How to make eating healthy not break the bank
1 Buy produce in season – this can be the least expensive most healthy food you can get. Shop your local farmers markets or co-ops!
2 Buy poultry and meats in bulk – buy conventional sources and trim the fat as best as possible. Make sure to freeze what you don’t use; this ensures you get the best price.
3 Use the bulk bin, so you don’t have to over purchase higher priced ingredients like nuts and seeds. I would also avoid expensive nut flours unless you can buy them in bulk. Choose places like costco where you can get almond flours in bulk for a lower cost. Trader joes seems to have them for lower prices as well.
4 Find stores that carry their own brand which will make there foods cheaper. Example, head to places like ALDI and trader joes.
5 Avoid high-cost junk food. Don’t just buy an item because it says its organic it doesn’t always mean it’s right for you, or worth the $10 bucks they are asking you to pay for it. Choose wisely what you want to spend the extra money on. Be sure you are really reading the labels to decide if the higher cost is a wise decision.
6 Freeze your food a lot of times we may buy a little bit more than we can finish before it goes bad so why not freeze it and pull it out when you might need it. Cut it up fruit and freeze it. Cut up veggies that freeze well like onions, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, leafy greens, zucchini, and squash. Don’t forget if you find your favorite organic meats on sale but know you wont be able to eat them before the date on them freeze them as well for later use.
7 Don’t over purchase food, if you over buy and it could potentially go to waste and waste money. Make a list before going to the store and tell yourself you only need what is on that list and nothing more. You can even make a menu at the beginning of each week to ensure you are only purchasing the ingredients that you really need.
8 Buy beans canned. Beans are healthy, cheap, and convenient in a can. If you are short on time, take this budget friendly shortcut without any guilt.
9 Invest in a lunch box. This way you can take anything with you wherever you go. Bringing food with you will ensure fresh food that you like and save you money.
10 Shop the sales and use coupons. It takes a little bit more time, but if you can skim through the ads when they come in the mail, you can get high priced items on sale. Look for some of your usual items you love but are at a higher price point. If the item has a great sale and you still have some at home why not go ahead and stock up especially if it won’t be going bad anytime soon.
11 Become a prime member and shop the sales at whole foods. Now that they have merged if you are an amazon prime member you can now download the whole foods app and link it to your prime member account and save an extra 10% off sale items and you can get extra deals.
12 Recipes that use the same ingredient. Find recipes that use the same ingredient that way you can reuse something you may have already prepared. An example would be eating zucchini noodles for dinner and then using the leftover zucchini to make zucchini brownies.
Healthfully yours,
Krystal Goodman