Healthy Budget Eating: A Guide to Cheaper Food

If you're like me, you probably need to lose weight. If you're like me, you like food. If you're like me, you need all the money you can save. So, these are three of my favorite ways to do all three:

1. Pizza:

Everyone likes pizza. People who say they don't like it just don't like the red sauce. You can buy pizza without red sauce... Or you can make it yourself however you want. The problem most people run into when making their own pizza is that making bread takes a long time and you have to buy an expensive bread machine. Well, an easy, cheap alternative can be found in just about any grocery store: tortillas.

Think about it, most pizza places have at least at one time bragged about "thin crust pizza," right? Well, that's what you get when you put your sauce, cheese and other toppings on a tortilla and cook it in an oven!

Making pizza this way is cheaper because:

a. You don't have to drive to the pizza place or pay for delivery.

b. The ingredients for one of these tortilla pizzas probably cost, in total, about as much as a regular sized pizza, but can make several tens of pizzas.

Making pizza this way is more healthy because:

a. You're not consuming overly greasy pizza, like most places like to serve.

b. You can put whatever you want on it. YOU are in charge of how many calories your pizza gives you.

2. Milk:

Not everyone likes milk, but for those who do, it can be a pretty expensive habit to sustain, especially if you like the more expensive grades. Well, a little known secret is that if you buy several cartons of Vitamin D milk and pour 1/4th of each into an empty carton and then fill them all the rest of the way up with water, it tastes almost the same. The proof is that my cat, who will only drink creamy milk, will still drink diluted milk. I would suggest getting a funnel to make it easier.

Buying and diluting milk this way is cheaper because:

a. You can buy several gallons less than your normally would, yet still get the same amount of product with minimal loss to taste.

b. This method encourages saving milk cartons, which are excellent water bottles, weights and material for arts and crafts.

Buying and diluting milk this way is healthier because:

a. You're consuming more water, and most people don't consume enough.

b. You're taking in fewer calories than you normally would.

3: Milk, again:

Yet another tip for making milk last longer: Get a milk frother. You can buy them fairly cheap, in either the battery or hand operated variety. What's nice about frothed milk is that a relatively small amount of milk roughly doubles in volume (though is halves in density). The neat thing about this: It takes just as long to drink a full glass of frothed milk as it does non-frothed milk. You are essentially making your drinking milk last twice as long.

Frothing milk is cheaper because:

a. It makes milk last longer.

b. Frothed milk looks excellent on coffee. It is a great, cheap way to entertain guests.

Frothing milk is healthier because:

a. You are fooling your brain into thinking you're drinking twice the milk you really are.

b. Frothing milk takes more effort than just pouring it out. If it takes effort to make food, you're more likely to be satisfied with a smaller amount.