Last Christmas, my mom decided that she wanted to make a batch of scones on Christmas morning. She looked through her cookbooks and scoured the internet, finally settling on a Cranberry-Orange scone recipe (I believe she got it off the internet, but I don't know the source). That morning, she quickly stirred up the batter in order to get it in the oven before the turkey needed to go in. When it came out, there was a line of people waiting for the scones, as they had filled the house with a hypnotically good smell.

This is the perfect recipe for a busy morning, because as long as you have buttermilk (you can also fake buttermilk by stirring a tablespoon of lemon juice into a cup of milk) on hand, all the other ingredients are fairly ordinary. You can even mix all the dry ingredients together the night before you want to bake them to hurry things along in the morning.

I love chicken soup, especially tasty, low fat versions full of tons of different vegetables. I make big batches and freeze it in one or two portion containers for easy use during the week. Originally I put it into Tupperware, but they were expensive and actually didn't last too long under my use. Or is it abuse? Then I switched to zip lock baggies, but you had to defrost them first, pour into a bowl or pot, then reheat the soup. Ever since the disposable, reusable plastic containers came out, I use them instead. They go to fridge, freezer, and back again. I can pop them in the microwave, and then into the dishwasher, and they go through multiple uses before wearing out.

Skinless, boneless, chicken thighs have become my poultry part of choice, and I keep several pounds in my freezer handy for quick dinners. I separate the individual thighs, remove excess fat (I freeze that separately for later use), and place them on a plastic covered baking tray in the freezer, so they freeze individually. Then I put them in large freezer zip lock baggies for storage. I slice them when they are fully or partially frozen, and if you are careful, they are actually easier to slice than when unfrozen, and you get uniform pieces which look good and cook more evenly.

Here's my relatively quick recipe for a very low fat, chicken vegetable soup. I use only dark meat for the most flavor (I loathe the flavorless chicken breast), and boneless for ease in preparation and consumption. I also use a combination of fresh and frozen produce, depending upon the season and what's available.

Much more attention gets paid to Rachael Ray and Paul Deen, but Ina Garten is another Food Network favorite that also has a new cookbook out. The Barefoot Contessa at Home: Everyday Recipes You'll Make Over and Over Again is her compilation of recipes that are short, easy are perfect when you want something tasty but don't really want to cook something elaborate. It's the Hamptons take on the same old theme of quick-fix meals, with some menu suggestions and grocery shopping tops thrown in. As always, Ina pays special attention to getting the best ingredients you can, which would certainly improve the quality of any quick-fix meal, though it doesn't make them quite as easy on the budget as some.

The important thing to consider about this particular book is whether you like Ina Garten or not. Her demeanor carries from the screen onto each page so if you are rubbed the wrong way, as a number of people are, by her on-screen personality, you might not enjoy the book quite as much. But if you like her upscale-casual manner, very generous use of butter and cream and the ever-present consideration for others that Ina always has, you'll probably enjoy it, from the Easy Cheese Danishes to Avocado BLTs and Chicken Pot Pie.

Quick and easy cooking sometimes gets bad-mouthed by those who prefer their dinners to be slow-cooked and as authentic as possible. I won't rehash the quick aspect of the book, but in this case, the fact that the recipes are easy is a major selling point. Vietnamese food is not nearly as well known as other Asian cuisines are and rather than launching into what might be a complex and expensive task of producing completely authentic Vietnamese at home, it's a good idea to at least familiarize yourself with some of the flavors and dishes that are popular.

Quick & Easy Vietnamese: 75 Everyday Recipes presents this unique cuisine in a very accessible way, much as its counterpart does with Thai food. The recipes are easy to read and most are accompanied by tempting photos, all of which will make you realize who Vietnamese food is popular even before you taste it. Many of the more exotic ingredients called for, such as lemongrass in the Lemongrass Shrimp, will probably be available at your local grocery or specialty market, but the book also has a list of mail-order resources in the back that should help you find anything that your grocer doesn't carry.

One piece in the New York Times' food section this week summed up a thought that has probably been on the minds of foodies since offal and rather less conventional cuts of meat became the "It"- foods of the last few years in fine dining. Namely, it put a voice to the sentiment that peasant food isn't simple if you aren't a peasant.

The writer explains her experiences cooking for her family, when she says they view just about anything that is made entirely from scratch with some degree of suspicion because it is unfamiliar. Cooking using some preprepared ingredients, like store-bought taco shells for tacos, seems simpler because it takes far less time to prepare than many "from scratch" dishes, especially when you consider you don't need to have spent any time developing a culinary foundation to use them. Everyone has taco shells at their local store. Tarte tatin, on the other hand, is not something that all people have ever eaten, let alone know how to make.

So is "simple" food stuff that is borne from necessity or does it consist of things that are easily and widely available? The answer is both and, to many, the answer is somewhere in between. Simple foods are those that seem uncomplicated to the chef who is preparing them, whether they take skill, experience or a trip to the store to make.

I like my hamburger and hot dog buns to be lightly toasted when possible. Usually, I will simply open them up and toss them onto the grill while the dogs cook. If I'm not grilling, I just eat the buns plain. I have never put a hot dog bun into the microwave to attempt to achieve a "bakery-fresh" texture and, even if I did so, I would certainly not put the hot dog in the bun before microwaving it. In my experience, microwaving does nothing to improve the texture of bread and having an unheated hot dog in it would help even less.

As such, I fail to see the appeal of Oscar Meyer's newest product: Fast Franks. Three hot dogs are packaged in buns and, when you're read to eat, you just put the whole thing in the microwave. Oscar Meyer says that Fast Franks are "mouthwatering to imagine." I'm imagining, and I have to disagree. 

This sandwich is a great, tasty way to use up leftover steak and it's very simple to make, mostly because I rely on prepared barbecue sauce. All you need to do is chop up some onion and mushrooms (white or portobello) into small pieces and saute in a pan with a little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper until they are tender. I use a few tablespoons of onion and about 1 cup of the mushrooms, sometimes a bit more, per sandwich, but the amount is completely flexible. Vary the amounts depending on the size of your rolls. While the mushrooms are cooking, shred up some leftover beef and add it to the mushrooms once they're tender. Stir in enough of your favorite barbecue sauce to moisten everything, cook until the mixture is heated through, and serve on a fresh roll or baguette. This sandwich can also be made with all mushrooms for a vegetarian alternative.

[Photo by Nicole Weston]

With the premier of Fast Food Nation at the Cannes Film Festival, a lot of protests both prosecuting and defending the fast food industry have sprung up. Despite the fact that official release of the film will not be until the fall, sides have been taken and opinions have been formed, and everyone is so polarized that it is almost beside the point that the movie is getting less-than-glowing reviews. Supporters of the movie still hope that its wide release will further raise awareness of the problems in the industry, from food standards to encouraging healthy eating habits. And on the other side, Best Food Nation is a website started by a coalition of food industry trade associations and lobby groups as a reaction to Eric Schlosser's books, Fast Food Nation and Chew on This, trying to give the public access to information from the supply side of the industry.

Cinematical asked the question yesterday, but I'm asking it here: should we just leave the fast food industry alone? Forget the "issues" and just let people eat it if they want to?

Is my blog burning? is a monthly food blogging event where the host blog chooses a theme and anyone who wants to participate makes a recipe in keeping with that theme or using the theme ingredient. This month's IMBB is being hosted by Derrick, who blogs at  an obsession with food. For the theme, he chose stale bread.  It may first seem like an odd choice for a theme ingredient, but if you have ever bought a loaf of french bread and had it become inedible before you could finish it, you know why it's a good idea to know what you can do with the leftovers. I used mine to make bruschetta with a sweet twist.

There are lots of packaged mixes at the store that can make cooking a meal for your family fast and easy after a long day at work. Generally speaking, these mixes are grains with spices and sometimes vegetables and include favorite brands include Rice-A-Roni and Zatarains. Hamburger Helper operates along similar lines, but calls for the addition of meat. These options are already a cut above precooked frozen foods, but there is still something commercial about them. Many new gourmet mixes, with fresher vegetables, original spice combinations and unusual grains are coming out, like the Trader Joe's Spelt with Red and Green Peppers mix pictured here, which make for a lovely change on the dinner table.

To add a touch of homemade flavor to what is essentially a meal from a box, without taking too many extra minutes out of an already busy evening, try sauteing some garlic in the bottom of the pan before adding the mix, or dicing an onion or a shallot and tossing it into the pot with the cooking liquid. Read the ingredients and see what might pair well. This spelt mix, for example, would be good with extra peppers or, since it was well spiced, a vegetable like sweet potatoes or squash to round it out. Or, for heartier fare, take an example from Hamburger Helper and heat up some sausages while the grains cook and toss them in before serving.

[Photo by Nicole Weston]