Life’s been a little hectic at our house lately, as I’ve inadvertently inherited the job of my (departed) (not dearly departed, just departed) editor and haven’t the sense to let go of my own. As I clomp around in his newspaper shoes — I can’t possibly fill them — I thought I’d share this picturesque bowl of life-on-the-run.

Just in case you can’t tell, this meal is in a plastic to-go bowl. It was prepared in 20 minutes flat, no exaggeration. And the salmon was frozen. Cut, but frozen. And I harvested the summer kale minutes before tucking it into the pasta pot.

This is what I call fast food MY way, (not alla Jacques Pepin.) Here are the details:

Grab a pot and fill it with hot water and get it on the stove quick. Salt the water and give it a lid. Pull the frozen fish out of the freezer and dump it in a pan with just a touch of oil. Pour a little soy sauce on top and put the pan on medium.

Head to the garden to get what you need. Put the pasta in the boiling water, turn over the fish, chop the greens. Reach for the pepper, turn the fish on high, check the pasta. Drain the pasta, sear the fish, put the greens into the pan, flip it over.

Put the pasta on the plate, top it with the fish and greens and leftover anything else you happen to have — we had roasted red pepper. Douse the dish with more soy sauce if needed and sprinkle on as much pepper as your heart desires. Dinner in 20 minutes. Enjoy.