You Can Afford Real Food!
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We are happy to introduce you to our friend, Kirsten McCormick, who blogs over at Cheerfully Imperfect. She has written a post to share with Oh Lardy! readers on how you can afford real food! Enjoy!
10 Ways to Eat Well and Save Money Too!!!
So, you have decided to kick the processed food habit. Congratulations! You are ready to get started with real food. This decision can literally change your life. So, you throw out the boxed junk with mysterious ingredients, pour the sodas down the drain and head to the grocery store to stock up on fresh produce and grass fed meats. Oh and don't forget the coconut oil!
You are excited and nervous as you fill your cart, but when you get to the check-out and the cashier presents you with the bill, you realize that you may have to trade in both your first born child AND her college savings in order to afford this on a regular basis.
But you have passed the point of no return. You know you can't go back to eating like before. So, now what?
At this point, fasting seems like a viable option, but that only lasts about half an hour, before your stomach starts to growl. So, here you are. Looking for real answers. I am here to assure you that it IS possible to eat well and save money too.
And it is totally worth it. It's true that sometimes real food may cost more than it's fake counterpart. But every bite of real, nutrient dense food is an investment into your long term health. So, here I have gathered up some posts by my favorite real food bloggers to give you ideas and inspiration on how to eat well and save money.
1. Ten Tips for Saving Money on Groceries and Eating Healthier part one and part two from the Rising Spoon
2. Eating Real Food On a Budget from Our Small Hours
3. How to Eat Easy Paleo Meals Without Going Broke from Meatified
4. 10 Days of My Paleo Grocery Budget from Meatified
Buying in bulk can save a LOT of money.
My husband and I purchased an extra freezer for this very reason about 3 years ago. This allows me to buy extra of anything that is on sale and freeze it. We also buy grassed beef and pastured pork by the half animal which save us about 75% on what it would cost us at the grocery store. PLUS, we can make lots of meals in advance and freeze them for quick easy dinners later on.
5. Why I spent $50 on Soup and You Should Too by Fearless Eating
6. Taming the Grocery Budget: Once a Month Meal Planning from Whistle Pig Hollow
Do Not Tie Yourself to the Grocery Store
There are a lot of ways to buy food and although going to the grocery store may be the most common, it isn't necessarily the cheapest of the healthiest. It may seem intimidating to seek out local farms and farmer's markets, but once you do, you will realize it isn't as hard and scary as you thought. Co-ops, food clubs and CSA's can also provide you with great deals on local, fresh food.
7. How We Buy Our Food – Without Going to the Supermarket from And Here We Are
8. Why You Should Start a Food Buying Club This Year from Small Footprint Family
9. Take Advantage of the “extras”
And by “extras” I mean the parts of the plants and animals that normally get tossed. Save stems, stalks and ends of your veggies when you make dinner and throw them into a post to make stock (if you aren't ready to make stock right now, put them in the freezer until you are ready). Extras at the butchers counter or from the farm are things like pig fat (making your own lard is REALLY easy and very good for you), bones, which make wonderful, nutrient dense broth and stock.
Last but not least, I will leave you with some recipes for inspiration!
10. Recipes:
Grassfed on a budget: Rosemary and Garlic Braised Oxtail from Gutsy by Nature
30 Cheap Main Dish Paleo Meals from The Paleo Mama
Affording Paleo & Fruity Kombucha Jell-O Bites from The Paleo Mama
Prize Pineapple and Parsley Smoothie and how to save money on groceries/food: Halve your shopping bill from Green Thickies
How do you save money on real food! Please comment below so I can steal… er, I mean “borrow” your ideas!
About Kirsten at Cheerfully Imperfect:
Somewhere along my journey I realized that contrary to my natural inclination, burning the candle at both ends and packing my schedule full did not lead to contentment. The more I try to do at one time, the faster life seems to slip by. I don’t want life to slip by. I don’t want to miss a single moment with my amazing husband or my four precious children. So, I imagined what an ideal day looked like and what I wanted to spend each day doing. Instead of hoping for someday, I called that day, “Today.” That is why I homeschool. Because my perfect day is spent with my kids. That is why I cook wholesome food from scratch. Because I want good health for them right now. That is why I sing, read, walk, swim and write. Because my perfect day has time for those things. Not someday. Today.
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Thanks to Whistle Pig Hollow for the picture.