This has been very interesting to read - so many different takes on it.

For me, simplicity in the kitchen means having the least number of tools/utensils to do the most number of jobs, having a constant sore of basic ingredients (spices, herbs, canned tomatoes, pasta, rice etc) so that there's always something to make a meal with, getting the best value/most nutritious food & ingredients by always scrutinizing the ingredients listing and price-per 100g/ml or unit etc...

It's more about the mechanics behind the cooking for me rather than the cooking itself (although I do normally insist on doing it from scratch!).