Let’s face it. You want to eat healthy, but healthy foods cost more. That ground turkey at $5.99/lb compared to ground beef at $1.59/lb. Organic milk costing $4.99 for half gallon, but regular milk costs $2.99 for a gallon.  Eating healthy while on a budget isn’t easy, but it is possible.  The strategy: load up on veggies and use simple sauces/spices to give them a kick, even if you’re not a big veggie eater. Veggies are cheap, and using in-season veggies make it even easier to prepare good meals without taking a good bite out of your wallet. To spice up veggies, roast them in the oven with olive oil, salt & pepper; it brings out the sweetness. Or saute them in olive oil or butter using salt, pepper and spices to bring out the flavor. Steamed veggies can be mashed up and incorporated into other foods, such as broccoli mashed potatoes. Make sure that your pantry is stocked with spices and herbs. And if you don’t have the fancy hardware to cook, use your ingenuity with the microwave to get the same results.

Simple Recipe Ideas

Butternut Squash Soup

• 1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks
• celery, onion, carrots chopped (as much as you like, about 1 each)
• sweet potatoes
• 4 cups of chicken or beef stock (you can use bouillon too)
• a bit of butter
• salt & pepper to taste
• cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cayenne pepper to taste

Bake 2 sweet potatoes in the microwave (stab potatoes with a fork, wrap with a damp paper towel and cook approx. 5 mins each or use your microwave settings). In the meantime, chop celery, onions, and carrots. Peel and cut butternut squash into chunks (big chunks are fine). Remove potatoes from microwave, peel and cut into chunks.

Put butter in a pot (enough to hold your soup) and sautee the veggies until light brown. Add the broth in the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 40 mins-1 hour until veggies are cooked and tender.

Use a hand blender to blend the soup in the pot, or put the soup in a blender until smooth. Return to the pot. If it’s too thick, add more broth; if it’s too thin, let it reduce until it thickens.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

Spinach Pita Pizzas

• pita bread
• spinach (fresh or frozen)
• tomato
• parmesan or feta cheese

Toast pita bread over skillet. Cook spinach in pan with olive oil, adding salt & pepper to taste. Arrange tomato slices on pita. Arrange spinach on pita. Drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar over spinach. Top with parmesan or feta cheese.

Jacket Potato & Beans

• potato
• cheese of your choice
• beans in a can of your choice

Cook potato in microwave. Top with shredded cheese of your choice (you can also slice the cheese into thin strips and let it melt on the potato). Serve with some beans from a can, and you have a fabulous English meal.

Veggie Wraps with Avocado

• tortillas or any wraps you can find
• 1 avocado
• veggies of your choice: tomato, lettuce, cucumber, peppers, cabbage
• lemon juice

Smash avocado with some lemon juice and salt. Spread onto wrap. Finely chop/slice your veggies. Arrange in wrap and close. Very simple but the avocado adds the real flavor!