your refrigerator. Grains can take up to 45 minutes or longer to cook, but require very little work. So cook them a day or two ahead... during the evening when you are home anyway, doing other things. Then you can reheat them very easily, either in the microwave as a side-dish, or in a wok with vegetables, for a quick and delicious fried rice. (Check out the recipe in The Enchanted Broccoli Forest, page 220.)
Ditto with keeping cooked beans on hand.
Several evenings a week, spend about 15 minutes cleaning and chopping vegetables and salad greens. Dry them well, and store them in sealed plastic bags (or store the salad greens right in the salad spinner) in the refrigerator, so they are ready for a quick saute or salad after work.
Once or twice a month, make a large jarful of salad dressing and keep it tightly closed in the refrigerator.
When you think of it, roast a bunch of vegetables during the weekend. It's really easy. Check out the recipe for every kind of roasted vegetable imaginable in my new book, "Vegetable Heaven," pages 96 through 99. You can eat the roasted vegetables all week long, for lunch, dinner, or snacks. Warning: roasted vegetables may become habit-forming.
Use weekend or evening time to make one or two of the sauces or pastes from any of the sauce chapters from "Moosewood Cookbook," "The Enchanted Broccoli Forest," or "Vegetable Heaven" ("Never a Bland Moment"). Always keep several of these in your refrigerator to make a lovely light meal out of plain steamed or roasted vegetables, baked potatoes, or a beans & rice combo.