In their new book, The Lost Art of Real Cooking, authors Ken Albala and Rosanna Nafziger write that “we’ve been convinced that cooking is drudgery, a task to be avoided” and, conveniently enough, the marketplace has stepped in to offer fast, cheap alternatives to that “drudgery.” But as the authors argue, quick and easy hasn’t really turned out to be all it was cracked up to be. We may think we’re saving money and time with the rise of cake mix, Rachel Ray, and Lunchables, but perhaps we’ve lost more than we’ve gained in our quest for convenience. In between bites of his freshly prepared pickle, salumi and smoked goose, I spoke with Albala, a professor of history at the University of Pacific, about his and Nafziger’s ideas for a “new old-fashioned approach” to food and what we have to gain from rediscovering our kitchens. Read & Discuss