Looking for tips for dieting on a budget!

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dinosgirl
dinosgirl Posts: 157 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am hoping someone out there has some good ideas for inexpensive, healthy recipes and diet foods. My family and I are on a pretty strict grocery budget and I cannot really afford to buy myself "extras". I will up the fruit and veggie purchases but from there, I need to know what other snack items out there are both healthy and cheap. Also, I need some ideas for inexpensive and healthy recipes that really serve only one or two (my family will not be participating in the diet). If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know.

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  • dinosgirl
    dinosgirl Posts: 157 Member
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    I am hoping someone out there has some good ideas for inexpensive, healthy recipes and diet foods. My family and I are on a pretty strict grocery budget and I cannot really afford to buy myself "extras". I will up the fruit and veggie purchases but from there, I need to know what other snack items out there are both healthy and cheap. Also, I need some ideas for inexpensive and healthy recipes that really serve only one or two (my family will not be participating in the diet). If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know.
  • borjanap
    borjanap Posts: 232 Member
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    if u have a publix in ur area..u should try to catch their bogo deals....this week they have a whole bunch of healthy food on that type of sale... try doing cereal as snacks or yogurt
  • Eve23
    Eve23 Posts: 2,352 Member
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    I shop on a pretty tight budget also. I can totally relate. We do alot of dried beans. My kids love split pea soup so it has become a new staple. When I do a roast I can normally get 3 meals out of it. Roast one night, stew or fried rice or stir fry another. We love salsa meat too. You throw a roast in the crock pot then a jar of salsa and you have a meal you can eat plain with potatoes, rice or tortillas. You can use that meat for enchiladas or a chili soup the next day if you have left overs. I hope those ideas will help you.
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    I'm with you on this! I'm a broke college student, and my lifestyle isn't a cheap one. Taking in 170g of protein every day gets pretty darn pricey. Every time I go shopping, I buy the very basic basics. It's not always the most exciting, but it gets the job done. So here are the very basics for clean eating...you can buy them in large amounts, they're shelf stable, and you can make a lot with them:

    Oats
    Sweet Potato
    Brown Rice (cheapest in large amounts on non-instant)
    Whole Grain Bread (I keep it in the fridge so it keeps longer)


    Bags of frozen chicken breast (two bags for $12 at Walmart!)
    Whiting or Tilapia frozen (usually come in bags as well)
    Lean Ground beef in bulk (like the big tubes...80/20 or leaner is great)
    Canned Tuna


    18 or 24 carton of Eggs (egg substitute is expensive, and you should be eating yolks anyway, they're good for you!)
    Fat Free Cottage Cheese
    Fat Free Milk

    Natural Peanut Butter
    Almonds
    Olive Oil
    Flax Seed
    ^^The fats are the priciest, but they're important to include especially if you can't afford fattier fish like salmon.

    If you really want to save, buy fresh veggies. Those take longer to cook than frozen or steambag, but they're cheaper. Since I can't cook, I buy storebrand steambags :bigsmile: For fruits I always buy the mixed bag of apples and oranges, and just as many bananas as I think I'll eat in the next couple days, which is as little as 2. Then you're not wasting anything!

    I also buy Whey Protein Isolate as a quick source of protein...that's also a bit expensive and by no means necessary, but it is a very quick snack.

    I suggest that you look up recipes for meal replacement bars...I have made some with oats, PB, and whey protein that turned out delicious, and I could just pop one into my gymbag or purse and go. Cooking things in advance is really helpful.
  • WingIt
    WingIt Posts: 4
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    How about sharing a few of your meal replacement bar recipes with us all?
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    How about sharing a few of your meal replacement bar recipes with us all?

    Sure thing! These are all from bodybuilding.com, but don't worry they're not going to turn you into a musclebound meathead :tongue: I have been losing body fat for about a year now, and I still use them. The sport is about losing fat just as much as gaining muscle. Many do call for protein powder, which you can get at Kroger, Wal Mart, Target, or any nutrition store for anywhere from $14 to $50. I use it a few times a day, either drinking it with milk or mixing it into my oats. Feel free to replace the flavors with whatever you like. Sorry, some don't have nutrition facts, but if you want to do the math they won' t be hard to figure out. So there's my little disclaimer :bigsmile:

    STRAWBERRY & BANANA MEAL REPLACEMENT BARS
    Makes 6 bars
    1 cup raw oatmeal
    5 scoops of strawberry protein powder ( 90g of protein)
    1/4 cup fat free cream cheese
    1/2 cup non fat dry milk powder
    2 egg whites
    1/4 cup water
    1 1/2 bananas, mashed
    2 tsp. canola oil (this is the secret to moist bars instead of the traditional dry bar)
    Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray a 9x9 square pan with cooking spray & set aside. In a med.ium bowl combine oatmeal, Protein powder & dry milk. Set aside. In another bowl beat together with an electric hand mixer, cream cheese, egg whites, bananas, water & oil. Add the oat mixture & continue to beat until the two are combined. Pour batter into the prepared pan & bake for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
    Calories-203, Protein 22g, Carbs 22g, Fats 3g
    _______________________________________________________
    PEANUT BUTTER BANANA
    1/2 cup skim milk
    1 cup peanut butter
    2 scoops protein powder (add more is desired)
    2 ripened banana's (mashed or blended)
    2 cups quick oats

    Combine peanut butter, milk, banana in pan over low heat. dont cook it just warm it enough to be able to stir together. mix well. add protein powder, stir until uniform color. lastly add oats and stir until well mixed.

    press into greased or ungreased 8X8 pan. let cool and cut into 16 bars
    _____________________________________________________
    TROPICAL
    4 Scoops Dymatize Pina Colada Whey (or your own type)
    1.5 C Old Fashioned Oats
    1 Pack of Strawberry-banana Sugar-free jello (or flavor of your type)
    1 C Skim milk
    Sweeten with splenda or stevia.

    Mix in flat pan until a good sticky mixture is formed. Place in Fridge overnight or freezer for more hardened bars. Make great snacks or for postworkout.

    Totals
    Per Serving
    Calories - 1020
    Calories - 170
    Fat- 15g
    Fat - 2.5g
    Carbs- 107g
    Carbs - 18g
    Protein- 120g
    Protein - 20g

    _______________________________________________________
    LOW CARB (Flaxmeal is entirely fiber)
    6 scoops whey - flavor of your choice
    6 egg whites
    .5 cup milk
    2 cups flaxmeal
    1 cup splenda
    1 tbs baking powder
    cinnamon to taste
    1 tbs vanilla extract

    Bake @ 350 until toothpick comes out clean when tested in middle.
  • sopper6175
    sopper6175 Posts: 23
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    For snacks, I always check the seasonal fruits for sales - seems to help - and bananas are especially cheap. I also love that you can buy just 2 (like songbyrdsweet mentioned) if that's all you need. But I'm guessing you know all this. Moving on, Starkist has these tuna & cracker snack kits that are quite tasty. And since tuna keeps forever, if you catch them on sale... And cereal makes a great snack. Find the healthiest box of cereal that you can stomach, then divide into little baggies for snacks.

    For meals, I find that soup goes a long way for little investment. I like to make old fashioned chicken noodle soup: use low-sodium chicken stock to boil carrots, celery, and onion (with bay leaf, pepper); add chicken breast and whole wheat pasta instead of egg noodles. If you do leftovers, this works great.

    Also, I'm a big fan of chili. Mostly because you can throw anything into the pot, and it still tastes good. My favorite is a vegetarian version with garlic, onion, green peppers, red peppers, jalepeno peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes, corn and black beans in tomato juice with a proprietary blend of spices. During the summer, I basically mooch off of co-workers with over-abundant gardens.

    Generally speaking though, I just make a list of the items that I like to eat and that contain a favorable mix of protein and nutrition, then watch for sales at the grocery store. And if you make that list known, friends/family/coworkers might even help watch for those sales.
  • dinosgirl
    dinosgirl Posts: 157 Member
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    Awesome everyone! Thank you so much for some of your great tips and recipes.

    Really my hardest part is trying to eat around my family. My husband and 3 year-old are very picky eaters. So getting them to try new things is very difficult. My 18 month-old is easy to please - he'll eat anything.
  • krush
    krush Posts: 16 Member
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    Check out the magazine "Eating Well." They have some great, easy recipes.
    And shop at Trader Joe's, if you have one nearby. Their prices are the best and their
    foods are healthy and delicious.
  • kmckesson
    kmckesson Posts: 13
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    thx everyone for the great ideas!

    songbyrd- you are genious!

    another cheap way to get that protein is tofu, it's easy to cook, comes in some great forms and costs way less than meat... well i think it does anyway i haven't ever bought meat... it's like 1.50 for firm regual tofu for stir fry, or a couple bucks for the kind that resembles ground beef and there's a bunch more types too.
  • kmckesson
    kmckesson Posts: 13
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    oh, and as far as cereals for a snack: kashi go lean crunch is super hearty, has great chunks that make it feel like caramel popcorn balls or something, has lots of fiber and is just sweet enough.
  • sopper6175
    sopper6175 Posts: 23
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    oh, and as far as cereals for a snack: kashi go lean crunch is super hearty, has great chunks that make it feel like caramel popcorn balls or something, has lots of fiber and is just sweet enough.


    Sounds perfect! I think that will be my next purchase - thanks!
  • lynnlo32
    lynnlo32 Posts: 10
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    You mentioned the magazine "Eating Well, where can I find one of those? I have noticed one while shopping.
    -Tondra
  • hmmmm
    hmmmm Posts: 607 Member
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    Healthy for the family I buy lots of chicken, veggies, fruit, healthy cereal, lite sauces(spaghetti sauce no meat), lite dressings and wraps. Everyone in my family eats this. I only buy two things for myself Fat free milk my children are little and have to drink full fat milk, and once a month I go to a whole foods store to buy myself shirataki noodles (great meal, filling, easy to prepare, low in calories) I use this to replace what my family eats that I don't want to ie. stuffing, mashed potatoes They only cost me 1.49 a bag so I spend about 30 a month on them. I usually eat half a bag at a time. Research this it seems to be working for me. Since both me and my bf drink soda I only buy diet. the kids don't get it anyway. . I try to use all the food that I cook either that night or revamped in leftovers so we don't waste money.

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