Fried tofu sub sandwich: $1.19 each

Inspired by the General Tso’s fried tofu sub featured on both Serious Eats and in The New York Times, this is a sandwich for meat lovers. I’ve been cooking tofu a long time, and this method of applying a dry-rub to water-expelled tofu (the latter being one of my tweaks), dredging in a slurry of egg white and cornstarch, and covering in panko before frying is something I had never thought of doing, and it completely transformed the tofu into something abjectly un-tofu-like. Super-crunchy on the outside, sweet, soft and flavorful on the inside, it tastes like an illicit state-fair treat or exotic Asian bar snack, not the humble, flavorless tofu you know. Nestled in a sub sandwich with spicy sriracha mayo, lettuce, roasted onions, and lime juice, it’s almost transcendent. I feel compelled to provide fair warning that this is a project—I made both the sub rolls and the mayo from scratch—but it’s completely worth it. (It should also be noted the original sub, from No. 7 Sub in Manhattan, costs $9.)

Bánh mì sandwich: 49 cents each

Portlanders loooove to talk about bánh mì, the Franco-Vietnamese wonder that is perhaps the world’s perfect sandwich (meat, pickled carrot and daikon, fresh sprigs of cilantro, and possibly some Japanese-style mayonnaise, all packed into a traditional French baguette). The second most popular conversation topic, after what should or should not go in one and in what ratios, is how much one should cost. Depending largely on the neighborhood, bánh mì can cost anywhere from $2.50 (which is increasingly rare) to $8. Our goal: To make one that’s both comparable to what you’d find in the best shops and that fits our lunch budget of 50 cents or less.

Turkey melt with cranberry relish & fontina: 83 cents/serving

And with this, the Thanksgiving leftovers are done.

Mostly because I can’t stand to eat one more bite of turkey, but no one can say it didn’t go out in style. This was one of the best sandwiches (provided you consider a melt a sandwich) I’ve had in a very long time, and the only item I had to purchase was the fontina, which was on sale for $5.89 a pound at Grocery Outlet.

Grilled blue cheese & sorrel sandwiches with tomato soup: $1.59/serving

A portion of yesterday afternoon was spent cleaning out the garden and taking stock of what’s left for the months ahead. (Thanks to particularly determined slugs and an infestation of cabbage worms, not much.) In fact, other than the perennial herbs, the only thing that seemed gleefully happy to be alive was a small patch of sorrel. The sorrel was a holdover from a period of excitement I had over obscure culinary herbs (lovage! chocolate mint!) only to realize they’re obscure for a reason.