Bacon mac ’n’ cheese: $1.17/serving

Those who remember the bone marrow mac ’n’ cheese and the cheese-stuffed mac ’n’ cheese pie know I’m not shy about taking a perfectly reliable institution and making it…well…wrong. Or, at least, as much more wrong as a big pan of cheese, bread and pasta can possibly get. This version, I reckon to say, is probably even worse for you than the stuff that comes in the blue box, assuming you find artery-clogging fat and nitrates slightly below artificial “cheez” and preservatives on the acceptability scale. But it’s worth it, especially since “upscale comfort food” of this nature is in vogue now and can run you $7 or more for a wee little serving at a pretentious gastropub. For $7, you’ll have enough of this to eat for days. (Worried you’ll get tired of it? Don’t. I made this last week and would happily still be eating it today if we had it around.)

Arroz con pollo: 96 cents/serving

There are a lot of variations floating around out there for Latin American arroz con pollo—saffron, achiote paste, long-grain rice, arborio rice, peas, olives. My version, of course, is what I feel to be the best-tasting arroz con pollo for the least amount of money. No extraneous gewgaws or pricey ingredients—just a sofrito of bacon and vegetables; some oregano, cumin, chicken, rice, broth, and tomato paste; and a bottle of beer. Simple, satisfying, and one-pot. It also makes a ton, so it’s good for a crowd or potluck, or for heat-and-eat lunches throughout the week.

Farfalle with bacon, goat cheese, rosemary & arugula: $1.77/serving

As I’ve mentioned before, pregnant folks are not supposed to eat soft cheeses—goat cheese, blue cheese, Brie, et al.—due to the risk of contracting listeria. Never mind that most commercial soft cheeses available in grocery stores are made from pasteurized milk, and that the listeria danger comes chiefly from unpasteurized milk. It’s kind of like the alcohol thing…yes, studies show a beer or a glass of wine here and there isn’t going to cause any harm, but WHAT IF? It doesn’t matter how irrational the claim. If you’re pregnant, you’ve been told not to do something, and you’re even the slightest bit neurotic to begin with, there’s no way you’ll be able to bring yourself to do it. And so it is with me and eating goat cheese that hasn’t been cooked. This means any consumption of goat cheese (and there can’t not be consumption of goat cheese; I’ve given up a lot of things, but that’s not going to be one of them) must be worked into an existing dinner somehow, like the cheese-stuffed mac ’n’ cheese pie, or this pasta, which I admit I was kind of obsessed with even before I went and got myself knocked up.

Roasted celery root and bacon soufflé: $1.80/serving

I make quite a few savory dinner soufflés on the $35-a-week budget, both because we can use our backyard hens’ eggs and because it’s a great blank canvas for odds and ends. This week’s stockpile consisted of a few stray frozen strips of bacon and a nice, firm celery root I bought after failing to locate any other appealing in-season vegetables. (It probably doesn’t help that I hate asparagus, which is everywhere right now. How someone decided that stuff was edible will forever be beyond my comprehension.) I knew the two flavors would work well together after the success of February’s celery root and beer soup, so I figured I’d try them out in a new format. I have to say, it definitely worked; roasting the celery root allowed for a concentrated-enough flavor to stand up to the bacon, and using bacon fat as a base for the béchamel infused the whole thing with noticeable but unobtrusive hints of pork and smoke. Très délicieux!

Stir-fried cabbage with ginger, chilies and rice: 70 cents/serving

This is not the first time I’ve set out to prove that if you have a head of cabbage, 20 minutes, and some pantry staples, you have a meal (see: pickled cabbage stir-fry, white beans and cabbage), but it bears repeating because this dish is so surprisingly good and involves so few ingredients. And in addition to costing under $1 per serving, it’s versatile—B. had leftovers the next day on bread with a fried egg on top and declared them even better than the night before. It may not be the photogenic bowl of food, but part of this is because the cabbage is so well-cooked and deeply flavored that it doesn’t even look like cabbage anymore, let alone taste like it.

Baked bean, apple & sausage strata: $1.13/serving

Because I don’t like eggs by themselves (scrambled, fried, deviled…they all taste overwhelmingly of farts to me), brunch can be a frustrating meal. If a non-egg option even exists on the menu, which it often doesn’t, it’s either something disgustingly sweet, like powdered sugar with a side of French toast, or gut-bombingly fatty, like biscuits and gravy. (Nothing against biscuits and gravy, mind you—I would probably eat this happily every day, right up until I had to buy a new pair of pants.) This strata is a great solution for people like me: a brunch dish that’s egg-free yet flavorful, inexpensive, and a little easier on the waistline. It’s also great for dinner, or as a side dish at barbecues or potlucks.

Bacon jam: $1.69/jar

If you’re concerned about the presence of what’s essentially a novelty condiment in the $35-a-week plan, rest assured this was a host gift for my father-in-law’s Easter dinner, à la the jars of custom barbecue sauce I made for Christmas. I wanted something that was complementary to the meal being served (barbecued ribs) yet also unique and inexpensive, so I brought a couple jars of this “jam” along with a large homemade boule. I’ve made bacon jam before (Sur La Table sells it for $9.95 a jar, so it’s not that far out of left field), and while I wasn’t 100% happy with how it turned out this time, no one seemed to notice or care, so I’m recommending a couple of different methods here based on your personal limits of time and patience. It’s great on bread, peanut butter sandwiches, pizza, crostini, biscuits, a spoon…you get the idea.

BLT salad rolls: $1.44/serving

The idea for this somewhat abominable (but oh so refreshing and delicious!) fusion project comes from White on Rice Couple, by way of The Kitchn. (They call them “spring rolls,” but in our house—correct or not—spring rolls are fried and salad rolls are fresh, so that’s what I’m calling them here.) They’re gluten-free, low carb, quick to make, and ideal for lunch or dinner. I even concocted an appropriate soy-Dijon fusion dipping sauce to go with them.

Spaghetti with bacon & greens: $1.76/serving

What many people out there might not know is that the kitchen in our house, which was built in the early 1940s and is otherwise very charming and spacious, is about the size of a very small walk-in closet. There are 4 very small cupboards, requiring us to keep most of our gadgets and pots in the basement, and the counter space comprises about 2 square feet—enough room for one plate or one pot, with the stove and edge of the sink serving as auxiliary work surfaces. As you can imagine, this prompts much teeth-gnashing on my part, as well as constant dishwashing diligence. Sometimes, due to circumstances beyond our control, the latter does not get done, as was the case this weekend. Therefore, this may not be the most inexpensive meal we eat this week, but it’s certainly the quickest and easiest. It doesn’t take but 20 minutes from start to finish—and I mean “start” as in taking the package of bacon out of the freezer, not putting food in a pan. Any pasta shape or type of greens are suitable, and you could even swap out the bacon for Italian sausage and balsamic vinegar for a few splashes of white wine if that’s what you have on hand.

Celery root and beer soup: $1.43/serving

When we were in San Francisco a couple months ago, one night we ended up at Outerlands, a restaurant in the Outer Sunset that happens to be known for its soup. As I’ve mentioned before, celery root is one of my favorite root vegetables of all time, and there was actually a celery root soup on the menu. Our neighborhood stores at home do not carry celery root, so I was practically beside myself. When I ordered it, however, I tasted plenty of cream and salt, but no celery root to speak of. It could’ve been potato soup for all I knew. This experience has been bothering me for two months. I knew if I could just get my hands on some celery root, I could make the very celery root soup I wished I had had that night. And believe it or not, dear reader, this weekend I found some celery root. It was probably the most paltry, mangy, past-its-prime celery root in the state (at least, of the celery roots not currently residing in a dumpster or landfill), but to me it was victory.