I razzed Janet yesterday about not getting on the cheese stick (ew?). But today I've got nothing but praise. This morning I learned that Mark Bittman at the New York Times has launched a new blog called Bitten. And what is the blog going to contain?:

"Welcome to Bitten, a blog about food and cooking... We’re going to look at great food made with everyday ingredients and readily achievable techniques...not food as something to be admired from afar, but as a part of daily life....To that end, I’m posting a daily recipe."

Well, Mr. Minimalist, Stir Crazy has been doing just that for years.

Not that I take issue with his goals. Even for avid cooks who gladly spend a whole weekend day puttering in the kitchen, post-work, mid-week dinners need to be fast and unfussy. Janet and I are currently working on story about the spate of 30-minute-meal cookbooks that have come out recently. We're each taking two books, making recipes and timing ourselves. Can a whole meal be done in 30 minutes? Is that a reasonable goal? What kinds of foods lend themselves to this? What are time-saving short cuts? What can you assume the average home cook A) knows how to do and B) has in his or her pantry?

I'll keep you posted.