I’ve seen various places around the web claim that in an emergency you can feed your family for only $10 or $20 a week. While I appreciate their intentions, I have noticed that they all assume you have certain supplies already on hand. In my experience this isn’t always the case. Forty-five dollars will seem outrageously abundant to some, while it will seem minuscule to others. It is the smallest amount I was able to come up with that will provide enough supplies to an empty kitchen to feed an entire family for a week. The servings are ample and a few adjustments allow you to increase the quantities from 4 servings to 6. Newly added nutritional information makes it clear that except for sodium, these recipes are nutritious and healthy. They are low in fat and cholesterol, high in protein and rich in fiber. To reduce the sodium you can use half as much salt and bouillon as called for in the recipes, and purchase store-brand reduced sodium canned vegetables instead of the regular variety.
You may also want to take a look at the ebooks and resources provided by Living On A Dime – their ebooks are well worth the small fee they charge for all the money saving tips and ideas that you will get out of them. I usually make up the money I pay on the ebook within less than a week (often in one shopping trip) from purchase. Take a look and see for yourself at LivingOnADime.com.
Menus
PDF File (right click; save as)
| Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner | Snacks | Nutrition | |
| Monday | Pancakes; Syrup; Orange Juice; Milk; Hot Tea | Lentil & Vegetable Soup with Dumplings; Milk | Pinto Beans; Onions; Hoecakes; Collard Greens; Iced Tea | Cinnamon Toast; Milk for Children; Tea for Adults | 1656 Calories; 33g Fat (17.5% calories from fat); 71g Protein; 275g Carbohydrate; 42g Dietary Fiber; 54mg Cholesterol; 3312mg Sodium |
| Tuesday | Oatmeal; Toast, Margarine & Jelly; Orange Juice; Milk; Hot Tea | Peanut Butter Jelly Sandwiches; Macaroni & Cheese; Carrot Sticks; Milk | Bean Burritos with Homemade Refried Beans & Homemade Tortillas; Fried Onions; Iced Tea | Plain Muffins with Jelly; Milk for Children; Tea for Adults | 1826 Calories; 50g Fat (24.1% calories from fat); 73g Protein; 279g Carbohydrate; 32g Dietary Fiber; 37mg Cholesterol; 2812mg Sodium |
| Wednesday | French Toast; Syrup; Orange Juice; Milk; Hot Tea | Batter Bread; Margarine; Spinach; Milk | Creamed Tuna & Peas over Rice; Garlic Toast; Iced Tea | Peanut Butter Tortillas; Milk for Children; Tea for Adults | 1771 Calories; 55g Fat (27.7% calories from fat); 76g Protein; 245g Carbohydrate; 12g Dietary Fiber; 187mg Cholesterol; 3213mg Sodium. |
| Thursday | Hot Rice in Milk; Toast, Margarine & Jelly; Orange Juice; Hot Tea | Peanut Butter Jelly Sandwiches; Macaroni & Cheese; Carrot Sticks; Milk | Black Bean Soup with Carrots, Celery & Onions; Cornmeal Muffins; Iced Tea | Cinnamon Toast; Milk for Children; Tea for Adults | 1737 Calories; 52g Fat (26.7% calories from fat); 61g Protein; 262g Carbohydrate; 20g Dietary Fiber; 51mg Cholesterol; 2631mg Sodium |
| Friday | Oatmeal Pancakes; Syrup; Orange Juice; Milk; Hot Tea | Leftover Black Bean Soup; Biscuits; Milk | Hot Dog & Veggie Stir Fry over Rice; Iced Tea | Peanut Butter Tortillas; Milk for Children; Tea for Adults | 1781 Calories; 52g Fat (26.1% calories from fat); 73g Protein; 259g Carbohydrate; 20g Dietary Fiber; 140mg Cholesterol; 3202mg Sodium |
| Saturday | Hot Rice in Milk; Toast, Margarine & Jelly; Hot Tea | Ramen Noodles with Carrots; Celery & Onions; Oatmeal Muffins; Milk | Butter Beans; Scalloped Tomatoes; Garlic Toast; Iced Tea | Biscuits & Jelly; Milk for Children; Tea for Adults | 1727 Calories; 52g Fat (26.6% calories from fat); 59g Protein; 261g Carbohydrate; 24g Dietary Fiber; 43mg Cholesterol; 3281mg Sodium. |
| Sunday | Pancakes; Syrup; Orange Juice; Milk; Hot Tea | Lentil Chili; Corn Bread; Baked Custard | Corn Fritters; Steamed Carrots; Macaroni & Cheese; Iced Tea | Cinnamon Toast; Milk for Children; Tea for Adults | 1796 Calories; 47g Fat (23.1% calories from fat); 70g Protein; 282g Carbohydrate; 28g Dietary Fiber; 247mg Cholesterol; 3527mg Sodium. |
| Averages for Week | 1756 Calories; 29g Fat; 69g Protein; 267g Carbohydrate; 25g Fiber; 108mg Cholesterol; 3140mg Sodium. |
Shopping List
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2009 Prices 2006 Prices Items 3.98
0.93
0.98
2.28
3.50
1.06
2.38
2.68
3.04
14.28
1.88
1.76
1.14
1.24
1.50
0.48
3.33
1.36
0.88
0.87
0.54
0.56
0.56
0.58
0.58
2.00
1.87
1.23
0.82
1.64
1.48
1.88
0.74
0.50
0.50
0.50
0.50
0.50
2.00
1.841.92
0.62
0.77
1.77
0.99
0.88
1.88
1.50
1.76
8.87
1.20
1.30
0.60
0.60
1.00
0.30
1.38
0.96
0.89
0.89
0.50
0.42
0.45
0.40
0.42
2.00
2.00
1.20
0.44
1.50
1.00
1.00
0.50
0.50
0.50
0.50
0.25
0.50
1.00
1.0010 lbs all purpose flour
3 pack of yeast
Baking Powder
Oatmeal
3 lbs long grain white rice / 5 lbs rice in 2009
2 lb bag of cornmeal
5 lbs sugar
Vegetable Oil
2 cans frozen orange juice concentrate
20 quart box of instant nonfat dry milk
2 pounds lentils
2 lbs pinto beans
1 lb black beans
1 lb lima beans
3 boxes Macaroni & Cheese
3 packs of Ramen Noodles
2 dozen eggs (2.5 dozen in 2009)
2 lbs margarine
1 lb hot dogs
1 28-oz can tomatoes
1 15-oz can tomatoes
15-oz can green peas
15-oz can corn
15-oz can greens
15 oz cans spinach
5 lb bag carrots
3 lb bag onions
1 bunch celery
6-oz can tuna
18-oz jar peanut butter
Jelly
Pancake Syrup
Vinegar
Cinnamon
Garlic Powder
Chili Powder
Salt
Pepper
Bouillon Cubes
100 Count Box of Tea Bags$70.37 $45.16 Note: The prices were gathered in February 2006 and March 2009 from Dollar General and Walmart. Your prices may vary. NOTES
If you receive WIC, Food Stamps or have food from a local food bank, you’ll be able to do much better than this menu plan. It is based on bare minimums.
There isn’t much meat in these menus. That’s because meat is expensive and beans aren’t. Beans provide lots of good protein for growing children and hard working adults. When beans are combined with certain other foods their protein increases. The amino acids in grains like flour, pasta and cornmeal or milk products cooperate with the amino acids in the beans to make an extremely high quality protein. Don’t worry about the lack of meat, there is more protein in this menu than you can shake an expensive protein bar at.
The milk may seem overpriced to some, but it is vital for growing children and mom’s who are pregnant, nursing or who may become pregnant. It is also very high in protein especially when combined with grains or beans (see above).
Orange Juice is served every morning but Saturday. The plan assumes 4 servings of 1/2-cup each for every morning it’s served. Orange Juice supplies Vitamin C and Folic Acid, once again, necessary for pregnant mothers and growing children.
In the recipes that call for buttermilk use regular reconstituted milk soured with a tiny bit of vinegar. This works just as good as buttermilk in cooking.
For the recipes that call for dried onion, substitute a small amount of finely chopped fresh onion.
For the recipes calling for fresh garlic, substitute a small amount of garlic powder instead.
To serve a hungry family of 6 you’ll need to make the following changes:
- Increase the flour to three 5 pound bags & bake 6 loaves of bread at a time instead of 4.
- Buy 3 cans Orange Juice Concentrate instead of 2
- Double the Macaroni and Cheese served for lunches making 2 boxes at a time instead of 1.
- Double the cans of Tuna, Peas, Corn, Greens & Spinach.
- Double the recipe for Creamed Tuna & Peas.
- Double the recipe for Corn Fritters
- Double the recipe for Lentil Chili, adding 1 more can of tomatoes to the shopping list.
- This will increase the total spent to approximately $51.
Daily Work
Sunday Night: Mix up the dough for Overnight Bread. Set it aside to rise. Mix up a gallon of milk and a gallon of Tea. Put both into the fridge to chill. Clean the kitchen. Go to bed.
Monday: Begin the week with a hearty breakfast. After the breakfast dishes are done, prepare the vegetables for Lentil Soup, and put the Lentils on to cook. Soak 2lbs of pinto beans in boiling water to cover for 1 or 2 hours. Half of them are for supper tonight and the other half for supper tomorrow. Punch down your bread dough which should be nicely risen by now. Divide it into 4 loaves. Allow it to rise for 1 or 2 hours and then bake. After soaking the pinto beans, boil them until tender and refrigerate. Reheat half of them for dinner and use the other half for tomorrow. Check the milk & iced tea supply, prepare more as necessary.
Tuesday: After breakfast prepare enough tortillas for dinner tonight and for 2 snacks during the week; 16 to 20 tortillas should be enough. Store them in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. Prepare a dozen Muffins for snacks later in the day. Check the milk & iced tea supply, prepare more as necessary.
Wednesday: When preparing the rice, make enough for dinner tonight and breakfast in the morning. 2-cups dry rice, cooked in 4-cups of water should be enough. Prepare the dough for Overnight bread before going to bed. Check the milk & iced tea supply, prepare more as necessary.
Thursday: Soak the beans in boiling water to cover for about an hour or two. Simmer until tender. Prepare the soup as directed and chill until supper time. Divide the bread dough into 4 loaves and set aside to rise until doubled in bulk. Bake as directed. Check the milk & iced tea supply, prepare more as necessary.
Friday: Make enough rice for supper tonight and leftovers for breakfast in the morning. 2-cups dry rice cooked in 4-cups of water should be enough. Check the milk & iced tea supply, prepare more as necessary.
Saturday: Soak the lima beans in boiling water to cover for about an hour or 2. Simmer until tender and season as directed. Chill until supper time. Check the milk & iced tea supply, prepare more as necessary.
Sunday: Put the lentil chili on to cook and prepare the custard and cornbread to bake at the same time. Check the milk & iced tea supply, prepare more as necessary.
Recipes
|
Breads & Cereals |
| Old-Fashioned Low-Yeast Bread | Biscuits use margarine instead of shortening |
| Homemade Tortillas | Hoe Cakes |
| Pancakes | French Toast |
| Oatmeal Pancakes | Basic Muffins |
| Oatmeal Muffins | Batter Bread |
| Cornmeal Muffins | Corn Bread |
| Cooked Rice | Hot Rice Cereal |
|
Main Dishes |
|
Vegetables |
| Corn Fritters | Scalloped Tomatoes |
| Collard Greens |
|
Miscellaneous |
| Classic Baked Custard | Snickerdoodles |
| Perfect Iced Tea | Reconstituting Milk |
The Hillbilly Housewife Recommends – Dining On A Dime
The Dining On A Dime Cookbook is packed with over 1,200 money saving recipes and tips, kids tips and snack ideas, gift baskets, menus, food storage directions, Cleaning Cents and Pretty for Pennies. The recipes are easy to cook with ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry. To make shopping easy and economical, it also includes a pantry list and a shopping list.
Order your copy today at http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/dime
There are a couple of books that are also cheap and time savers. You may have to order them now but they are called Make A Mix and More Make A Mix. I’ve used them for years and the recipes are food that kids will eat without complaining.
Just wanted to let you know. You have a great site here! You sure put a lot of work in to this. Very good info. Thank you.
Tuna Bake
¾ cup macaroni approximately
10 oz condensed cream of celery coup
1/3 cup milk approximately
1 cup frozen peas approximately
4-process cheese slices broken up
½ tsp salt
Dash of pepper
7 oz can of tuna
2 process cheese slices for topping
Cook macaroni as directed on package. Rinse with cold water. Drain pour into greased 1-1-1/4 quart (1.5 L) casserole. Set aside
in medium size saucepan combine soup, milk, peas, and first amount of cheese slices. Heat and stir until hot and cheese is melted. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour over macaroni.
Drain tuna. Break up into pieces and put on top of sauce. Stir lightly to combine all together. Cover bake in 350 degrees oven for 20 minutes.
Remove cover. Cut second amount of cheese slices diagonally to make 4 triangles. Arrange over casserole. Bake uncovered 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Serves 4
I’ll try this haven’t used the Cream of Celery before. I use cream of mushroom.
I just want to thank you for the wonderful ideas. Some of your food items reminds me when I was growing up with my granny in KY. It brings back lots of memories. I am going to start to try to bring back some of these ideas into my menus now.
Thanks,
Sugar
This is a very informative site. I love it. Happy to share it.
Hi,
I was hoping to follow you all on Facebook.
Hi, I just wanted to say thank you for you 2 menus and the joy I am having cooking and baking for my family, I am a single dad of 2 children, from Canada, our prices up here are minimum double yours. I talk to a freind in KY all the time and her jaw drops when I mention 26 dollars for a 20 quart bag of generic skim milk powder ect when you guys get it for 14 by your menu, so even your 45 doller a week menu costs us 100 bucks. I try to buy in bulk when I can casee of orange juice here, 22 pound bag of flour there. but I find it very difficult, As a single dad CPS has made me quit my job, and spend more time with my kids, which I love dearly, but as you might think the finacial situation has dropped. Your site has done two things for me, 1> Opened my eyes to the fact that there are people worst off then me, no power, or fridges, ect. and 2> Help me learn I can eat and be full without the use of meat. One last note.. I find it funny how the Canadian dollar can is worth 1.04 US but in the world of groceries, even our local products, its worth only 0.53 US. I welcome any comments and would love the support of others out there in the form of e-mail correspondance.
Don
I love your website. I just wanted to comment that I think your dietary needs in the minimal emergency menu plan should be adjusted. The concept of “low fat” is good, is an outdated one, and medicine is starting to wake up to the fact that sugar and refined starches are far worse for you.
There is a large amount of refined starch (white flour) and sugars in your menu plan that I would eliminate, especially because there aren’t enough fresh fruits and vegetables, or other anti-inflammatory foods, to counteract the inflammatory of the sugars and simple starches. You should also eliminate the orange juice and buy a bag of apples, because fruit juices are mostly very sweet drinks with little nutritional benefit of the whole fruit. It’s considered to be junk calories, along with white flour.
So, I’d eliminate the white flour based foods altogether and serve a lot of sweet potatoes and whole red or white potatoes instead, eliminate the sugar, orange juice and pancake syrup and add fresh fruit. Buy a quart of extra virgin olive oil ($6) instead, and make liberal olive oil (like olive oil roasted sweet potatoes) to make up for the sugar calories and add some health benefits missing in the diet currently. Those small changes would make the overall diet less inflammatory and more nutritious.
Those are very good tweaks, indeed. Thank you for sharing your ideas.
I agree – those are excellent tweaks. LOVE this site.
Although I agree with the ideas expressed by Andromeda, I see the concept of a $45 dollar menu and shopping list in a different light. This is meant to be an emergency menu. Everyone would agree that more nutritious foods “should be” on the list and sugar/starch “should be” reduced in a perfect world. But our world is not perfect and oftentimes, the difference between the cost of margarine and the cost of olive oil could make enough of a difference over time to keep the electricity on. God made our bodies capable of going without certain things for a period of time here and there. Is it the absolute best for our bodies? Maybe not. Is keeping us from going to bed hungry and able to keep heat in the house better than having a very nutritious meal and no heat? I would say the answer is yes. I see the hillbilly housewife website as a place to come to learn ideas for making do with what you have and she is doing an excellent job! Thanks, Susanne!!
Exactly my thoughts. I posted the link to this on my Facebook profile and got a lot of flake from a few I know that are whole foods organic types. But both my dad and close friend made the same good point you did. It’s an Emergency menu not everyday fare. So unless you have been there with the money in you pocket and kids to feed don’t get too uppity. Yes there are healthier substitutions but sometimes it’s a choice between enough food to eat and what kinds. At our worst we had applied for government assistance but there was a paper work error, hers not mine, that delayed our benefits for months. My husband was barely working and there isn’t any regularly accesable food pantries here. Menu plans like this are very helpful for Emergencies. We did not suffer any health or energy backlash for eating like this.
Thank you, Colleen, for sharing your supportive thoughts and your personal story. I agree that when an emergency occurs we have to do what we have to do to survive. An emergency, by its very nature, doesn’t allow for much other than hanging on to what we are forced to hang on to. If you take the emergency menu as is, you can survive. You can also tweak the menu when funds allow for healthier, whole foods. These menus are not meant to sustain a family long term as, hopefully, the situation improves.
Again, thank you for sharing your thoughts.
By the way. Some people I work with pay about $6.00 for a glass of a “power protein shake” at the local health food store. It consists of oatmeal, milk and sugar blended up into a smoothie. Try this if you don’t have time to sit down to a bowl of oatmeal. Also I work out a home with a walking tape and the woman who does the tape has an introduction for quick power breakfasts. These are oatmeal, french toast with a little syrup and fruit, eggs and toast, French Toast with fruit and a cereal bar with fruit and a glass of milk. With the food list above there is enough to mix and match what’s for meals. You can serve different things on different days. Tortillas can go with many of the meals above as well as the muffins. Just change things up a bit for variety!
Up here in Alaska, in 2011, the price on that $70 Menu will be closer to $100.
I agree, i live in Anchorage, would be closer to $100!
Thank you for these great resources. Unfortunately, when you have health issues in your home, like gluten intolerance, it makes it so much harder to live frugally. Gluten free flour is $6 a bag, macaroni and ramen noodles are out, and so is oatmeal.
As a single mom of 3 kids, it’s a challenge to live within a budget, but your site makes it easier to try!
I love this website and have been using it for the last 2 years. It has saved me many times over with menu ideas. Beans are a great way and filling when meat isnt an option to purchase for dinner every nite. My husband has taken a liking to vegetarian meals with beans than with meat and asked me to “find more” recipes on this website to try:) The bean and cheese squares and italian beans and rice are very good and we eat that often. Also, the donut muffins are great treats for the kids are so easy to make! I find it amusing-we used to buy frozen fries, bags of “flavored noodles”, etc. Now we buy a 5 lb bag of potatoes that makes fries, mashed potatoes, potato salad, etc and make our own flavored noodles. It reminds me of when my Nan used to cook like this and it makes so much sense to do it this way-no more processed foods for us and it tastes so much better!! Thank you again! This is the best website EVER and I have directed everyone I know to visit and sign up for the newsletter:) Keep up the great great work!!
I’ve been using this site ever since first discovering it for an article I was writing back in 2006-07. I agree with Andromeda in that the recipes are carb-heavy, and that’s not healthy for everyone. As Amanda says, this is an “EMERGENCY” Menu, not a staple menu. It’s meant to get you through the lean times, and I think it can be tweaked for those with special diets and those who live in different regions. Living in California, I can get fresh fruits and vegetables this time of year for pennies compared to what I’d pay for juices and canned varieties. For instance, I can get 4 ears of corn for $1 but would pay much more than that for a can of corn. Pinto beans here can be purchased in ethnic markets for 60 cents a pound but lentils are $1.20. Most dried beans are 88 cents to $1.20 a pound. Ground beef is often on sale for 99 cents a pound.
As for dietary restrictions, I am sugar-sensitive and therefore do not keep or serve any fruit juices or white flour in our home. We don’t do rice; we don’t do bread. Still, I can adapt the recipes above to suit our needs without breaking the bank. And beans are the best possible food for stabilizing blood sugar. Our daughter thrives on beans at every meal. She is below the 50th percentile for weight in her age group but not underweight by any means. The recipes on this site are amazing, and a welcome resource!
Thank you, Tonya, for being a long time reader and friend of HBHW.
Thank you, also, for your very useful ideas for working within your budget and dietary needs in tweaking the $45 Emergency Menu. Shopping locally is a very important issue for a lot of reasons. Buying from produce stands, neighboring farms, and anywhere you can find foods that are less expensive is crucial.
I also appreciate your discussion about beans. I have been a long-time fan of beans for the reasons you mentioned. I recommend that anyone who hasn’t discovered beans yet, walk down your grocery store aisle (or wherever you can buy a variety of beans) and pick up just one package. Follow the directions for cooking on the bag and you’ll have the first step done. We have quite a few bean recipes on this site, so once you have the beans cooked, grab a recipe and try them. If you don’t have the time or energy to research recipes, just toss some of your cooked beans in with cooked rice, toss with a bit of salad dressing or oil and vinegar mix, and you have an instant dish that’s filling and nutritious. Once you get your first batch of beans cooked, you won’t be able to stop! There are so many ways to use these nutrient powerhouses.
Thanks again, Tonya, for getting into this discussion with so much great information.
Cooking and eating cheaper means more assembly like biying a bag of beans and spending the time to cook them up instead of a can. Great tips!
I cook with dried beans all the time (thank you HBHW for introducing me to this!!!
). An easy way to do it for those working Moms: Soak your beans while you’re at work. After you’ve had supper, before you go to bed, fill your crockpot with the (drained) soaked beans, some chicken broth, onion, celery, and whatever else you’re going to add. Cook it all night, while you sleep, and in the morning you have a hot lunch to put in a thermos container! I will put the remainder in bottling jars (leave about an inch for expansion) and place in the fridge while I’m at work. When I come home, I just put the caps on and put in the freezer. Then, when I’m going to take some for lunch (or a fast supper), I just take it out a day ahead to thaw in the fridge. If I forget, no worries – I can put the jar in the microwave and thaw it that way (just be careful as it will be hot when you take it out!) 
I have found that if you rinse your beans and then put them in a pressure cooker with lots of water (usually about 4″ above the beans) you can skip the soaking and cooking for a long time. I cook my beans from 12-20 minutes (depending on the type of bean) @ 15 lbs and they turn out perfectly. You can add a little salt for flavor and they will still get tender. I also add about 1/8 tsp of baking soda when cooking black beans to help them retain their color better.
I like the idea of your 45 dollar menu. Problem is there is alot of stuff my husband would refuse to eat, therefore not making it workable for me. Just for myself would not be a problem as I am not a fussy eater and I am willing to try alot of new things. Hubby is a plain meat and potatoes person. Doesn’t like alot of veggies and is VERY picky about most other food too.
Sounds like my husband, picky and very specific about what he likes.
As a general rule I cook from scratch every day. I live in New Brunswick, Canada and like an other Canadian said it seems to be more expensive here. One thing about vegetables. I don’t buy canned. I buy frozen. The store brand is as cheap or cheaper than canned and I would assume that it is better for you as it doesn’t have the sodium in it. If I can find meat for less than $3/lb its a good price. Every once in a while my father in law (a trucker) will buy chicken for us in Maine and then that is a few very cheap meals.
I just took the shopping list for the $5 Emergency Menus to the grocery. As far as I can tell, this menu was written in 2009, and I was curious about how much the same menu would cost me now, two years later. The grand total: $83.79. That’s a 93.5% price increase, folks.
Anyway, thanks for all of your great ideas. Your website is really very helpful and I appreciate that you share so much.
Here is the updated version. It may be a little more in line with today’s prices, but prices change daily/weekly/monthly, so it’s never going to be 100% accurate. Thanks for taking the trouble, Jessica, to actually take the shopping list along to compare. It is an eye-opener.
I appreciate this website.
I took this list to the grocery store yesterday, and I wasn’t able to buy most of the things for the prices in 2009, though I guess that’s a given. What surprised me the most, though, I think, was that the price of something as simple and tried-and-true as black beans has gone up so much. Whereas in 2006 you could buy beans for $0.60, now a small bag of dry black beans cost $1.80. I live in Kentucky.
I am in school for social work, and I know so many people who are struggling hard to buy food. It’s a shameful thing for most or all of them and they don’t like to tell people they can’t afford to feed their families. I know that the food stamp office has started refusing people on technicalities because they are just so swamped. And there are no food banks in most of Kentucky because it is so rural. I once lived on rural route 196, where there weren’t any houses for miles and miles, much less a food bank or any other resources.
For those living on the edge, and particularly those hidden away in very rural areas, I fear things might get even worse before they get better. I really hope not, though.
just wondering if any of the recipes that call for milk, whether powdered or not, can have soy milk substituted or the milk kept out at all. my son is allergic to milk proteins and we are really needing to follow the $45 menu but i noticed alot of recipes calling for milk and margarine, etc.
I was vegan at one point, I found that nondairy milks usually substitute well, however soy was out of my price range. I found bulk raw cashews for $4 /lb at an international food market and learned to make cashew milk from this awesome cookbook called “ten talents”. Just like she recommends using margarine instead of oil, the opposite is also true, I find coconut oil and a little salt is a close match in flavor. If you need to match texture, the cookbook i mentioned also has some recipes that look really good.
I just wanted to thank you. This list has saved me in tough times a poor single 20 something in dead end service jobs that don’t pay and now it has just saved me again as a 30 something mother of two with an added hungry husband and roommate to feed! Everyone is satisfied!
This site is a timeless lifesaver and not to meantion chock full of excellent recipies. Get lots of compliments on my homemade bread thanks to you *wink, wink*
Today’s groceries only cost me $51.66 at Save-a-lot !
Bless You! ^_^
Thank you, Dee, for your kind words. I always appreciate knowing that the information here on HBHW is helping someone make ends meet.
Brings back fond memories! Growing up in Ky on a small farm we always had fresh milk from the cow and fresh egg from the hens and canned veggies not store bought veggies from the garden from the summer before. Dumplings were made from wheat flour and the chickens were slaughtered and cleaned and cooked as we needed them. There were also cows and pigs for other sources of meat which were taken to slaughter once a year and the meat lasted for the next whole year. Our diet was supplemented with a lot of beans and fresh fruits also. We ate three proportioned meals a day with an apple or peanut butter as a snack. Candy or soda was not an option. We drank a lot of water and lemonade and tea also. I remember one nite a week we used to be able to draw straws on the menu. There were several times we ended up with cornbread and buttermilk and poormans pudding for dessert. Poormans pudding was made with left over biscuits and choc pudding from scratch. You poured the pudding over a crumbled biscuit and it was great! Our family consisted of 4 kids and mom and dad. We never went to bed hungry and no one was overweight. We have all lived a long and healthy life so far. Our exercise consisted of carrying water to fill up the wash tub. The water was from and ingound sping about 1/2 mile away. In the summer exercise was a 10 hr day working in the hay fields and mowing grass for others. I love my retired life now but would not trade those past years for anything. And another note, we had no TV but we did have a lot of board games and cars and trucks to play with. Our ac in summer was an open window and hear in winter was a coal stove in the living room. Our bath tub was a wash tub behind the coal stove to warm the water. We went to church every Sunday and my father was a pillar of respect in the school system and community. Parents never had a credit card. Small loans from the community bank or just plain cash was used when times were hard. We always had gifts at Christmas which usually consisted of new socks and undies, some well deserved candies and dolls for the girls and cap pistols or cast iron cars for the boys. Our stocking were tube socks which were sprinkled with a little glitter. Wrapping paper was grocery bags which us kids colored with crayons and was tied up with string. I loved my childhood.
Kay, I just read your comment and it’s wonderful. What a lovely childhood! It sounds like it was filled with hard work and love, which is a great character-building combination.
I love this site and I’ve used it for years. Such great tips, recipes, and info!
I just want to say that i love this site. Thank you so much for all the good info. You’re our hero.
What a great site! I just found it tonight while looking for ways to make homemade convenience foods, I’m looking forward to trying some recipes and learning some new things
I think something important to remember is to stock up on food when it goes on sale! Yes, food costs have risen a great deal in recent years; however, you can still save a bundle by tracking sales. I don’t really do coupons (unless they are in our grocery store’s sale ad) but I still buy food for a fraction of the normal price. If I see a great price ( 25 cents a box of man n cheese, .50 a can of tomatoes, .88 a pound of pasta) I stock up with a years worth. It doesn’t break the bank because it is usually just a few items at a time. Then the next week I stock up on a couple of other sale items. We have a lot of food ready and waiting. We don’t waste it and I always use the oldest food first.
I know this menu is for people who are in a tight spot without a full pantry, but I think it can also be a reminder to the rest of us to plan ahead. Even if you just have an extra $5 to stock up with a week, USE IT! You will be surprised how quickly it adds up. Plus your grocery bill continues to drop because you usually cook with things you already have. I normally just by fresh fruits and vegetables (and milk when on sale. I have powdered for the rest of the time) and my “stock up” items. I can feed my family of three plus a lot of guests eating over for $150 a month now that I have a full pantry and freezer. We buy a lot of organic produce now and purchased a third of a grass-fed cow so with those additions it averages to $200 a month. But that is with organic stuff and all whole grains. If we couldn’t spend that I would switch back to regular meat and produe. It can be done. I know that prices change a lot according to areas. I’m not saying look for these prices. Just track YOUR prices. You might be surpised at the deals you sometimes find.