Michael Pollan speaks at Google

Second bd_rucker's comment. I never got quite that organized to cook for weeks ahead, but we managed to raise four children with their complex schedules, plus my husband's work and commuting, and still sit down to a home-cooked dinner almost every day. It was a very rare thing when we didn't, because we made it a priority. Or maybe I should say, I made it a priority. ; ) Granted, for much of that time I was not working full time, but I was for a few years, and I still found it possible.

As Pollan says, you don't have to do the "heroic cooking." Soups, salads, pastas, stir-fries, accompanied by home-made whole grain baked goods that you can do ahead of time, all make fast meals that are still full of real nutrients. You can do all the time-consuming cooking ahead of time and just throw in the fresh ingredients at the last minute. You can have the brown rice or the black beans pre-cooked in the refrigerator and heat it up quickly.

Back when we were young and poor, we were still well-known among our friends for always having home-made bread and real butter. And wine. So they could always be sure they'd get something good to eat when they came over. If you can't afford to order a pizza, you can take a slice of bread, put cheese on it, and run it under the broiler till it's crispy. Add a couple of sliced mushrooms, or a little sausage or something if you have it. Our kids still ask for "toasty cheese" when they come home.

The current wrinkle on this: Mr. Sig has a sweet tooth and noticed that he was buying chocolate when he was stressed at work. I made a batch of my mother's very substantial oatmeal cookies with raisins and nuts. He's been taking those to work, and has been able to avoid the candy machine. He's still getting some extra calories, alas, but overall, I think the cookies have a variety of nutrients with a lot less sugar, and they also require chewing and are more satisfying, so you don't just go on popping them in. Not to mention that every bite says "I love you." ; )

Donald Boys, Our local McDonalds does a hugh business

I loved the line in Pollan's talk of the kid in the theater: "After Supersize Me, I'm never going to McD again! It's Burger King or nothing!"

mdavid, It is not easy for the working stiff to cook all his or her own food as Pollan says is...
bd_rucker, It is if you plan ahead. You can cook a week's worth of food on the weekends and then freeze most of it.

I hear you; would starve without the freezer. Don't know how the Amish do it. But having been doing the no-processed food thing for many years now, I do think the 1.5 hours per meal is fair even for people like us who eat too fast (of course, the working stiff rarely needs to cook for 8, true). Consider the extra time:

- baking bread by hand takes time (we use a machine to mix dough, but bake by hand)
- clean/chop raw foods
- more cleanup, dishwashing
- wild game and home grown etc. takes a lot more prep and cleanup
- making one's own mayo, ketchup, etc.

And this doesn't include the greater time needed in finding or harvesting these whole foods. I do very much agree that planning is the key to cutting time (something we need to to better). I just think it's a bigger time drag than Pollan suggests to get off the processed food bandwagon.