Given the current state of the economy, why not trade overly expensive dessert at a restaurant for a romantic post-meal snack at home? Over the summer, my boyfriend and I discovered the New York Times’ No-Bake Cheesecake recipe, which I’ve tweaked a bit. To give you a sense of how user-friendly this recipe is, let me just say that even boiling ready-made soup is an accomplishment for me.

The cheesecake takes about 20 minutes to assemble, and an additional hour to cool, so it's perfect for you and your date to start making after dinner when you're still full.

To start off with, take eight full graham crackers and crush them in a bowl. I prefer chocolate graham crackers because they taste better. To crush the crackers, pretend you’re angry at someone and mush them with your hands.