Healthy Budget Meals-Planning Budget Meals

Cheap Meals On A Budget

Ramen Noodles and Macaroni and Cheese are dirt cheap meals to get when you are on a tight budget.  They are also low in nutrients and therefore not contributing to your family’s health.  Sometimes you get what you pay for.  Nothing for nothing! It is possible to get cheap meals on a budget and still get all the nutrients your body needs.  Even if you lean toward organic you can still give your body the good-for-you, pesticide free foods on a budget.

Healthy Meals On A Budget

Healthy meals do not have to mean expensive.  Some of the healthiest meals on a budget include eggs. Eggs are a nutritious, versatile easy-to-use protein source.  Conventional eggs at $1.19 a dozen can create a nice dinner for less than $1.00.  Even the most health conscious person can get organic eggs at a meal price that will fit in with a tight budget. The higher price of organic or free-range eggs still keeps the protein cost of a two-egg meal at only 58-78 cents per portion.

Healthy Family Budget Meals

Another low budget meal that is family friendly includes any soup or stew made with legumes.  Legumes, beans or peas are an inexpensive and nutritious protein source that is high in fiber and includes all the building blocks that your family deserves.  They have been proven to reduce the risk of cancer and even the organic versions will fit into any family budget. In bulk food sections the organic legumes are weighing in at $1.39 to $1.99 per pound, or less than a dollar per portion.  http://www.wowyouarereallylucky.com/tv-show-recipes/healthy-ideas-on-what-to-do-with-turkey-left-overs.htm

Easy Meals On A Budget

If you are looking for easy meals on a budget, then you may want to consider the old standby of peanut butter as one of your staple protein sources.  Peanut butter is not just for kids.  It is high in the monosaturated fats our bodies need, as well as antioxidants.  The organic version of peanut butter is only $3.49 per pound and conventional natural versions are even more budget-friendly.  Beware of the brand names that are high in added sugars and fats.  Check the ingredients list and look for peanut butter that is only ground peanuts and maybe a little salt.

Planning Meals On A Budget

One of the best ways to keep your food budget in line is to plan your meals.  Just the act of planning your weekly meals will save money.  Use the cook-once-serve-twice philosophy and you will save time and money.  This process of thinking ahead will help to keep your budget in line.  You will make better use of leftovers and also save time.

Cooking Meals On A Budget

When you cook wholesome meals and use them for two dinners the overall cost of each dinner will be less.  Purchasing ingredients that will take the main course of a meal and using it twice to create another meal will greatly impact your meal budget. They are not “left-overs” if you plan ahead!  Some ideas of the cook-once-serve-twice eating plan are:

Cook Once
Roast Chicken
Baked Potatoes
Broccoli

Serve Twice
Chicken soup: Cover your chicken bones with cold water and boil for about one hour with a spice blend mix.  After straining bones out; return to the stove and add chopped up left-over baked potatoes and broccoli. Season to taste.

Cook Once
Pot Roast
Salad with blue cheese dressing

Serve Twice
Beef Barbecue: shred left-over pot roast and add a good quality prepared barbecue sauce; serve on whole wheat rolls with carrot & celery sticks and BC dressing for dipping.

Cook Once
Roast Turkey Breast
Roast Carrots
Roast Onions
Roast Potatoes

Serve Twice
Turkey Pasta Pie

Include all leftovers from above and some pasta leftover from another day to make a healthy budget meal.

Be creative when planning your meals and think about the cook-once-serve-twice option when putting together your weekly shopping list to keep your food budget in line.

Healthy Restaurant Menu Options

Healthy Menu Options

Restaurant diners always say that they want more healthy options, yet restaurants report that the healthy options really do not sell. Few people actually buy the restaurant’s healthy menu options. Taste is the number one reason why people buy food or select food. Unfortunately, healthy food has a bad rap as having poor flavor, which is not necessarily true. The problem can be confusing for the restaurateur whose first reaction is to take the healthy food options off the menu.

Customers Demand Healthy Tasty Menu Choices

Customers continue to demand healthier menu choices, so it is up to the chefs of the future to learn how to make them healthy and tasty. As a nutrition instructor at the Culinary Arts School of Yorktowne Business Institute, I am teaching the students how to prepare healthy menu items. The culinary chefs of the future will have to be more aware of this in order to become successful in their trade.

Government Mandated Healthy Eating

Obesity in the United States has been growing steadily since 1991 and is becoming more and more of a health care issue. The Center for Disease Control is reporting as much as 80% of the American population has a preventable disease. Fewer people are dieting and instead are focusing on eating more of what they consider healthy foods (fat-free, sugar-free, low calorie). This trend is alarming, as food decisions are based on the marketing of a product, and also encourages government-mandated healthy choices.

Fat Free, Sugar Free Not Always Healthy

The marketing of products based on being fat or sugar-free is a trend that does not take into consideration whether the product is made from quality ingredients. Hydrogenated fat is a perfect example. It is a manufactured fat that has recently been singled out for labeling legislation due to its negative impact on health. When we buy food based on a marketing tactic with no consideration of its healthy or not-healthy ingredients, it opens the door for government-mandated legislation. If we are not going to take care of ourselves, then the government will do it for us! This is a scary thought.

Everyone Is Responsible For Health

Everyone is responsible for her or his own health. Only you can choose what you put in your mouth. If you choose a healthy recipe and it does not taste good, then tell the restaurant that you want healthy that tastes good. Restaurants must operate on a profit basis and will respond to customer feedback. Are you just giving lip service to healthy living or are you taking action steps each day to make healthier choices? We have many benefits to living in the 21st century. We can eat a mango in Pennsylvania in the middle of January, we have friends all over the world, we can travel from Arizona to New York in about 8 hours…the list goes on and on.

With all of those advantages come some responsibilities. One is the responsibility to take care of our bodies. Restaurants have a responsibility to offer food that is healthy. Chefs have a responsibility to learn how to cook healthy, tasty food options. Corporations have a responsibility to be honest and create quality products. It is not the government’s responsibility to legislate good health. We the individuals must demand good food choices and take responsibility for our health and the health of our children.

Eating Right In An Airplane Or Airport

Now that airlines are cutting costs it is even harder to eat right when in an airplane. My recent 36-hour round-trip business excursion from Pennsylvania to Arizona proved to be another challenge in the world of healthy eating. It takes a long time to get to Arizona and a person can get pretty hungry during that time. One of the ways that I recommend to eat right on an airplane is to take food with you. Dry snacks, fruit and even a sandwich can keep for a long time when you plan ahead. I sometimes even make a sandwich the night before and put it in the freezer over night. Then just before heading to the airport pull it out and take it on the road. By lunch time, it is thawed and ready to eat.

Airline Food Choices

On this current trip I learned that you must eat your yogurt before going though security as it is larger than 3.5 ounces. I usually take something to eat in the early part of the trip like yogurt or cottage cheese. I can keep it in a cooler until the last minute of leaving my car. The yogurt will then keep for an hour or so and is a good meal early in the trip to get off to a good start. The longer you can refrain from a purchased meal, the better you will make out long-term, so I try to get through the first few meals on my own. Anyway, going through security in Harrisburg they took my yogurt. My other snacks and sandwiches actually got me all the way to Phoenix without purchasing a restaurant food item. I was really glad of that because the airlines are charging for food now. You can get a snack box for $14. It is about the size of a box of salt water taffy and includes a can of tuna (I guess you eat it out of the can), crackers, a container of applesauce (about 2 tablespoons), a jam and peanut butter packet (the kind you open to put on toast in a diner), cookies and a microscopic package of pretzels. I did not order one. Two businessmen behind me did and were afraid of the tuna. They also sold tuna sandwiches, and a salad of some sort, all for $14 each. Next time you travel and your ticket says meal service don’t expect it for free!

Hard To Eat Healthy At Airport

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After my meal observations on the way out to Phoenix, and having consumed all my personal food stashes, I had to resort to airport food on the return trip. It is hard to eat healthy in an airport! I decided to purchase something to take on the plane from Phoenix to Charlotte for my dinner, even though I had just come out of a business luncheon and was not hungry at the moment. It is hard to eat healthy in an airport. Strolling down the airport boulevard looking for healthy food choices: TCBY Yogurt, Cinnabon, Burger King, Starbucks, Tequila Bar….. hmm, what shall I have? Looking at the tequila bar menu it looked like a glorified Taco Bell menu. All the dishes were flour tortillas and I prefer to eat only whole grains….hmm, what shall I do? It is hard to eat healthy in an airport! I chatted with a sociable server and asked some questions about the menu. Do you have any corn tortillas? Corn is always whole grain. Can I have beans instead of rice? White rice is refined carbs and has no real value to our bodies. Black beans are legumes and nutrient powerhouses. May I have chicken instead of beef? No sour cream please, and an extra salsa packet and I am off to my plane with two soft blue corn tortilla wraps and two little portions of black beans in a box.

Meal Service On An Airplane

It is hard to eat healthy on an airplane. After we were in the air for awhile the food service started and my neighbors got a snack box and a Cobb salad (I think?!) My meal was no longer hot yet it was somewhat healthy and the best healthy choice I could find in an airport.   Life is about choices. Learning skill that assist you in making good food choices each day will make it easier to eat right on an airplane and every where else as well.  Do the best you can each day and it will pay off in the long run.