Eating healthy and on a budget. Easy to say, not so easy to do. But, here goes:
I'm thrifty by nature. Dad was an economist, so it comes easy. First - when work leaves you too tired to cook - relax. I have a tip for that. What I do is do my cooking on my days off. Here's a quick, cheap, fairly healthy recipe I use, just to give you an example.
Get a bowl or a pot as large as you can find. If you don't have a pot - go to good will - I'm sure you can find something for a buck.
One thing you will need is a can-opener. Get three cans of black beans, (3@ 15 ounce size will do) and 1 can of diced tomatoes, or a jar of salsa. Whatever's handy. Chop an onion and or a green pepper. Chop some celery if you have that. Add it all into the same pot. If you have some hot sauce, squirt a tablespoon in there. Shake some seasoning on it - salt, pepper, whatever you like. Heat it up and eat it. If you really want more protein, add some diced or cubed ham. This dish is as healthy as you make it. The beans have good protein, good fiber. The tomatoes have good flavor. Any onion or pepper you add just make things better. Got garlic? Throw that in, too.
If you don't add the ham, this is a pretty cheap dish that will last you some time if you use portion control. Calorie information is tallied by using math with the serving size and calorie numbers on each can, plus what the internet says about the produce calorie info. Add it all up and divide by the number of portions.
Eating on a budget is tough. Food prices vary and it's tough to stick to the same number. This is where coupons come in. Search the internet for them. They're pretty easy to find. Also - cut other costs around your house. Like - take your lightbulb out of the fridge. What on earth do we need that for, anyway?
Use a plastic half-gallon milk jug and fill it with water and drop it in your toilet tank. That will save you water.
Don't drink bottled water and never buy vitamins. Water is good enough out of the tap and vitamins just make expensive urine. Nutrition is better absorbed through food, anyway.
Use Gas Buddy to figure out where the cheapest gas is, if you have a car. Don't necessarily drive out of your way to get the gas though - traveling out of your normal traffic pattern is not usually a good idea unless you're getting a LOT of gas and you get good mileage.
Grow some veggies in your back yard.
Don't buy all your produce from the grocery store. Go to the farmer's markets and flea markets first. Know the prices in the store and at the flea market so you know what the good deals are.
Wow - that's a lot of stuff to absorb. I made myself sleepy.
Those who have no idea what they are doing genuinely have no idea that they don't know what they're doing. - John Cleese
