June 9, 2010

Breakfast

Fruit and Cream

2 servings ~ $1.19 per serving

1 banana ($.20)

1 mango ($.98)

2 tablespoons walnuts ($.25)

2 tablespoons raisins ($.15)

2 cups almond, rice, or soy milk ($.80)

Fruity Pebbles, Froot Loops, Trix ... most commercial cereals try to imitate fruit. Why not just have fruit?

Any fresh or dried fruit combination would work. For this, I've used a sliced banana, diced mango, and some walnuts and raisins topped with almond milk.

 

calories: 345

fat: 12 gr

carbs: 62 gr

protein: 4 gr

 

Lunch

Potato and Bean Soup

serves 4 ~ $1.06 per serving

5 medium potatoes, diced ($1.00)

1 sweet potato or yam, diced ($.69)

1 large onion, diced ($.05)

handful kale, chopped ($.40)

3 stalks celery, sliced ($.10)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

 1 can garbanzo beans ($1.79)

1 potato, pureed in 1 cup water ($.20)

We've been having a bit of cool and rainy weather, which was perfect for soup.

In a large pot with 8 cups boiling water, add the diced potatoes, sweet potato, onion, kale, celery, salt and pepper. Simmer for about 30 minutes until vegetables are tender. Add the can of drained garbanzo beans.

My trick for thick soups is chop up a potato and puree it in a blender with a cup of water until smooth. Then add this puree at the very end of cooking. It thickens the soup wonderfully.

 

calories: 370

fat: 6 gr

carbs: 79 gr

protein: 10 gr

 .

Dinner

Boca and Fries

serves 2 ~ $1.75 per serving

2 boca brand vegan "burgers" ($1.85)

2 whole wheat buns ($.55)

2 medium onions ($.10)

4 medium potatoes ($.80)

2 tablespoons oil ($.20)

salt, lettuce, mustard, ketchup

Every so often, I indulge in a comfort food meal. This isn't a recipe, I just wanted to document the cost and nutritional information for a meal like this.

I bake my Boca burgers on a rack in the oven at about 350 degrees ... you might prefer yours done in a pan. The directions for that are on the box.

The potatoes are super simple. Just peel, slice into strips, and coat lightly with oil. I do this by stirring them in a bowl with the oil. They get just a bit of a coating, but not too much. Bake on a cookie sheet for at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until browned and crisped a bit. I've also brown the buns for a few minutes in the oven as well.

Top with sliced onions and desired condiments.

 

calories: 625

fat: 16 gr

carbs: 100 gr

protein: 25 gr

Dessert

Coconut Milk Chocolate Ice Cream

serves 6 ~ $.77 per serving

1 - 14 ounce can coconut milk ($2.19)

2 ripe bananas ($.40)

4 tablespoons agave ($.80)

6 tablespoons cocoa powder ($1.20)

pinch salt

This is creamy and luscious and so easy to make. This is much better than most soy ice creams, and rivals the Coconut Bliss brand, but for a lower cost.

Coconut milk comes in a can and is coconut meat and coconut water combined. It separates so will look like stiff coconut goo and water when opened. This is how it's supposed to look and it will smooth out nicely in the blender.

Put all ingredients into a blender, or use food processor fitted with an"S" blade. Puree until very smooth. Process in an ice cream maker until firm. The store in freezer. If you don't have an ice cream maker, simply pour into a tub and freeze, stirring every so often until firm. Allow to thaw just slightly, about five minutes, before serving.

 

calories: 229

fat: 16 gr

carbs: 22 gr

protein: 3 gr

 

Total cost for the day: $4.77

total calories: 1,569

total fat: 50 gr

total carb: 263 gr
total protein: 42 gr