Today, I learned that Mark Bittman, aka “the Minimalist,” will no longer be writing his food column for the New York Times. I will miss him and the snappy little videos that went with his recipes. Thanks to Bittman, I learned to cook many meals that were simple, healthy, and delicious. His philosophy matches mine—home cooks lead busy lives, and they seldom have the time or the money to cook “gourmet” food.

I also love his philosophy about less-than-wonderful kitchens, about how cooks can cook regardless of what they have or don’t have. In his farewell piece in the Times, Bittman writes, “For months I lived with a hot plate and a combination convection-microwave oven. When I needed to roast something I borrowed a friend’s kitchen….Thus I have no patience for ‘I’d love to cook but I have a lousy kitchen.’”

However, Bittman fans need not despair. He has written many fine cookbooks, and they are well worth buying. I have his How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, and his crackers have become a staple in our house. (In fact, I’ll be making some this afternoon.)

And, even better, Bittman will not stop writing for the Times. Starting in March, he’ll be writing a recipe column each week for the Times magazine. And, more important, he will be having a blog in the opinion section of the Times.

Strange as it might seem, food has become a political issue, and Bittman is concerned about “the continuing attack on good sound, eating and traditional farming in the United States…” He’ll be writing regularly about this in his blog, which will start next week.

I’ll be reading.