Recipes

17 Recipes to Help You Survive Tax Day

Kimchi quesadillas, chocolate mug cake, and more dishes that are easy on your wallet (and your brain).
By Phoebe Fry
Collage animation of BA recipes

Tax Day comes with paperwork, number-crunching, and a mild existential crisis, but dinner doesn’t have to suffer for it. These comforting, budget-friendly dishes are here to rescue your day (and your mood) after hours of wrestling with receipts. Whether you’re celebrating a refund or bracing for a bill, you deserve something that tastes great without costing a fortune. Here are 17 rewarding meals (like sesame-glazed tofu with broccoli) and just-the-spot-hitting desserts (including a few-minute mug cake) that don’t require a calculator or second mortgage. And if that refund lands, who’s to say you can’t splurge on something special? Lobster or caviar, anyone?

  • A spread of vegetarian spiced mushroom tacos with toppings including lime wedges cilantro charred tortillas and more.
    Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Cyd McDowell, Prop Styling by Paige Hicks
    1/17

    Adobo Mushroom Tacos

    Spiced, roasted mushrooms make for a satisfying taco filling that’s easy on your wallet. Big flavor without a big grocery bill—exactly the kind of Tax Day recipe you need in your back pocket.

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  • A plate of sesame tofu with broccoli topped with toasted sesame seeds and scallions.
    Photo by Laura Murray, Food Styling by Pearl Jones
    2/17

    Sesame Tofu With Broccoli

    In this easy weeknight recipe, tofu cubes and broccoli florets get coated in a sticky sesame sauce you’ll want to put on everything.

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  • Lemony Tortellini Soup with Spinach and Dill recipe
    Photo by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by Anyka Brown
    3/17

    Lemony Tortellini Soup With Spinach and Dill

    Store-bought tortellini and bouillon paste are weeknight heroes in this recipe, brightened with fresh spinach, dill, and lemon juice. It’s quick-yet-elevated comfort food to close out a long day of taxes.

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  • Image may contain Plant Food Dish Meal and Produce
    Photograph by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Sophie Strangio
    4/17

    Chana Masala

    This hearty, aromatic curry leans on canned chickpeas for a reliably delicious (and budget-friendly) recipe. Serve with rice or flatbread for a filling, low-cost meal.

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  • Three pieces of a kimchi quesadilla on a plate with lime wedges next to a jar of kimchi and a bowl of kimchisour cream...
    Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Nicole Louie
    7/17

    Kimchi Quesadillas

    A budget-friendly dinner idea we can get behind. As deputy food editor Hana Asbrink writes, “As far as the kimchi goes, the older the better—it’s the perfect time to use up that jar that’s been hanging out in the fridge.”

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  • Egg Drop Dumpling Soup in a textured bowl
    Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Kendra Vaculin, prop styling by Emma Ringness
    8/17

    Egg Drop Dumpling Soup

    Need something restorative after a stressful day of taxes? This is just the thing. Break out your favorite frozen dumplings for this cozy bowl, with golden egg ribbons and warming broth.

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  • Chopped spinach in a cast iron skillet with jammy eggs dill feta and red pepper flakes and served with pita on the side.
    Photo by Travis Rainey, Food Styling by Micah Marie Morton, Prop Styling by Gerri Williams
    9/17

    Spanakopita Baked Eggs

    The creamy, herby filling of spanakopita meets baked eggs in this comforting one-pan situation that tastes just fancy enough to make Tax Day less bleak.

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  • Onion Cabbage Salad on a purple plate
    Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Pearl Jones and Thu Buser, prop styling by Sean Dooley
    10/17

    Frizzled-Onion Cabbage Salad

    This recipe makes the most of versatile, inexpensive cabbage, combining it with a limey peanut dressing and crispy onion topping.

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  • A white plate of winding spaghetti topped with chopped cilantro and nuts all against a white lace table setting.
    Photograph by Elliott Jerome Brown Jr., Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Christina Allen
    11/17

    Smoky Brown-Butter Pasta

    If all you want after Tax Day is a bowl of buttered noodles, we feel you. But if you’re in the mood for an upgrade, we raise you this fancified version with toasty brown butter and smoked paprika.

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  • An aqua plate with a pile of crackletop snickerdoodle cookies one our our favorite easy desserts.
    Photo by Alex Lau, styling by Sean Dooley
    12/17

    BA’s Best Snickerdoodles

    With crackly edges, chewy centers, and plenty of cinnamon sugar, these snickerdoodles are pure comfort. Bake a batch to make your house smell amazing and Tax Day that much sweeter.

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  • Boneless skinless chicken thighs tossed in oregano cumin sugar black pepper and salt and roasted on skewers on a sheet...
    Photo by Travis Rainey, Food Styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, Prop Styling by Kelsi Windmiller
    13/17

    Sheet-Pan Chicken Souvlaki

    Sheet-pan chicken, cherry tomatoes, and feta make for an easy dinner, best served with lemon wedges for squeezing and pita for stuffing.

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  • Green Curry with Cod on a white table sheet
    Photograph by Elliott Jerome Brown Jr. , Prop Styling by Emma Ringness, Food Styling by Mieko Takahashi
    14/17

    Green Curry Coconut Cod

    Cod (or another flaky white fish) simmered in a verdant, fragrant coconut curry feels restaurant-worthy but comes together quickly at home, for less cash than ordering it out.

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  • Bowl of peanut butter and jelly oats with a spoon on the side
    Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Taneka Morris, Prop Styling by Gerri K. Williams
    15/17

    Peanut Butter and Jelly Oatmeal

    Your childhood favorite, now in oatmeal form. A warm, nostalgic breakfast for when your taxes are testing you and you’re cursing adulthood.

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  • Roasted cauliflower salad with feta and dates on a baking sheet
    Photograph by Elliott Jerome Brown Jr., food styling by Thu Buser, prop styling by Sean Dooley
    16/17

    Roasted Cauliflower Salad With Feta and Dates

    This main-dish-worthy salad has a base of caramelized cauliflower—an affordable vegetable with endless possibilities. Tossed with peppery arugula, salty feta, and sweet-chewy dates, it’s a combination you’ll keep going back to.

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  • Chocolate cake baked in a mug in a microwave and topped with vanilla ice cream.
    Photo by Travis Rainey, Food Styling by Stevie Stewart, Prop Styling by Gerri Williams
    17/17

    5-Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

    Must we explain? Tax Day is bound to bring on a chocolate emergency, and this few-minute recipe is here to resolve it.

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Phoebe Fry is a Brooklyn-based food writer, cook, and illustrator. She’s worked in kitchens in Ireland, Italy, and NYC, and she currently writes The Dish on Substack. Her work has appeared in Real Simple, Wine Enthusiast, and more. You’ll most often find her haunting the cookbook section of her local ... Read More
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