Finishing the list

4. Any one of probably thousands of different kinds of risotto. For winter, I like the idea idea of the butternut squash risotto. If you've never tried fresh beets, I'd also recommend trying a beet risotto.

5. Nicoise noodle cake (or a million other kinds of noodles). This recipe is the best use of Ramen that I've ever seen.

6. Pasta with Pears and Walnuts...an impressive use of flavors.

7. Falafel. Ethic food always seems special to me...even when it's mostly just ground beans.

8. Smoked salmon pizza. Okay, smoked salmon isn't incredibly cheap, but this pizza doesn't use very much of it. It provides the wow factor but won't bankrupt you.

Once I got into the mindset, I could think of tons of cheap recipes that include bread (bread salad, pizza, sandwiches) or pasta or rice. And then there are ethic dishes like Thai and Mexican that are very inexpensive if you have the basic ingredients. The New York Times columnists are fools. Just because I don't have the cash to eat steak and lobster every night doesn't mean I can't enjoy interesting, unique, and impressive food.