Actually, you CAN look like a million bucks eating off the dollar menu…just
not one that comes with a drive thru. When I recently ran across this meme on Facebook, I
wondered:
Is it possible to look
(and feel) like a million bucks eating off the dollar menu? Or, is looking like
a million bucks reserved for those who actually have a million?
I propose that eating
healthy is not just for rich food snobs who can afford to shop at Whole
Paycheck, or those who have negotiated great deals with their local farmer.
Eating clean on a budget can be tricky, and there are sacrifices to be made,
but it’s possible. Obviously you can’t get the health and beauty impacts eating
shit food from McDonald's. It may also be
true that with unlimited funds, you could buy all organic, all grass fed, all
local foods and have the best results.
However, even eating conventional meats and fresh, local non-organic produce
you could do a lot better than fast food with your precious grocery budget.
OK…let’s pretend your family of three eat at McDonald's every
day for one week. (Don’t EVER do this, OK?! But let’s just pretend for the sake
of argument). Let’s say you each get a something-or-other McMuffin, hash browns
and coffee or juice for breakfast, a burger and salad for lunch with a drink,
and something similar for lunch, you’d each spend $3 per meal. Add that up and
you’d spend $189 for one week of sub par “meals” consisting of not nearly
enough food to fill you up. For less than that I’m giving you a menu and
shopping list for three much heartier real food meals each day.
*Edit: I suck at math, and when I first wrote this, I forgot
to multiply by three, and had a perfectly good week long menu for three ready
to go on only $63!! I went back and adjusted the budget for better quality
meat, and more food at each meal. I’ll star the extras so if you’re really
tight you can give the super-budget-option a try!
P.S. Holy crap junk food is expensive!
Shopping list:
4 dozen *pastured eggs $16 ($9 for conventional)
*Farmer’s Market sausage $6/lb x 2
3 lb each pork shoulder and chuck roast, BOGO sale at
Safeway $13 (Farmer’s market these will cost much more, maybe $40? I honestly
don’t know since I don’t have a source for roasts that are in our budget)
*1 Whole Roasting chicken $15 (you could get a really good
one for around $21, or a conventional one for around $8)
2 cans tuna (Trader Joe's has no soy or salt added) $4
Almond butter $5
Trader Joe's wild
caught whitefish fillets $7
*2 Acorn squash $8 (non-organic $4)
1 head Cauliflower $4
Bag of onions $6
1 bag frozen stir fry vegetables $3
1 bag sweet potatoes $4
1 bag apples $4
*Coconut flour $6
*Ghee $6
*Raw honey $8
*Fresh local berries $4
*Grapefruits $4
*Olives $3
*Broccoli $5
Lettuce, greens, and carrots from my garden: FREE J
Grand Total: $137*
The Menu:
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Sunday
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Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Saturday
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Scrambled eggs
sausage
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Omelets with sauteed greens
bacon
|
Fried eggs
Coconut pancakes
With berries
|
Salsa scramble
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Sweet potato hash with eggs
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Leftover fish with sauteed veggies (!/2 of stir fry bag + chopped
greens)
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Juiced greens, carrots, apple with soup broth (eggs optional)
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Tuna salad
Boiled eggs
Carrots sticks
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Egg salad lettuce wraps
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Pork on salad
Olives
berries
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Roast beef on salad
grapefruit
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Chicken salad with boiled eggs
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Tuna salad
Carrots and almond butter
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Apples with almond butter, sweet potato fries, salad
|
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Roasted chicken
roasted carrots
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Pulled pork with acorn squash
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Roast beef with veggies and potatoes
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Stir fry with chicken and cauliflower “rice”
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Soup and salad with sweet mashed potatoes
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Leftover pork carnitas
Green salad
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Whitefish with broccoli
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