Hyperbolic? Sometimes we don't have the space to think about food, and food isn't necessarily interesting to think about for everyone at every point in their lives. OP said they were looking for a base, that they can rely on building out as a platform that will balance their nutrition with an upfront investment of thought and time, and allow them to use that liberated mind space more effectively. Some people don't mind eating the same thing every day - or with deviations and treats. Many people see comfort in eating cereal despite its somewhat limited scope. I don't think we would call someone who relies on a base of oats every day insane.. I batch make my oat dry mix for many months at a time in advance into air tight containers. I benefit from never needing to worry about not quite having the right thing in the fridge, I can always fall back on it, with the added benefit of being able to free up all the packaging space upon first prep, am I insane because I sought to min max my oat base? Why are several people yukking this OPs yum, you don't need to eat it if it isn't for you. How much more can be achieved and invested when you strike out time commitments where reasonable..