healthy foods

Eat These 6 Foods to Stay Healthy While Traveling

Amanda Gokee — Thu, 19 Jan 2017 10:00:17 +0000

Traveling often means eating foods that are outside of your normal routine, which can be a fun part of any cultural experience. Yet it can also pose a very real challenge when trying to stay healthy. If you're not paying attention, it can be easy to lose track of what you're eating and how much you're eating.

But staying healthy in a foreign place doesn't have to be complicated. Here are six foods (and a drink) you can usually find that will help you stay energized and healthy even when you're away from home.

1. Seasonal Produce

Eating foods that are fresh and locally grown can go a long way toward keeping you healthy on the road. Anything that hasn't been processed and changed from its original form shouldn't have a lot of empty calories or bad-for-you ingredients. Experiment with exotic fruits and vegetables that you can't find back home. It might not be what you're used to, but local fruits and veggies will give you the fiber and vitamins your body needs to function properly.

2. Chia Seeds

Chia seeds are one of those trendy superfoods you've surely been hearing about. It's a species of flowering plant in the mint family native to Mexico. Historically, it was a staple of the Mayan and Aztec diets. You can find chia seeds throughout South America.

Chia seeds are low calorie, but packed with energy, protein, and antioxidants. Plus, chia seeds are full of fiber to help you feel full for longer and aid digestion when you're trying lots of new foods.

3. Healthy Grains

There is a wide variety of grains that are extremely beneficial to your health. Look for whole grains when you choose your bread or pasta. Quinoa is full of fiber and protein. Tabbouleh is very common in the Middle East. You may also find couscous, oats, or amaranth, depending on where you go.

4. Chickpeas and Hummus

Chickpeas are relatively easy to find when you're traveling, all across the western world — in India, Africa, throughout the Middle East, and South America. They are very rich in fiber and especially delicious when whipped into a rich hummus dip that you can eat as a dip for vegetables, chips, or as an accompaniment to a salad.

5. Rice

Rice is an excellent carbohydrate that you can find in many parts of the world. But that's not the only reason it makes this list. Varieties of rice like wild rice and brown rice are complex carbohydrates, which helps you feel full longer.

Rice and beans is a very affordable meal that you'll find in many parts of the world and that's because together, these two form a complete protein.

6. Water

Okay, so maybe it doesn't technically qualify as a "food" per se, but drinking water during your travels is arguably the single most important thing you can do to keep your body healthy and your mind clear.

Dehydration is the cause of many of the most common problems that travelers face, like fatigue and headaches. Keeping your body hydrated will do wonders for your health. It can help you aid digestion and keep you feeling energized.

Pay attention to how much water you are drinking every day and bring a reusable water bottle on your trip so you can always have water with you.

By giving your body a balanced mix of healthy foods and plenty of water, you can help ensure that you are feeling good wherever your travels may take you.

Like this article? Pin it!

This article is from Amanda Gokee of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

8 Expenses You Should Never Cut

Mikey Rox — Mon, 30 May 2016 10:30:05 +0000

Over the years, I've come up with hundreds of ways to trim proverbial fat from nearly every aspect of your budget. And I stand by those tips, tricks, and strategies because most of us have areas where we can pull back on the spending a bit.

But some things are nonnegotiable. There are necessities — sometimes rather costly ones — that are required for us to live decent, healthy, and satisfying lives. What are they? Take a look at these eight expenses you should never cut, and let me know some of the areas where you just can't or won't shake out savings in the comments below.

1. Health Care

First and foremost, it's critical to have health insurance. It's required in the United States, whether from a private provider or via Obamacare, and without it you run the risk of either being denied care or racking up serious medical bills that could put your finances in dire straits for the foreseeable future.

Aside from that, when you're sick or need medical attention, you want the best care you can get. Some prescriptions are expensive, too, and health insurance can greatly reduce those costs. You should never let coverage lapse because you're generally healthy or you don't think you'll fall ill anytime soon. Murphy's Law dictates that it's in that scenario you'll need medical attention, and you'll want to have insurance on your side.

2. Personal Hygiene

Soap, shampoo, and toothpaste are essential — and readily available, like on nearly every corner of your neighborhood, for not much money. Which is weird, because I know plenty of people, perfectly well-off individuals at that, who don't seem to use any of it on a regular basis.

If you're one of those folks who likes to gripe at the cost of personal hygiene products and therefore use that as your excuse to skimp on washing yourself on a regular basis, you'll be happy to know that bargain brands, like Suave for example, do a bang-up job of keeping you clean. Not to mention that there are always coupons available for hygiene products, especially toothpaste, that can help reduce the cost of these items. Find the items on sale plus pair them with coupons and you'll spend oftentimes less than a dollar on what you need per item.

3. Personal Safety

Most of us practice personal safety consistently. We try to avoid automobile accidents, we look both ways when we cross the road, and we never run with scissors. Those are all subconscious decisions that don't cost a dime, which is why you might be asking yourself how personal safety costs you actual dollars and cents.

For starters, the car that you drive should be rated for safety. When you're strapped for cash and need an inexpensive vehicle, choosing a cheap car that gets you from A to B may seem like an ideal option. Certainly there are times — and financial constraints — that call for this type of decision-making, but you'll almost always regret it in the long run. Instead, I recommend loosening the purse strings just a little more so you can buy a vehicle that will protect you if you're in an accident, opposed to one that's already falling apart.

Another example is safety on the water. Life vests are cumbersome, and nobody likes to wear them. But you know what? They save lives, and there are millions of people in this world who will tell you that they regret not buying or renting life preservers during an outing that resulted in someone's harm or death. It could have been prevented if they had just sprung for the darn things. Thus, spring for the darn things.

4. Healthy Food

It's true, food is expensive, especially the healthy stuff — but you shouldn't be making cuts to your budget that include reducing the amount of healthy food you're eating by replacing it with less expensive, toxic food — like that microwaveable junk that comes from the freezer section or the stuff you grab at the drive-thru window.

It's okay to indulge in it every now and then — who doesn't like to dive headfirst into a bag of Doritos from time to time? But most of your food should be fresh and nutritious. You owe it to yourself — and your longevity — to eat healthy, and there are lots of ways you can cut down on your healthy food bills if you put in the legwork before going grocery shopping. Wise Bread can help you save a substantial amount on your supermarket bills if you do a little digging for advice.

5. Mental Health Care

Mental health is a hot topic of conversation nowadays, though we should have started talking about it seriously a long time ago. Personally I've suffered from depression and anxiety — and still do from time to time — and I've known too many people who have committed suicide because they weren't able to figure things out. Which is why it's my duty to tell you that your mental health is worth every extra penny you can afford. If you need medication, get the medication. If you need someone to talk to — which can help immensely when you're troubled — go see a therapist. If you have decent health insurance, prescriptions and therapy should be covered so you can afford to help yourself.

And it goes without saying that if you feel like there's no hope left, please believe me when I tell you that there is. People care about you, and you can talk anonymously about whatever you're feeling by calling the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 1-800-273-8255. You matter; whether you believe it right now or not — you matter.

6. Insurance

By law in most U.S. states you're required to have car insurance. So if you're thinking about cutting it because you don't drive very often or very far, you're in for a rude awakening if you have the unfortunate luck of being in an accident — and you'll probably go to jail on top of whatever expenses the crash racked up.

Homeowners and renters insurance are also areas where it's not wise to be a miser. You don't have to have super-premium, platinum, Superman coverage, but you should have enough coverage to fully cover the things you own — so they can be replaced quickly and efficiently — in the event of an accident.

7. Debt Repayment

If you're already pinching pennies because you're in debt, it can be easy to brush it to the side and try to forget about it. You're in so deep that you'll never pay it off, so why worry about it, right? Wrong.

In this case, you have few options to stay on track, but you may be able to cut something less important from your budget to continue making payments, or — and I know this is an offensive idea to some — pick up an extra job or side gig to start earning more income. The problem with debt is that it will never go away, and it's your responsibility to pay off what you've accumulated. You alone made those purchases, and you alone need to pay them off. There are assistance programs out there that can help, and I recommend researching your options in that regard, but whatever you do, don't act like it doesn't exist. It does, and it will follow you around like a black cloud for the rest of your life until you address it.

8. Things Your Kids Depend On

There's a buzzword that's being tossed around willy-nilly right now with regards to children and teenagers (and even 20-somethings). We hear it a lot: Entitlement.

While I contend that American children tend to be somewhat entitled, there are some things to which they're actually entitled — like a proper education and health services. If your child needs a tutor, hire a tutor. If your child needs a therapist, seek therapy. Hopefully you had children for the right reasons, because you wanted to have a family to love and care for. If you're trying to be over-thrifty in these areas, you may not be doing the best job of holding up your end of the parenting bargain.

Find areas in your own grown-up budget to eliminate — like one of your many memberships perhaps, or that adults-only vacation — and help your kid stay on the right path, physically, emotionally, and mentally. You owe them that much.

What costs do you refuse to skimp on?

Like this article? Pin it!

This article is from Mikey Rox of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

12 Foods Nutritionists Say You Should Splurge On

Mikey Rox — Tue, 20 Jan 2015 18:00:27 +0000

We're all pinching pennies at the grocery store these days, but sometimes the cheapest items available might not be the healthiest. So where should we loosen the purse strings? (See also: Turbo-Charge Your Diet With These Superfoods)

I've asked nutritionists to weigh in on some higher-priced healthy foods which are worth the splurge. These are their suggestions.

1. Berries

If you have a love/hate relationship with fruit, you're not alone. It seems like every day one health guru is telling you to add more fruit to your diet while another is telling you to cut back on all that natural sugar. Berries, however, seem to be the exception to that rule, as they're lower in calories and sugar than many other fruits, and are packed full of vitamins and nutrients that promote heart health, weight loss, and healthier-looking skin.

Dr. Yanyan Li, assistant professor of nutrition in the College of Science and Humanities at Husson University, focuses her research on phytochemicals (natural plant components with health benefits), and she believes that berries, such as blueberries, raspberries and blackberries, are worth the extra money.

"Although rather expensive, they are full of strong antioxidants," Dr. Li says. "Antioxidants help remove free radicals that are associated with a variety of chronic diseases and the aging process."

Personally I've been loading up on blackberries lately, since they're a tasty, low-cal way to consume omega-3s, fiber, and antioxidants. One cup only contains 62 calories, which means that I get the pleasure of a sweet snack without all the guilt.

2. Cruciferous Vegetables

While I've never had a problem consuming fruits, vegetables have been harder to integrate into my diet. In fact, until fairly recently the only bean I liked was of the jelly variety. Slowly but surely, I'm making strides toward putting more greens on my plate — even though they make my grocery bill inflate.

There's a silver lining, however. According to Dr. Li, "Cruciferous vegetables — such as broccoli sprouts, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts, arugula, and radishes — are high in multiple cancer-preventive components, including carotenoids and isothiocyanates."

3. Chia Seeds

Hard to believe that your Scooby-Doo Chia Pet is a superfood source. Yep, that's right — the same seeds used to grow chia "hair" from terracotta pop-culture icons are a concentrated source of healthy omega-3 fatty acids, carbohydrates, protein, fiber, antioxidants, and calcium. While they're not cheap, they're easily consumed by sprinkling and mixing them into your ordinary diet.

4. Organic Butter

Butter is okay in moderation, even healthy, but non-organic butter can contain toxin residues that tend to be fat-soluble — and that's not a good thing. Alexander J. Rhinehart, certified clinical nutritionist and owner of the Arizona Nutrition Center, explains:

The body often stores toxins away in fat tissue, and consumption/exposure to these same toxins have been linked to insulin resistance and weight gain. As butter is a pure fat, toxin residues can be concentrated in butter — not to mention any synthetic hormones that had been given to the cows. The residues from feed fed to the cows can find their way into your butter. I recommend opting for the organic butter — you get an A+ if it is made from grass-fed cows like Kerry Gold Irish Butter — which has a richer gold color due to higher levels of conjugated linoleic acid.

5. Coconut-Based Products

You're not getting out of the grocery store with a basket full of healthy coconut-based product on the cheap, but at least you can feel better about all the good stuff you're putting into your body.

Birgitta Lauren — president of Expecting Fitness, which is dedicated to exercise and fitness advice for pregnant and new moms — recommends adding the full spectrum of coconut-based items to your diet, including coconut oil, milk, cream, flour, and sugar. "For all systems — brain, nervous, metabolic, etc., it has anti-bacterial, anti-viral benefits," she says.

Dr. Rhineart agrees, adding, "Coconut oil is one of the most versatile substances in the grocery store. It is great for cooking as it tolerates high heat. It is also great for use on the skin and hair, as well as infections. It can also help support the immune system. When you consume coconut oil, some of the lauric acid (the main fat of coconut oil, comprising 50% of it's composition), actually is converted to monolaurin, which is known to have wide spectrum anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal/yeast properties. The other primary fats, capric acid and caprylic acid, also share similar properties. Capric and caprylic acid are what typically comprise 'MCT oil', whereas lauric acid must be consumed via coconut oil, or one can supplement with monolaurin directly."

6. Organic Milk

They say that milk does a body good — although even that long-standing claim has been contested recently — but organic milk will do your body better.

Chef Jessica Swift, a registered dietician with an MSc in nutritional sciences, says, "Conventional milk can be filled with rBS and rBGH, which have been proven to be, how do you say, 'no bueno?' When it comes to skipping these hormones, I would say 'Yes, please' and grab a good ol' jug of the organic stuff."

7. Chocolate

I don't trust anyone who doesn't like chocolate — because, seriously, what's wrong with you? But even chocoholics like me would be wise to be a bit more conservative when choosing how to get that sweet cocoa fix.

"There are many different chocolates, but only a few that provide optimal healthy benefits," Chef Jess says. "Skip the Butterfinger and go for a bar that contains at least 70% cocoa; this bar contains antioxidants to aid in optimal heart health."

8. Antibiotic-Free Chicken

According to the Huffington Post, the excess amount of antibiotics with which we're pumping our chickens is undermining the effectiveness the antibiotics have in fighting new diseases in our own bodies.

"Overuse by agricultural companies to make animals grow faster or to cover up poor living conditions for the animals is certainly not worth jeopardizing our ability to take care of our kids, parents, neighbors, and the world community," the article says. The editorial board of The Washington Post warned that more must be done to reverse the overuse of antibiotics in livestock before a new generation of superbugs is created. The effectiveness of these incredibly powerful drugs is being undermined every day we give them to animals.

This long-term preservation of our collective health is certainly worth a few more bucks at the cash register, and your fellow Americans agree: "Consumer Reports found 60% of poll respondents said they would pay more for antibiotic-free meats; 37% would pay up to one dollar more per pound."

Stacy Goldberg, registered nurse and founder of Savorfull, adds, "The shelf life [of antibiotic-free chicken] is shorter, but you will be putting cleaner ingredients in your body."

9. Organic Eggs

Organic eggs can differ in price drastically from their non-organic counterparts, but there's also a drastic difference in the benefits they offer, too.

"Eggs are one of the best foods to eat for health," says Dr. Lisa Metzger, co-owner of BioFunctional Health. "Organic free-range eggs are more nutrient dense than commercially raised eggs, having more vitamin A, twice as much omega-3 fatty acids, and more vitamin E due to the diet the free range chicken are fed as opposed to the commercial grain feed."

10. Grass-Fed Beef

Beef is already pricey, no matter how you slice it. But cattle that are able to graze in open spaces tend to lead healthier lives (with less need for antibiotics), so it's a smart choice to start switching up how you buy your steak.

"When cows are able to eat a diet that is natural for them, the nutritional composition of their meat is much more ideal for you, providing an increased level of omega-3s (a type of fat that many folks are lacking in) and other nutrients," explains Amanda Austin, a registered dietician and certified food sensitivity expert. "At the store, make sure that the beef that you're purchasing is actually 100% grass-fed beef — all cows are grass-fed for the first six to 12 months of life, but most are then 'finished' with grains, which are typically given to cows before slaughter to fatten them up at a quicker rate. You want beef that has been grass-fed for the entirety of the cow's life."

11. Wild Fish

Farm-raised fish are cheaper — larger supply is yielded with fewer resources used — but what once seemed to be an environmentally conscious solution to seafood demand has presented new problems of its own, especially where tuna, halibut, cod, and salmon are concerned.

"These predators are usually raised in the open ocean, in net pens," writes Margo True in an article for Sunset magazine. "What seemed like a great idea initially has now revealed itself to be one in serious need of fixing: The farmed fish pollute the water with their concentrated wastes, spread disease (the crowded conditions make them prone to it, which requires dosing with antibiotics), and escaped fish compete for food with the wild fish."

12. Walnuts

Personally, I enjoy cashews more than other nuts, and almonds tend to get much of the praise from health professionals, but walnuts also are a great source of healthy protein and other nutrients. "These nuts are packed with omega-3s and heart healthy fats. They may be a little pricey, but I recommend eating a handful of nuts — including walnuts — every day," says Sharon Palmer, nutrition expert and author of Plant-Powered for Life.

Do you have other suggestions on pricey foods on which we should be splurging? What's your favorite? Let us know in comments!

Like this article? Pin it!

This article is from Mikey Rox of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

12 Foods You Must Add to Your Diet This Year

Sarah Winfrey — Mon, 30 Dec 2013 10:36:56 +0000

If you're making a health-related New Year's Resolution this year, you may want consider focusing on just being healthier rather than weight loss. Often, if you choose to improve the quality of your diet, you will lose weight anyway. Also, focusing on health gives you more ways to measure success than simply seeing the numbers on the scale. (See also: 9 Cheap, Healthy Filler Foods)

If you'd like to improve your health but aren't sure where to start, consider adding some (or all!) of these foods to your diet over the next year. For a manageable goal, try adding one food each month. Make including it in your daily consumption a habit, and you will have a healthy new year, all year long.

1. Dark Chocolate

Dark chocolate isn't just an easy way to start adding healthy food to the diet, it's actually good for you. It contains chemicals that can reduce blood pressure, and it also has flavonoids, which are antioxidants that lower bad cholesterol and raise good.

Add a square or two of dark chocolate to your diet each day as a dessert or part of a snack. The darker the chocolate, the healthier, because darker chocolate contains more flavonoids and less sugar. Start with 70% cacao, and work your way up to 85%. (See also: 10 Flavorful Foods Worth the Splurge)

2. Beets

Beets are one of those vegetables that scare a lot of people. While they do have a very distinct taste, they are also fairly sweet. Their dark red color indicates that they are high in phytonutrients, which lower inflammation and are high in antioxidants. In addition, beets are high in many vitamins and minerals that help the body function better.

Add beets to your diet by eating them raw in a salad, roasting, or pickling them and adding them to sandwiches and salads.

3. Flaxseeds

These little seeds don't look like much, but they pack a big nutritional punch. Not only are they high in fiber, but they seem to offer some protection against certain types of cancer.

Flaxseeds can seem a little intimidating at first, but they are actually easy to incorporate into the diet. Grind them up, either with a mortar and pestle or in a coffee grinder, then put them in smoothies, use them to top yogurt or cottage cheese, or put them in juice to add some texture.

4. Black Beans

Not only are black beans economical and easy to cook, but they pack quite a nutritional punch. They are high in protein and fiber, and they can function as a meat substitute, at least some of the time. Black beans also have some omega 3s, so they can aid in heart health, and they contain the same antioxidants — anthocyanins — that are in blueberries. The darker the bean, the more of these there are.

Black beans are great by themselves, as a side to Mexican-inspired dishes, as an ingredient in salsa, or as a main course in black beans and rice. (See also: 20 Healthy Black Bean Recipes)

5. Spinach

Lots of people think of spinach as the picture next to "Yuck!" in the dictionary. However, the leafy green contains so many nutrients. It's high in folate and in vitamins A and C, among others. It seems to encourage immune functioning, protects against the vision diseases that can come with age, and works against heart disease and some cancers.

If you're not sure about spinach, try fixing it in a way that's different from how you've eaten before. Try cooking it and serving it with pasta, or throw it raw into a salad. You can spice it almost any way you want to, so almost everyone can find a way to eat it that they can enjoy. (See also: 35 Ways to Use Frozen Spinach)

6. Avocados

Sometimes, people avoid avocados because they're known to be high in fat. The fat in avocados is monounsaturated, though, which is considered a good fat. Your brain needs this kind of fat to function, as do several other major organs. In addition to being packed with good fat, avocados are high in vitamins and fiber, and they have been proven to lower cholesterol.

Avocados are great in guacamole, even for people who are turned off by their slippery texture. Some people eat them on salads and in tacos, too. And others eat them straight, or maybe with a tiny bit of added salt.

7. Eggs

Eggs are another food that some people avoid, because they believe that eating them can raise blood cholesterol. However, studies show that a moderate consumption of eggs and other cholesterol-rich foods does not to correlate with a higher risk of heart disease. Eating an egg a day should be fine (unless you have other risk factors for heart disease. Then, consult your doctor). Egg yolks also have some nutrients that are harder to find, like choline, which can lower breast cancer risk.

Eggs are pretty easy to incorporate into the diet. Scramble a couple of eggs in the morning, add a fried one to your sandwich for lunch, or hard boil them for snacks. (See also: 10 Eggs-for-Dinner Recipes)

8. Blueberries

Blueberries have long been touted as a superfood, and it seems to be true. They seem to lower both bad cholesterol and blood pressure, which is great news for your heart. They're also full of polyphenols, which are great for your body. The fresher and bluer the berries, the better they are for you. (See also: The Best Way to Choose and Store Fruit)

In the summer, when blueberries are in season, eat them fresh or as part of a dessert parfait with yogurt. Later on, you can eat frozen or dried berries. Put them in smoothies (especially the frozen ones) for a taste of summer all year round.

9. Walnuts

Once again, the healthy fats in these nuts seem to raise good cholesterol and lower bad cholesterol. While this is true of many nuts, walnuts often seem to get lost in the shuffle. (See also: The Best and Worst Nuts)

Eat more walnuts by adding them to salads, or by eating them plain as a snack. Combine them with dried fruit — raisins and figs work especially well — for an added dietary punch.

10. Oatmeal

That breakfast mush you eat every once in a while? Add it to your daily diet, and you could see a reduction in your overall cholesterol, as well as a reduction in your bad cholesterol. Oats can also work to change the shape of the bad cholesterol molecules that remain, so that they are less harmful to your heart. It may also lower your risk for high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. Many athletes also swear that oatmeal improves their performance.

If you don't like oatmeal for breakfast, try using it to make granola bars or cookies. You can also use it to add texture to smoothies, or toast it with a light coating of honey for a crunchy snack. (See also: Ways to Eat Oats When You Hate Oatmeal)

11. Tomatoes

Tomatoes are a major source of lycopene, which helps prevent some types of cancer and seems to prevent skin damage from UV rays. It also seems to be tied to the prevention of cardiovascular disease, by helping blood vessels regulate blood pressure and by helping your body handle cholesterol in healthier ways. Tomatoes are also a rich source of other vitamins, which work together with the lycopene to improve your body's functioning.

Raw tomatoes can be added to sandwiches and salads, or they can be eaten on their own. Cooked tomatoes are incredibly versatile, forming the base for pasta and pizza sauces. Stewed, they can be seasoned and eaten as a side dish.

12. Sweet Potatoes

Often overlooked, sweet potatoes contain carotenoids, as indicated by their orange color. They also have vitamin C and potassium, and are a decent source of fiber. While they are carbohydrates, they are healthier than white potatoes because of how they are absorbed in your body.

Try to avoid adding sugar to sweet potatoes, and instead let their natural sweetness shine. Make roasted sweet potato "fries" in your oven, or bake them and add butter just like you would with a white potato. You can even mash them, if that's a texture that works for you.

Do you plan to add these or any other foods to your diet in 2014? Tell us about it in the comments.

This article is from Sarah Winfrey of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

9 Cheap and Healthy Filler Foods

Julie Rains — Thu, 07 Nov 2013 10:36:03 +0000

If you are like my family, you keep crackers or chips in your pantry to use as casserole toppings, serve with salsa, or add to soups. Though these foods are filling, their nutritional value is limited.

However, there are other commonly available foods that can serve as fillers, helping to keep you satisfied while increasing the nutritional value of your breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack. These items are elegant additions to dishes that can stretch their number of servings without overdoing the calorie count. (See also: Canned Foods That Go the Distance)

Here are some cheap and healthy filler foods I keep in my kitchen.

1. Chickpeas

Canned chickpeas are often available for a dollar if you purchase the house brand. They are easily stored in your pantry and ready at a moment's notice: open the can, rinse the beans, and drain.

For a healthy addition to a snack or side dish:

Add chickpeas to any type of salad, such as a Greek salad or pasta salad
Add chickpeas to potato soup
Toss chickpeas in a potato-based dish like a hash brown casserole
Substitute chickpeas for tahini and add a bit of extra olive oil when making hummus

Chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans) are a great source of protein, fiber, and iron.

2. Pasta

A 16-ounce package of pasta costs less than $2 and can keep for months in your pantry. Add dry pastas to dishes that will cook a while or use cooked pasta for quicker meals.

To make a satisfying meal:

Add dry pasta to vegetable soups
Toss cooked pasta with roasted veggies
Make a casserole of whatever sauce, vegetables, and cheese you have in your pantry

Pasta is a good source of B vitamins and iron. (See also: Stuff We Love: Imperia Pasta Machine)

3. Orange Vegetables

Orange vegetables, such as butternut squash and sweet potatoes, are inexpensive (they cost between 50 cents to $2 per pound, depending on the season) and last a while in your cupboard.

You can roast squash whole in the oven; cut in half when done, remove seeds and strings, scoop and reserve the flesh for additions to various recipes. Sweet potatoes can be microwaved, baked, or boiled until done; cut sweet potatoes in half and remove flesh. (See also: Sensational Sweet Potato Recipes)

To boost the flavor of your favorite foods:

Add butternut squash to soups
Substitute butternut squash for zucchini in a sweet bread recipe
Mix a small amount of an orange veggie (about one cup) into mixtures for bread, rolls, or pizza dough
Stir sweet potatoes into tomato-based sauces
Add squash or sweet potatoes to a dip

Orange vegetables contain beta-carotene and other nutrients.

4. Peppers

Peppers of all kinds add flavor. Green peppers are generally the least expensive, at less than a dollar each, while red peppers may cost you a couple of bucks. Wash, remove seeds, and chop before adding to dishes.

To increase the pizzazz of your meals:

Saute peppers in butter or olive oil, and add to omelets and frittatas
Toss raw on pizzas or inside tacos or tortillas, and prepare as usual.
Saute peppers and add to casserole dishes such as baked spaghetti or your favorite chicken casserole.

Peppers are loaded with nutrients, including vitamins A and C.

5. Black beans

Like chickpeas, house-brand canned black beans may cost about a dollar. You can also buy dried black beans in a bag for a couple of bucks or about 25 cents per serving. Open a can, rinse, and drain; or soak dried beans, rinse, and cook until done. (See also: Cheap, Delicious, and Healthy Black Bean Recipes)

To add richness to your meal while boosting its nutrition:

Add black beans to tacos, tortillas, and nachos
Toss black beans in a pot of chili or nearly any other type of soup
Add black beans to a chicken salad

Black beans contain protein, carbohydrates, and fiber along with vitamins and minerals.

6. Kale

A bunch of kale in the fresh produce section often sells for less than $2 and large quantities of washed-and-bagged kale may go for just a few bucks.

Kale can be bitter, so I typically add this ingredient to sweet stuff or saute in olive oil until it's delightfully crisp. You can also steam and chop in a food processor.

To pack nutrition in your snacks and meals:

Blend raw kale with fruit smoothies
Toss sauted kale into pasta dishes made with pesto or tomato-based sauces
Add kale to egg dishes such as quiches, omelets, and frittatas
Use kale as a pizza topping

Kale is a great source of vitamins A, C, and K.

7. Vegetable Leftovers

Leftover vegetables can be considered free fillers if you would otherwise toss them out uneaten.

Increase the flavor of your favorite dishes while emptying your refrigerator:

Spread mushrooms, onions, spinach, tomatoes, etc. on pizza and bake
Throw green beans and cauliflower into your favorite soup
Make a frittata with those extra veggies
Use broccoli as a baked potato topping
Add vegetables to pasta, toss, and heat in olive oil
Mix kale, spinach, and red peppers with cheese and make a special grilled cheese sandwich

Vegetables contain various types of nutrients.

8. Bananas

Bananas typically cost less than $1 per pound. Keep a bunch on your kitchen counter.

If your bananas start to become overripe, peel and freeze them.

To add flavor and texture to breakfast and snacks:

Cut up and add bananas to cereal and yogurt parfaits
Mix mashed bananas into pancakes
Add sliced bananas to fruit salads such as ambrosia and desserts like ice cream
Add frozen pieces to fruit smoothies

Bananas are a good source of vitamin B6, potassium, and fiber.

9. Peanut Butter

Healthy, natural versions of peanut butter cost about $4 for 16 ounces or about 20 cents each time you add a spoonful to these recipes. Most peanut butter keeps a long time in your kitchen cabinet.

To increase the yumminess and creaminess of your snack or meal:

Spread peanut butter on apple slices, celery sticks, or crackers
Add a spoonful of peanut butter to smoothies
Use peanut butter as an ingredient in stir-fry dishes
Stir in peanut butter in muffin and sweet bread recipes

Peanut butter is a good source of potassium and contains protein and healthy fats.

What are your favorite cheap and healthy filler foods?

Like this article? Pin it!

This article is from Julie Rains of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Cooking With Kale: Easy Recipes for Real People

Julie Rains — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 10:24:42 +0000

Kale is packed with healthful and disease-fighting nutrients. Plus, it’s cheap. A bunch that contains several servings can be had for a dollar or two at the grocery store, or a large bag with washed and ready-to-cook leaves can be purchased for about $5. (See also: 6 Cheap Cruciferous Vegetables for Health-Conscious Cooks)

Many recipes containing kale, though, require expensive and hard-to-find ingredients; preparation time is often excessive. That may have prevented you from cooking with kale.

But there are easy and inexpensive ways to use this vegetable in everyday recipes. Preparation varies but generally starts by washing the kale's leaves, separating the leaves from the thick stems, and tearing the kale into small pieces. Then you might food-process raw kale, steam it in the microwave or stovetop, or sauté it.

Consider these ways of making kale part of your diet.

Breakfast

One of my favorite cheap and quick breakfast foods is a smoothie. Kale can easily be added to a smoothie by food-processing or blending torn-off parts into itty-bitty pieces and mixing into the smoothie. Extra-sweet ingredients can help mask the slightly bitter taste of raw kale.

Grown-ups may like a strawberry-kale smoothie for a nutritious start to the day. Kids may enjoy a sweeter apple-juice smoothie. These recipes call for crushed ice, but I substitute water or milk to avoid clogging up my blender.

For a more traditional type of breakfast, try eggs and kale. I especially liked this recipe using extra butter to sauté kale to a crunchy texture plus add flavor to the dish.

An elegant dish for a more leisurely breakfast or a Sunday brunch is this kale and Parmesan frittata. This recipe is slightly more elaborate than a scrambled-egg dish but uses ingredients that you are likely to have in your kitchen. I substituted corn meal for almond meal.

Lunch

Jazzing up lunches cheaply and easily is often a challenge. Kale and some special ingredients can help add variety without dramatically driving up costs.

For a quick lunch meal at home, this four-ingredient cheese and kale quesadilla is a filling solution that can boost your energy rather than induce sleep. Add black beans, rotisserie chicken, and/or spices (like cilantro or dried red pepper) if you want something more exotic but still easy.

A yummy and hearty meal that can be prepared for lunch, or served as a dinner entrée and eaten as leftovers, is kale pesto spaghetti. This recipe calls for goat cheese and cashews, but you can substitute feta cheese and almonds if those are your mainstays. You can also lighten up on the salt and water and still have a great pesto. Keep extra sauce in the refrigerator.

Appetizers and Side Dishes

Kale can be a great snack, prepared and eaten on the spot or saved for another day.

A popular snack is kale chips. These are relatively easy to make, but you do need to make sure the kale is completely dry before baking. Soggy kale does not become crisp even when cooked. Tastefully Julie offers valuable tips in her recipe.

My own concoction for an appetizer is a sour-cream dip made with a bunch of kale (approximately 7-10 large leaves). Steam kale (place rinsed and cut-up kale pieces in a steamer basket, put the steamer inside of a pot with water on the bottom, bring the water to boiling, cover, and cook for a few minutes to bright green). Chop the kale into fine pieces in a food processor; use half now, and freeze the rest for later. Mix the finely chopped kale with 16 ounces of sour cream, Parmesan cheese to taste, and either onion soup mix or your favorite spices. Serve with tortilla chips.

To serve kale as a side dish, prepare like chard or a similar green vegetable, steaming the kale and then sautéing in olive oil. For a side with even more healthy ingredients, try this quinoa recipe. Use olive oil and brown rice as substitutes if you don't have coconut oil and quinoa on hand.

Dinner

Kale can be part of a main dish for dinner. You might use kale in your favorite soups, stews, or pastas, substituting for spinach or mixing with entrees on a whimsy.

Kris at Young Married Chic (who shared her fabulous, cheap, and easy crock pot recipes with me) offers this kale and white bean soup as a perfect meal for a rainy evening.

For those of you who are cooking for one, try this kale and feta bake with marinara sauce (it's wonderful, though I prepared the recipe without the egg). This dish can be doubled or quadrupled and serves as an easy-to-make and nutritious vegetable lasagna.

Do you cook with kale? What are your favorite recipes?

This article is from Julie Rains of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

50 Healthy Foods for Under $1 a Pound

Jeff Yeager — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 13:00:06 +0000

If you are what you eat, then I should weigh-in at under $1 a pound.

That's because, as a general rule of thumb, I try to only buy foodstuff that costs under a buck per pound. Under $1 a pound, year-round — that's my grocery shopping mantra.

It's not just because I'm a world-class penny-pincher and smart shopper; believe it or not, it's also about eating healthier. When you look at the USDA "food pyramid," many of the things we should be eating the most of — grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables — happen to cost the least. It's often the stuff that's bad for us (at least in large quantities) — red meat, fatty dairy products, and processed foods high in trans fats — that cost the most, on a per pound basis. (See also: Tips and Tricks to Eat Healthy on a Budget)

To prove my point, I've put together this list of 50 healthy foods that I've purchased at least once in the last six months for under $1 a pound. First, a few disclaimers about my list-o-fifty:

NO, I don't live on another planet or in a part of the country where the cost of living is deflated. In fact, I live and shop in the Washington, DC metro area, which has one of the highest costs of living (and groceries) in the country.
NO, I'm not saying that all of these items are available in every store, at all times. But if you shop carefully, you can always find at least some variety of these foods around which to plan your meals. Many of the items on the list (e.g. most root vegetables, bananas, beans, etc.) can usually be purchased for under $1 pound even when not on sale or in-season. Other items on the list were "store specials," and typically would cost more than $1 a pound, and/or they were in-season so cost less.
NO, none of the items on my under $1 a pound list are organically grown. The pros/cons of that debate aside, for most people with a limited budget, the choice isn't whether or not to buy expensive organic, it's whether or not to eat highly processed crap like fast food or eat inexpensive healthy foods like those on my list.
NO, I'm not saying that by eating only these foods you'll have a complete, healthy diet. But they certainly can be the backbone around which to plan healthy, inexpensive menus for your family.
NO, I don't burn up a lot of time and gas by running around to a lot of different grocery stores, and I rarely use coupons. I shop only once every week or two, and I usually shop at only one or two stores. I plan my meals around the-best-of-the-best weekly store specials (aka the "loss-leaders"), the sale items that are usually on the front page of the weekly circular most stores publish. If you're not a creative cook like me, try a website like Delish or Epicurious, where you can enter the ingredients you have to work with and get all kinds of recipes.

So rev-up your shopping cart, but be careful: There's a Green Cheapskate loose on aisle five!

Apples - One a day keeps the cheapskate away.

Asparagus - HUGE store special at 99 cents a pound during Easter week. I bought 10 pounds, blanched it and then froze it.

Bananas - Potassium for pennies.

Barley - A tasty alternative to rice and potatoes.

Beans - (canned or dried) Kidney, pinto, navy, black, red, and many more.

Bok Choy - Steam and serve with a little soy sauce.

Broccoli - Yes, a store special. Usually closer to $2 per pound.

Bulgar Wheat - Try it in pilaf or a tabouleh salad.

Cabbage - Green and red —I like mine fried.

Cantaloupe - No, sorry, I can't; I'm already married.

Carrots - Raw or steamed; rich in carotenes, a healthy antioxidant.

Celery - Stir fry it for a change.

Chicken - Whole or various parts, on sale.

Chickpeas - AKA garbanzo beans — mash 'em up as a healthy sandwich spread.

Cornmeal - "Polenta" is all the rage these days, but I loved it 40 years ago when Mom called it "cornmeal mush."

Cucumbers - Try peeling, seeding, and steaming with a little butter and salt.

Daikon Radish - My new favorite raw veggie.

Eggs - Don't overdo them, but eggs provide high quality protein and still cost about $1 per pound. (Plus, there are many eggscellent things you can do with the shells.)

Green Beans - Frozen, but fresh are sometimes on sale for under $1 a pound in-season.

Greens - Kale, mustard, turnip, and collard greens are rich in vitamins and a good source of fiber. Here's how I cook 'em.

Grapes - Store special at .99 a pound.

Grapefruit - Bake with a little brown sugar on top for a healthy dessert.

Lentils - Perhaps the perfect food — healthy, cheap, and versatile (think soups, salads, sandwich spreads — and those are only some of the "s" possibilities).

Liver - Chicken livers usually cost under $1 a pound, and sometimes beef and pork liver can be found in the DMZ ("Dollar Maximum Zone").

Mangoes - High in fiber and vitamins A, B6, and C.

Milk - Yep, on a per-pound basis, milk still costs well under $1 a pound.

Napa Cabbage - Delicious steamed or raw in a salad.

Oatmeal - The good old-fashioned "slow cooking" kind...that takes all of five minutes.

Onions - Try baking them whole in a cream sauce.

Oranges - Frequent sale price when in-season.

Pasta - Store special at .89 a pound — I nearly bought them out!

Peanut Butter - Special sale price, but stock up because it usually has a long shelf life.

Pork - Inexpensive cuts of pork frequently go on sale for 99 cents per pound or less; sometimes even ham during the holidays.

Potatoes - White and red — baked, mashed, boiled, broiled, steamed.

Pumpkin - Yes, you can eat the same ones you buy as holiday decorations, and they usually cost under 50 cents a pound.

Rice - White for under $1 a pound; brown, a little more expensive but better for you.

Rutabagas - Hated them as a kid; can't get enough of them now.

Sour Cream - 99 cents on sale, but long shelf life, so stock up. My cucumber awaits.

Spinach - Frozen (but Popeye doesn't care).

Split peas - Add a hambone and make the ultimate comfort soup. Try it in the crock-pot!

Squash - Try baking acorn squash with a little brown sugar.

Sweet corn - Canned, or fresh on the cob, in-season. (Try this recipe for summer corn fritters.)

Tomatoes (canned) - Canned are often better than fresh to use in cooking, and occasionally you can find fresh on sale for under a buck, in-season.

Turkey - A popular bargain priced loss-leader around the holidays — buy an extra bird and freeze it for later.

Turnips - Make me think of my grandparents, who always grew them.

Watermelon - Whole, in-season melons can sometime cost less than 20 cents a pound if they're on sale and you find a big one.

Wine - Well, at least the stuff I drink — 5 liter box (approximately 11 pounds) for about ten bucks, on sale. (BTW, the beer I drink is even less expensive per pound.)

Yams/Sweet Potatoes - One of the healthiest foods you can eat, and usually available year round for under $1 a pound.

Yogurt - 8-ounce containers on sale two for $1.

Zucchini - OK, they're a type of squash (above). But I love them so much they deserve their own place on the list. Plus they look great in pantyhose.

Now look at all the money you've saved!

This post from the Green Cheapskate by Jeff Yeager is republished with the permission of The Daily Green. Check out more great content from The Daily Green:

This article is from Jeff Yeager of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Healthy, frugal eating

Philip Brewer — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 14:46:50 +0000

Every so often, I get hit in the face with two facts. First, Americans (even poor Americans) are unbelievably rich. Second, Americans (as a group) utterly lack a cultural tradition that teaches us how to eat a healthy, frugal diet.

The first time this really struck me was about twenty years ago. I was listening to a radio story about people who'd risen from humble beginnings to become successful entrepreneurs. One guy, taking about a time his family had gone through a rough patch where money was tight, said, "I can tell you, there were a lot of days we at bologna for lunch, and then bologna again for dinner."

My first thought was, "Only in America do the truly poor eat meat twice a day." My second was, "Why doesn't anyone teach people how to create a healthy, frugal diet?" My third was, "Oh, yeah--they do. It's called 'the four food groups'--of course they thought they had to serve meat at every meal."

Since then, we've moved beyond the four food groups. Today we teach the food pyramid and have the USDA National Nutrient Database and the Heath and Human Services Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the Food and Nutrition Information Center. I wrote a while back about healthy recipes with cost data, free for everyone thanks to the US government.

Thinking about all that information very nearly splits me in two.

On the one hand, look what we can do! One guy (with a bit too much time on his hands and access to the internet, even if only at the library) can not just design a healthy diet--he can design dozens. He can tweak them to allow for pretty much any personal preferences or restrictions. Even constrained by cost, he has almost infinite choice.

On the other hand, look at what using that information would actually require someone to do! There are mathematical techniques for doing the sort of optimization involved. Take a database of nutritional information, a universe of (constantly changing) costs, and a set of personal preferences--and turn that into a diet that provides all the necessary nutrients without providing excess calories, fat, and sodium, at the lowest possible cost. But we're no longer talking about one guy using an internet connection at the library. Now we're talking about PhD-level math and some serious number crunching on fast computers.

So, I'm not too surprised that I continue to run into stories like the one about the entrepreneur whose family ate lots of bologna. The most recent was in a story about US educational benefits for veterans. A former soldier was working on a degree, trying to make ends meet on the meager funds provided. After paying rent and buying gasoline for his truck, things had been tight. Explaining that he ate a lot at fast-food restaurants, he said, "I sure appreciated the dollar menu."

Only in America do poor students not only have their own apartment and truck--they eat out every day!

Happily, there's an easier solution than solving a non-linear programming optimization of multiple variables under multiple constraints. Michael Pollan talks about it in his book In Defense of Food that I reviewed a while back.

Forget about the database of nutritional information. If you know something about how your great-grandparents ate, you can start there. If not, you can start with the food pyramid. It has flaws, but if you don't have any cultural tradition to draw from at all, it's better than nothing.

Eat food:

Start with vegetables. Get what's cheap. If what's cheap is locally grown and in season, so much the better. Eat more than one thing. Eat a lot.

Get some grains. Prefer whole grains, but generally buy whatever's cheap. Get a few different things--rice, flour, cornmeal, oats. Here, too, get a lot, but as much as you can, get raw stuff and cook it yourself. Still, some amount of things prepared for you (like bread, pasta, and cereal) is okay.

Add some fruit. Fruit can expensive, but you don't need a lot for a healthy diet--one glass of orange juice and a small apple is enough for one day. If you can afford more--berries, raisins, melons, exotic tropical fruits--that's even better.

Add some legumes. Beans, lentils, split peas--whatever you like is fine. You don't need a lot, but these are reasonably cheap, so if you like them, get a lot.

That's really all you need. If you're rich, you can get some meat, fish, milk, cheese, yogurt, eggs, nuts, oil, sugar, etc.--but you don't need any of those things. A diet with a variety of vegetables and grains plus a modest amount of fruit and legumes will give you everything you need. (Billions of people only wish they ate so well.)

As long as you eat a variety of things, it's going to be hard to screw up too badly on a diet like that. If your only vegetable is potatoes and your only grain is white rice--well, you won't be getting all the nutrition you should. Expand your vegetables to include a leafy one and another non-white one. Make sure at least half your grains are whole grains.

It's not hard. It's not expensive. It's just that we don't teach people how to do it. We don't have the cultural traditions--and without a culture to fall back on, people are left vulnerable to the influence of advertising and to the concoctions of "food scientists" who cleverly use fat, sugar, and salt to make "food products" that taste better than food. On top of all that, the people in the most dire straits--the poor, the uneducated, the homeless--have additional obstacles: inferior grocery stores, no kitchens, cash-flow issues that make it hard to buy even a week's groceries at a time.

Food prices are spiking up to record highs all over the world, making it really tough on people in poor countries. In rich countries, though, things aren't nearly so bad--we just need to recreate a tradition of healthy, frugal eating.

This article is from Philip Brewer of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

The new face of poverty is fat

Philip Brewer — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 16:40:57 +0000

Twenty years ago, I parked at a supermarket, near where a poor family had just parked. I knew they were poor, because they looked like poor folks are supposed to look: Their clothes were worn (but mended and clean). Their car was an aging sedan. They were recycling a trunkful of aluminum cans. As I locked my car, they took the handful of change they got for the cans, and headed in ahead of me. There were three of them--man, woman, child--and all three were skinny. It's unusual to see that now. The new face of poverty is fat.

Poor people being skinny was already getting to be unusual twenty years ago, or I probably wouldn't remember it so vividly. Now, the fat person going to the food bank is a cliche.

I've thought about it a lot in the years since then. How can poor people be fat?

I've read a lot about the topic, and there are a lot of answers. Some focus on the food (healthy food is expensive, empty calories are cheap). More focus on the people (poor people are stupid, poor people are ignorant about good nutrition, poor people are lazy, poor people are too busy working two jobs to get enough exercise, poor people are too tired after working two jobs to get enough exercise, poor people don't have access to fitness centers, poor people don't have access to kitchens, poor neighborhoods have lots of fast-food restaurants and few farmers markets).

I think the answer, though, comes down to hunger.

Hunger is a powerful force--powerful enough to make a question like "If a hungry man steals a loaf of bread to feed his family, is it really theft?" a genuine ethical conundrum. Hungry people will do almost anything to get food--and for people with hungry children, you can delete the "almost."

The feeling of "hunger" is constructed in your brain based on many different inputs. A lot of research has gone into understanding what makes people feel hunger. (Particularly from drug companies who could make a fortune from a diet drug that worked, but also other kinds of scientists.) It turns out, though, that hunger is deeply wired into the human brain--it doesn't just depend on getting enough calories. Among other things, it depends on getting all the important nutrients, although it's not as simple as just that either.

If you're poor and hungry, you buy the cheapest calories you can find. If you eat that stuff until you no longer feel hungry, you're eating too many calories. That's why poor people are fat.

It's especially sad, because it actually is possible to eat a good, healthy diet pretty cheaply. Unfortunately, it's not cheap and easy--it's really quite complex. You have to know about nutrition. You have to have the use of a kitchen, and time to cook. You have to have access to fresh vegetables.

There are a number of good articles on the topic here on Wise Bread, starting with Sarah's recent Healthy eating--it'll cost you, Andrea's Why is it so expensive to be healthy, and Tannaz's Save the world and save a dime: eat locally. Be sure to look at some of the great articles Myscha has written on cheap, healthy eating. I've written two: Eating locally on a budget and Healthy recipes with cost data.

The way to get cheap and healthy together is to eat real food without worrying about whether it's organic or local or not. You can get better vegis at the farmers market or from community supported agriculture--but whatever vegis are cheap in the produce department at the grocery store will still be better than some packaged food product full of partially hydrogenated soybean oil and high fructose corn syrup.

It's the real food that's the key. Ninety percent of what you bring home from the grocery store shouldn't have an ingredients list--it should be ingredients. Food has gotten more expensive, but rice and beans are still cheap. Only in America do the truly poor eat meat twice a day--but even meat is still cheap, if you buy what's on sale. Again, it won't be as good or as healthy as meat from animals that were locally raised in a humane fashion, but it will be both healthier and cheaper than eating at a fast-food restaurant.

Once you're eating real food, trying to source more of it locally will get you better food--and food that is sometimes cheaper and often almost as cheap. Check out the Eat Local Challenge for lots of information about eating local food cheaply.

Of course, the people reading this know all that. I don't know how to get the word out to the people who don't. But I do know that you can be hungry and fat. If you're poor in today's world, it's very nearly automatic.

This article is from Philip Brewer of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Healthy recipes--with cost data

Philip Brewer — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 16:34:46 +0000

Want to eat a cheap, healthy diet? Want some recipes that use real food instead of packaged food products? Want to argue about how much it costs to feed a family a healthy diet? Here's a free tool, created by the USDA, that will help you with any of those.

Can you eat for $21 a week? If you had to feed yourself using just food stamps, that's about how much you'd be able to spend. To help people trying to do that--and probably to help policy-makers arguing about the food stamp program--the USDA created a database of recipes and then used cost data from stores (gathered by AC Nielson in 2001, and adjusted based on the CPI) to calculate the cost of each dish. Even if you're neither on food stamps nor a policy maker, the USDA's Food Stamp Nutrition Connection Recipes Finder is available for free.

It's kind of a cool tool. You can search by recipe name or by ingredient--that latter being very handy if you bought a bunch of something because it was cheap and are now trying to find a new way to use it. It provides not only cost per recipe and per serving, but also nutrition facts--a nice chart exactly like the one you find on any packaged food. It also lets you print the recipe in several different formats.

Another cool feature is that it will maintain a shopping list for you--click "add to shopping list" for the recipes that you plan to make and it will keep track and give you a list of everything you need. (Sadly, it doesn't total up the amounts when the same ingredient is used in several different recipes, but it does list them all together, making it easy enough to figure out yourself.)

As we've discussed in several recent posts, adjusting 2001 prices with the CPI is likely to underestimate actual costs. Since the data is based on national averages, though, regional and seasonal variations will probably be a greater source of inaccuracy than the inflation adjustment. (I couldn't immediately find a way to get at the price data used--it just presents aggregate prices for the recipes--so it wouldn't be easy to spot-check the prices for accuracy.)

Still, despite its limitations, it seems like a cool free resource for anyone who wants to make cheap, healthy meals out of real food.

The Blue Corn Pan Bread recipe looked good. They say you can make the recipe for $1.43, which comes to just $0.12 per serving:

Ingredients:

3 cups water
2 cups blue cornmeal (yellow may be used)
1 cup yellow cornmeal
3/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup sprouted wheat*
1/3 cup brown sugar

*To sprout wheat: Wash untreated wheat grains; drain but do not dry. Spread in a single layer in shallow pans and cover with damp cloths. Keep damp in a warm, dark place.

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line 8x8 inch cake pan with foil.
Bring water to boil in a large pot. Add each ingredient, one at a time.
Stir well until mixture is smooth and pour into foil-lined cake pan. Cover with a piece of foil.
Bake for 2 hours. Bread is done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

This article is from Philip Brewer of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

The Dirty Secrets of Food Processing. Strong Stomach required.

Paul Michael — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:32:00 +0000

Now, I know this is slightly off topic even though I've labelled this a food and drink article. But I like to think that ‘living large’ is also about making wise decisions with your money. And when you see these revelations, you may think twice abut where your grocery money goes.

The article was taken from a presentation written by Sally Fallon, the President of the Weston A. Price Foundation. Sally is also a chef, nutrition researcher and founder of A Campaign for Real Milk. I won’t give a complete transcript of the presentation, it’s around 16 pages long and you can read it here (it’s both an excellent and worrying read.) But I will give some snippets of the story to make you look twice at a few things in your pantry and fridge. (See also: Is "Health Food" Worse for You than Junk Food?)

Food Processing – industrial damage

In modern times we favor factory and industrial processing, which destroys the nutrients in food rather than increasing them, and makes our food more difficult to digest. Furthermore, industrial processing depends upon products that have a negative impact on our health, such as sugar, white flour, processed and hydrogenated oils, additives, synthetic vitamins and an extrusion processing of grains. These are the tools of the food processing industry.

Packaged Cereal – now without goodness

Dry breakfast cereals are produced by a process called extrusion. A slurry of the grains is put into in a machine called an extruder, which forces them out of a hole at high temperature and pressure and turns them into pleasing shapes. Then a blade slices off each flake or shape, which is then sprayed with a coating of oil and sugar to make the cereal milk-proof and keep it crunchy. MMM.

This process destroys most of the nutrients in the grains, including fatty acids and even the chemical vitamins added at the end. And ALL the boxed cereals are made this way, even ones sold in health food stores. It’s all about cutting costs, not making nutritional food.

Rat Experiments

Four sets of rats were given special diets. One group received plain whole wheat, water and synthetic vitamins and minerals. A second group received puffed wheat (an extruded cereal), water and the same nutrient solution. A third set was given only water. A fourth set was given nothing but water and chemical nutrients.

The rats given the vitamins, water and all the puffed wheat they wanted died within two weeks- even before the rats that got no food at all. Autopsy results revealed dysfunction of the pancreas, liver and kidneys and degeneration of the nerves of the spine, all signs of insulin shock. That was just one test. You can read more about the other tests in Sally’s complete article.

Milk

Processing milk destroys it. You should be able to live exclusively on raw cow milk, but our industrial system puts dairy cows inside on cement and gives them foods they are not designed to eat—grain, soy, citrus peel cake and bakery waste. In turn, these cows produce watery milk which is very low in fat.

Milk from these industrial cows is shipped to milk factories, where lots can go wrong. The largest milk poisoning in American history was in 1985. More than 5,000 people across three states fell ill after a "pasteurization failure" at an Illinois plant.

In these factories, milk is completely remade. 1st, it’s separated into fat, protein and other solids and liquids. These are reconstituted to set levels for whole, low-fat and no-fat milks; in other words, the milk is reconstituted to be completely uniform. Of the reconstituted milks, whole milk is the closest to original cow's milk.

The butterfat left over goes into butter, cream, cheese, toppings and ice cream. The dairy industry loves to sell low fat milk and skim milk because they make a lot more money from butterfat when consumers buy it as ice cream.

Milk Allergies

Many people, particularly children, cannot tolerate the stuff we call milk. That’s because the pasteurization process deforms and denatures the proteins in milks to such an extent that when we drink it, the body mounts an immune response instead of deriving instant nourishment.

Fortunately what we call real milk, that is full-fat milk from pasture-fed cows, milk that is not pasteurized, processed or homogenized, is becoming more available (see realmilk.com).

Powdered Milk

A note on the production of skim milk powder: liquid milk is forced through a tiny hole at high pressure, and then blown out into the air. This causes a lot of nitrates to form and the cholesterol in the milk is oxidized. Those of you who are familiar with my work know that cholesterol is your best friend; you don't have to worry about natural cholesterol in your food; however, you do not want to eat oxidized cholesterol. Oxidized cholesterol contributes to the buildup of plaque in the arteries, to atherosclerosis. So when you drink reduced-fat milk thinking that it will help you avoid heart disease, you are actually consuming oxidized cholesterol, which initiates the process of heart disease.

Orange Juice

In processing, the whole orange is put into the machine. And when they put the oranges in the vats and squeeze them, all the nasty pesticides go straight into the juice.

A study carried out in Hawaii found that consumption of fruit and fruit juices was the number one dietary factor for the development of Alzheimer's disease. The researchers speculated that the real culprits were the pesticides used in fruit.

The FDA has decreed that we can no longer buy raw juice, because it might be a source of pathogens. But they have found fungus that is resistant to pressure and heat in the processed juices. They also found E. coli in orange juice that was pressure resistant and had survived pasteurization.

Another study shows just how toxic and damaging these juices are to teeth. They found that rats had more tooth decay from these commercial juices than they did from soda pop!

And have you ever wondered why processed orange juice stays cloudy, why the solids do not settle? Well, soy protein combined with soluble pectin is added, keeping the juice permanently cloudy. Good to know if you have a soy allergy, right?

Processed Food Affects Fertility and Facial Structure

As children eat processed foods, with each generation the facial structure becomes more and more narrow. Healthy faces should be broad. When societies abandoned traditional diets and began to eat processed foods, the next generation was much more susceptible to diseases of every sort.

We know from animal studies that if you continue a deficient diet for three generations, reproduction ceases and that's what we're seeing now. About 25% of couples are infertile. If we don't go back to a diet that produces good health, the human race will eventually die out.

To sum up...

As I say, the complete article by Sally Fallon goes into so much more detail, and also covers topics like natural and artificial flavors, hydrogenated oils and trans fats. I urge you to read it, then to look much more closely at the labels on all of your grocery store items.

Spend your money wisely, yes. But don’t always go for the cheap foods, because the more expensive, genuinely organic alternative may cost a little more but it certainly won’t be as costly to your health.

This article is from Paul Michael of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread: