Low Budget, healthy family recipes

jstreetstarr
jstreetstarr Posts: 5
in Health and Weight Loss
I am relatively new here so I want to first say hello and thank you to any and all that reply.
I won't pull any punches. I eat like crap and I know it. I also won't make excuses, but I feel I should give a little background of how I got here.

I fell into bad eating habits after my ex and I broke up 4 years ago. I realized I couldn't afford to eat the way we did before and with such a small food budget ($350-$400) for a family of three (one a teenage boy, God help me lol) Our previous budget was twice that. So, I had to look for cheaper alternatives. Somehow I got us here. We eat a lot of ramen noodles, tuna helper, macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, hot and ready pizzas, etc. We still have fruits, vegetables, and yogurt for snacks and with meals, but in order to afford them we eat a lot of the processed crap the rest of the time. This, I am sure, is why I have gained 60lbs in the last 4 years.

I work out 4 days a week at Planet Fitness. Thankful for the $10 memberships. I even sometimes go more, yet I have not lost any weight. I realize my diet is the main problem and I need to fix it. Unfortunately, a tight budget is not my only issue. I am allergic to onions, most seafood and to make matters worse I am very picky. I don't like much. I hate that fact so I try new things but usually end up hating them. So I am looking for healthy and low cal recipes that I could make for my family. I want us to get away from the processed junk that we have been eating. I want to teach my kids to eat better but still be able to pay the bills.

Some of the vegetables we really like are:
corn
carrots
green beans
potatoes
spinach (only raw)
lettuce
the kids love onions and all peppers
the kids like peas
broccoli (depending on how it's cooked)
cauliflower (depending on how it's cooked)
tomatoes (fruit or not lol)

I realize this is not a large list considering how many there are out there. We will continue to try new, but it can't be all new incase we don't like it, there has to be food to eat.

So, any of you out there who can help me with some ideas and recipes for healthier low budget meals would be great. I google, I read recipe sites, but they usually end up costing so much more than a hot and ready pizza or ramen noodles, so I end up going for the cheaper and not the healthier option.

Also, any other advice for my weight loss journey would be great. Thank you for taking the time to read my long post.

Replies

  • gmstarr1
    gmstarr1 Posts: 66 Member
    Hi, welcome to Myfitnesspal!

    I'm not sure I'm a good candidate for giving advice on 'healthy' meals, but I know what it's like to have to live within a food budget. We still eat way too much processed food, and unfortunately I don't think we'll ever get away from all of it. Sometimes we just need a quick, cheap meal. We have cut out some processed foods due to sodium (I have high blood pressure), but there's some things we just can't bear to give up.

    Where do you shop? We shop at Aldi (which you have in your local area, I checked). Most of the things there aren't name brand, but we've only found a few things we didn't like. Really like their produce section. We can buy fruit and vegetables a lot cheaper than at Walmart which leaves a little bit more money to buy other things. We go there first, and then we go to Walmart to buy the things we can't get at Aldi.

    We eat a lot of chicken and tilapia with vegetables, sometimes with potatoes, and we experiment a lot instead of looking for recipes. Like yesterday, my boyfriend made kabobs. First time we've had them. Petite sirloin steak and vegetables baked on skewers. He used Mrs Dash Herb and Garlic seasoning. Lots of vegetables, a very little steak...which is where most of the calories and expense comes in. We had enough steak left over to make it a second time, and it's not bad. I started eating a salad with a lot of my meals. I like them although I know a lot of people don't, but it also keeps me from eating so much of the other high calorie items at dinner.

    The most important thing is not to give up, and to use Myfitnesspal to track your calories. Myfitnesspal has been great for me!
  • dcassara94
    dcassara94 Posts: 1
    Here's a couple links that might be helpful

    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bbinfo.php?page=Grocery
    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/the-100-dollar-diet-healthy-grocery-list.html
    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bodybuilding-on-a-budget.html

    If you can't tell, I read on bodybuilding.com a lot...

    But in addition to articles, here's some advice from my own life...
    1) Try cooking foods in new ways. For example, you wrote broccoli but depending on how it's cooked at one of the veggies you eat. Have you tried roasting or sauteeing broccoli with some garlic and then adding lemon? It's fantastic.
    2) Stick to the classic advice of "shopping on the perimeter of the store," because doing that will steer you clear of the processed food.
    3) you can get chicken thighs (which admittedly aren't as high quality in terms of macronutrients) way cheaper than breasts
    4) Eggs, cottage cheese, peanut butter, avocado, bananas, peppers (bell usually) are some of my favorite and cheap food items
    5) Shop sales, plan your food shopping trips in advance (or even better, make a meal plan for the upcoming week and shop according to that) so that you avoid impulse buys on things like chips, cookies, cake, etc.
    6) Keep it simple
    7) eating healthy as a diet has never worked for me or my parents in the past. I didn't start losing weight until I committed to it as a lifestyle change, meaning it was permanent. I ate healthier but in a way that felt sustainable. Eat things you like or you won't be able to keep it up in the long run.

    One final thing, here's a recipe that's super simple and cheap, but is also really tasty.

    Roasted Chicken with Potatoes and Veggies:

    Ingredients (I won't list amounts because the proportions should be based on how much of each you want if you're picky, add more of the ones you want):

    -Chicken (can be breasts, or thighs)
    -Cauliflower
    -Broccoli
    -Carrots
    -Green beans
    -Potatoes (sweet potatoes are even better, but it's up to you)
    -2 cups water
    -1 low sodium chicken bouillon cube

    Steps:
    1) Preheat an oven to 375degrees
    2) Cube the potatoes and place them, as well as the cauliflower and carrots in a roasting pan.
    3) After about 10-15 minutes, season and add your chicken to the roasting pan (the heavier and thicket the pieces of chicken you have, the less time you should wait before placing it in the roasting pan)
    4) Pour your 2 cups of water and bouillon into a small pot and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally
    5) after another 30 minutes, pour chicken stock into roasting pan and add your broccoli and green beans
    6) after another 15-20 remove from the oven and serve right away!
  • writergeek313
    writergeek313 Posts: 390 Member
    Budget Bytes is my favorite cooking blog, because her recipes are usually easy to make and are always affordable: http://www.budgetbytes.com/ She has recipes for every meal, as well as lots of baked goods, including pizza dough, flour tortillas, and naan. I guarantee you can make cheaper and healthier versions of the things your family already likes by making them from scratch.

    Cooking from scratch will save you money. Even if you start slowly with just a few meals a week, it can make a big difference in your grocery budget. Even better, it gives you the chance to control what you're eating, which makes it easier to track your calories and make sure you and your kids are getting the nutrients that you need. Yes, it's more time-consuming, but it's a good investment. Get your kids involved.

    Make sure you have the discount cards that your local supermarkets offer so you can get their sale prices. Check their flyers online before you go shopping so you know what's on sale that week and plan your meals around those things. Think about recipes where you can use less meat and still get several meals out of it, like chili or spaghetti sauce (which can become pizza sauce later in the week).

    Once the weather gets a little nicer, you might check to see if there are farmers' markets in your area. I live a few miles from a big orchard, and from spring until fall, I get almost all of my fruits and vegetables there for about $20/week. Not all markets might be that affordable, but learning the growing seasons for the fruits and vegetables your family likes can help you know what will be cheapest.

    Healthy food does *not* have to be expensive food!
  • mlauster
    mlauster Posts: 60 Member
    Hi! I love skinnytaste.com, I use her recipes probably at least 5 times a week. Also, on MFP someone posted a great recipe for Big Mac Casserole (tastes just like a big mac). I made it last night and it was amazing.

    I food shop on $400 a month, that is breakfast, lunch and dinner for a family of 5. I purchase my fruits and veggies from the farmers market in the summer and from Aldi's in the winter. I buy meat when it is on sale, and hardly ever buy prepackaged meals anymore.

    The only way I can do this is to plan ahead. I make a weekly menu the day I go shopping. And buy only what is needed for the week. If I don't do this I find myself going to the store 3 or 4 times a week and every time, things I don't need manage to find their way into my cart. I plan my meals so the leftovers can be used in the next days menu. If we have chicken sausage with peppers and onion on Monday night, Tuesday lunch or dinner I plan spaghetti with the leftovers cut up in the sauce. Grilled chicken can be turned into tasty fajitas or a grilled chicken salad the next day.

    I hope this helps.
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
    I don't have kids, so I can't relate to everything you're saying. But here's some cost breakdowns.

    Hot'N'Ready pepperoni pizza - 2240 calories. $5. Cost per calorie: $0.0022

    Hey that's pretty cheap. But what makes up these items?

    Flour. 10# @ 4.80 (Walmart) 16,320 calories. cost per calorie: $.00029. price for 1100 (needed for pizza) - $0.319
    Sugar. 10# @ 4.98 (Walmart) 17,280 calories. cpc: $.00028. price for 45 - $0.012
    Fat. 1 gal canola @ 7.12 (Walmart) 31,744 calories. cpc: $.00022. price for 372 - $.082
    Mozzarella cheese. 16 oz. @ $3 (on sale, mozzarella freezes ok) 1,360 calories. cpc: $.0022 price for 680 - $1.50
    pepperoni. 16 oz @ 5.48 (Walmart) 2,208 calories. cpc: $.0024 price for 276 - $0.685
    tomato sauce. 8 oz @ 0.58 56 calories. cpc: $.01 price for 56 - $0.58
    yeast 4 oz @ $6.50. Cost per pizza (.25 oz) - $0.406

    Total calories homemade 2,529. Total cost $3.584 Cost per Calorie: $0.00141

    So, you can see, the vast majority of the ingredients are one tenth the cost of the pre-made hot and ready. Of course, you have to pay for gas for the oven to cook it. But you have to pay for gas to drive to get the pizza... so in my mind those factors even each other out.

    I just like math. I'm not telling you what to do. Homemade is 36% cheaper than a Hot'N'Ready, if you eat them regularly.

    Edit for: I can math, but not type
  • megsmom2
    megsmom2 Posts: 2,362 Member
    One thing that helps us is our crockpot. Cheaper cuts of meats become delicious stews or inexpensive chicken thighs can be slow cooked and shredded for tacos, sandwiches, soups, casseroles. I make steel cut oats for several days of healthy breakfasts. It can take a little more planning and labor than takeout pizza, but homecooked is in the long run cheaper and healthier...and homecooking is a family bonding experience too....get the kids involved!
  • jstreetstarr
    jstreetstarr Posts: 5
    Thank you to everyone for all of your replies and advice. I should have mentioned that we have a very busy schedule. I work everyday 8-5 and the kids are involved in so many after school activities that we are hardly home. So, cooking from scratch regularly is not an option. But, I do plan my weeks meals on Sunday and cook things like chicken breast to have for later in the week. I will have to drag my crockpot back out and see what I can do with it. :-)

    I'll check out the websites that you have provided to find some recipes and new ways to cook healthier throughout the week. I want my kids to eat healthy too and not get bored. :-) I think that has been one problem, I too have gotten bored with the few ways and meals I know hot to cook with good food. I really need to learn more ways to cook what we like and more meals to make. So away I got to research the sites you have so wonderfully suggested. Thank you all again. :-)

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