The Case for Simplicity

I love it when I have all afternoon to cook dinner. I love it more when I know in advance that I'll have all afternoon to cook dinner so I can actually plan and shop and relax about the whole thing.
Usually, I either know I don't have a lot of time, or I think I'll have a lot of time but I end up not having that time. My usual Monday through Friday has me returning from picking up the kids from school at 3:30. Technically I have two hours to prepare dinner. In reality I have about 20 minutes spread over two hours to cook. I try to keep a quiver of meals that I can get ready with a minimum of effort. Not that they don't take a while to cook, but I'm only needed for a few minutes here and there to make it happen.
An easy one is grilled salmon and broccoli.

For the Salmon:
1 - 2 lbs salmon
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
Thaw the salmon early in the day or use fresh. An hour before cooking throw everything in a ziploc bag and put in the fridge.
Grill for 5 minutes a side on medium heat.
Total time invested is less than 15 minutes.

Steamed broccoli:
Cut broccoli into florets. Place in steamer basket in a pot with a bit of water. Cook on high for 5-10 minutes. Serve with butter if desired. Total time invested, maybe 5 minutes.

There is nothing fancy about this meal. It's simple and quick. You do need to be home to start the marinade on the fish, but if you're running around helping with homework or folding clothes or any of the other things that need to be done, you can squeeze that in. You can cut the broccoli and put in in the pot on the stove any time in the hour before dinner, just don't start the heat until you put the fish on. All you really need is those 10 minutes to get the fish cooked and everything on the plates. And really, it's grilled salmon and broccoli, it's good. It's better than most of the salmon that I've eaten at restaurants. My kids love it. My wife loves it. For the time invested, you can cook macaroni and cheese, or salmon and broccoli. If most of your life is busy, then most of the food you cook needs to be able to be cooked during a busy day. Once you build a list of 15-20 simple and quick dinners, you can have variety and quality on every very busy day.