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maybemaybenot -> RE: how much fresh healthy food could you buy for 200 dollars at your place of shopping. (1/28/2011 10:24:07 PM)
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TFB:
I live alone, but I entertain < dinner parties > at least once a week. $200 lasts me 3-4 weeks and I would say I eat fairly healthy. I'm not above a quick fix meal, occasionally. But I prefer home cooked fresh foods.
I'm not a breakfast girl, so it's yogurt with about a tbsp or two of grapenuts or one piece of good heavy toasted bread w/ butter and a glass of V-8. So, for me, breakfast is about $ 6 a month.
I shop the sales and stock up. I also go to 2-3 stores to do my shopping. I know Store X has better produce prices and store Z has better meat prices etc, so I make the rounds. I also frequent the discount grocery stores. When chicken breast is 99 cents/lb, I buy lots and freeze. When roasts are on sale I buy a 3-4 lb roast. I cut it in half and freeze one half as a roast and the other half I cut into stew meat and have 2- 1 lb packages. Pork loin roasts are often on sale and I do the same, only I cut half of the roast into 1/2 thick chops.
I make a pot of soup every week, even in summer. If there is a good deal on fryer or roster chickens I get one to make soup and use half the meat to make my own chicken salad. WHen I have let over pot roast, I make a beef pot pie, using the left over gravy, veggies and add some mixed veggies to strech it. Ditto if I make a roast chicken.
I eat alot of rice and make alot of dishes with rice, so I buy a 10 lb bag and it lasts me a good long time for about $4. The Dollar Tree has frozen veggies for a buck a bag. I always check out the mark down produce, you can get lot of decent veggies at half the cost. Today I bought 2 pkg of 10 oz mushrooms, they were still good, but probably not good for more than a few days, so I sliced them up, put them in a pot with about 1 1/2 C water, one pkg of Goya Beef boulloin and fresh garlic. Simmered them until the fluid was almost gone < reduced it >. They are great as a side dish and also make a yummy lunch. Take some crusty bread or Italian bread and spoon the mushrooms and the little bit of juice over it, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and you have lunch. ONe of the grocery stores here always has fingerling potatoes on mark down, you get about 2 lbs for 99 cents.
I'm a huge fan of crusty hearty breads. I always check the day old rack and usually there good breads to be had there. For my fresh veggies, I shop by the day. I'm pretty fussy on my broccoli, asparagus, lettuce andsquash, so I buy that on an as needed basis.
I honestly find cooking my own meals, being creative and stretching it, is much cheaper than TV type foods. And tastes a hell of alot better. For 5 bucks you are getting 4 Lean Pockets. I can make a chicken dinner with rice and fresh veggies for that price and have left overs. A chicken dinner will fill you up, a coupleopf Lean Pockets don't fill you up and you wind up eating more TV food.
Others have mentioned it: You and Daddy have weight issues and health issues < pre diabetes >. A good diet would be about 1500-1800 clories a day. When you eat TV foods those calories are used up with about three Marie Calender dinners. If you were to make you own food, you would have three good, filling meals and left over calories for a snacks. Meal planning and meal prep is work. You need to take each day and plan out what you will eat for each meal, not just grab what catches your eye. If you actually did this, you would be eating more food, not less, but you would be feeding your body the fuel and nutrients it needs.
Not to put a downer in your day.. but I have a very dear friend, he's my age: 52. He was pre diabetic in his 20's and said fuck it, I'm doing it my way. He became diabetic and said fuck it I'm doing it my way. He is now in ICU and I will be attending his funeral in about a week or so. He has spent the last 2 years on dialysis, having his toes amputated one by one, then the top of his foot, then the lower leg. He is in renal failure and dialysis is now doing him no good. He is swollen up like a balloon with fluid ooozing out of every pore. He can't even scratch his nose when he is itchy and severe itching is a part of end stage renal disease. He was in thre hospital at Christmas time too and I visited with him then, he told me that he " couldn't believe this was happening to him " . Then he smiled a sad smile and said " Of course it's not like I wasn't told. ". As sad as I am to be losing a good friend, much too young, I always knew it would be like this.
You need to take your health more seriously, TFB. I am one of many here on CM that thas a chronic disease and feeding our bodies healthily is one way to participate in our own wellness. I have kidney disease, I take medicine. Medicine alone will not keep me in remission or keep my kidneys functiong properly. I have to eat right and excercise. There are others here with heart problems, diabetes, cancer and a miriad of diseases. There's no magic in medicine, that's what the MD can give you, but you have to actively participate in getting/keeping healthy.
Think about it.
mbmbn
ETA : I forgot to add that the $200 includes my cats food and bird food. My 3 birds eat very little seed and mostly fresh veggies, cheese, eggs, grains and pasta. Yep, I cook every day for the birdies too.[:D]
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