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A Healthy Diet Precedes a Healthy Budget
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| The first step to saving on food is something regular readers of this
site will be familiar with: track your spending. Track for a month if you
can, saving receipts from all food related costs; groceries, take-out
coffee, and restaurant meals. After you have determined how much you spend
on food over the course of an average month, decide how much to cut back.
By investing some time in understanding your spending habits and your
family’s needs, you should be able to make a reasonable estimate as to how
much you can save. |
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| Set a monthly food allowance that is ambitious without being
unreasonable. Setting aside your allocated amount in cash, and spending
only from this reserve, is one simple way to stay within your budget for
at least the first few months while you get used to it. Be open to
reevaluating. During the first month, you may find that your budget is too
tight, or as time goes on, you may become more adept at cooking on a
budget and able to cut back further. |
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| Because food is essential to survival, budgeting with your nourishment
can never be like cutting back on your work wardrobe or holiday spending.
A movement towards more budget conscious eating requires a lifestyle
change. You will always be spending money on food, but by tweaking the
types of foods you buy you can really save. The key to success is
embracing ingredients in their most basic form and committing yourself to
turning them into delicious, healthy meals. Eliminate prepared foods from
your diet and shop mainly from the perimeter of the supermarket (interior
aisles are the dwelling place of convenience and prepared foods). By
adapting a lifestyle change that emphasizes healthy eating first, saving
money will easily follow. |
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| To prepare your kitchen for your healthy wallet and body make over,
you first must stock your shelves with some basics. There are many
resources online and in cookbooks that can help you plan what basics you
should keep on hand, but here are a few to start you off. |
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Cooked at home by you, dry beans are less expensive and more
delicious than canned. Stock up on chickpeas, kidney beans, black
beans, and whatever else piques your interest. Heirloom beans are
becoming more readily available and will be an exciting addition
to any dish! |
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Like beans, dry lentils are an inexpensive, versatile staple
you will turn to again and again. Get red lentils for soups and
stews, and green or black for dishes where you want your lentil
to remain firm. |
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Whole grains can be used throughout your day; while oatmeal
is an inexpensive breakfast standby, you might want to try quinoa
and wheat berries for variations on a traditional hot breakfast.
Look for rolled oats, barley, quinoa, wheat berries, bulgur, and
cornmeal for polenta. These will be used in cold salads, hot
mixed dishes, soups, stews, casseroles – pretty much everything. |
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Canned goods: stock up when these items are on sale. You will
want to get canned tomatoes, tomato paste, soup stock and tuna. |
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Fats are a cooking essential. Olive oil, vegetable oil,
sesame oil are good to start with. |
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Pasta and Rice are the powerhouses of inexpensive speedy home
cooking. You can dress them up or down, topping them with
infinite combinations of seasonal vegetables and sauces. Whole
grain pasta and brown rice are more healthful. |
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Condiments that will regularly be used in your cooking depend
on your taste and cooking preferences. As you cook more you will
learn what recipes you like to use and what types of condiments
to keep on hand. Soy sauce, mustard, curry paste, miso paste, hot
chili sauce (such as Thai garlic chili), balsamic and white
vinegar, salsa and ketchup are good basics to start with. |
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Dried Spices are another staple that you will learn what you
tend to use as you go. To start, cinnamon, bay leaves, rosemary,
cumin, curry powder, chili powder, crushed red pepper, basil,
oregano, ground ginger, thyme leaves and Italian seasoning will
all come in handy. |
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Baking staples will include whole wheat, pastry, and all
purpose flour, brown and white sugar, wheat bran, honey, baking
soda, baking powder, vanilla extract, quick rising yeast, and
cornstarch. |
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| Fresh ingredients will obviously have to be replenished regularly.
Keep your fridge stocked with milk, eggs, butter, yogurt, and cheese
(sharp cheddar, feta, and parmesan). Fresh fruit and vegetables should
always be on hand: these will vary seasonally. Always have garlic and
onions available – you will use them daily in your cooking. |
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| You might want to invest in a few pieces of equipment to make your
home cooking easier, though really, you can get by with even the most
basic items. You might find a pressure cooker for quickly cooking dry
beans an asset, as well as a slow cooker that will allow you to set up
your meal in the morning and come home to a full cooked dinner in the
evening. A thermos for tea and coffee (make it a rule to only brew at
home), re-usable water bottle, and microwaveable take-away dishes will
help you pack your lunch and drinks from home with ease. |
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| Buying fruit and vegetables in season, and making big batches of
sauces, soups, casseroles and stews to freeze is another cornerstone of
inexpensive cooking. A stockpile of frozen dishes will replace your
grocery store convenience foods. |
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| With practice you will get better at whipping up meals using what you
have on hand. The first month will be a challenge, but stick with it – it
will get easier as you become more experienced at cooking with your
healthy staples. Invest in a few cookbooks, spend some time finding great
food blogs on the internet, and start a recipe collection with clips from
the newspaper and magazines. Soon enough you will be making delicious,
nutritious meals for your family with the added benefit of substantial
savings. |
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| Bon Appétit! |
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