"Healthy Foods" are not expensive

I overheard someone say the other day, “My daughter should eat a healthier diet, but she’s a single mom of one and on a very limited budget—and healthy foods are so expensive.” Au contraire.

I think this is one of the greatest misconceptions of all time. The truth is that convenient, healthy foods are expensive, but so are convenient unhealthy foods. It’s definitely the convenience that ups the cost.

So does that mean that if you don’t have lots of cash, you have to have lots of time? Not necessarily. It takes planning and preparing in advance. Sound familiar? I can’t help going back to this theme time and time again because it is such a significant factor in making tasty, economical, healthy foods that are a cinch to make on busy days if you are willing to put in time and thought on occasional days when you have the time. And I must repeat that having as large a freezer as you can afford really helps.

Take the following list of really healthy and inexpensive foods:

Whole grain pasta
Beans
Rice (especially brown)
Fresh vegetables in season
Canned and frozen vegetables on sale
Canned salmon and tuna
Chicken, ground beef and other meats on sale
Peanut butter
Powdered milk
Whole grain and unbleached flour
All fruit in season and on sale, canned and fresh and frozen

Pasta is a great food in every way. It is really cheap—usually around $1.00-1.50 per pound. A pound of pasta will serve a lot of people—depending on how you prepare it, of course. Al dente tastes best, but if you pre-cook it to al dente and let it sit in a very tasty sauce at low heat for about 10 extra minutes, it won’t get mushy but will absorb the flavor of the liquid and expand into more servings. Besides, children prefer their pasta a little more done. The whole grain varieties are delicious and even though the pasta may look a little browner in the package, after cooking it is hard to distinguish from white flour pasta.

Beans are the epitome of healthy and cheap. Wow, what a lot of bang for your buck you get from beans. They come in endless varieties, they are simple to cook, and they stick to your ribs. Plus, beans are a great source of protein, fiber and are full of antioxidants and other disease-fighting elements. In combination with small amounts of meat they become even healthier.

Rice is a staple that is usually served as a side—but it’s easy to make it the centerpiece of the meal. Actually, combining rice with beans and a little meat has long been a staple of people in the south. The dish, usually known as “beans ‘n rice” is a favorite of the Cajun and Creole people and has become very popular with everyone.

Vegetables, fresh, canned and frozen are really not expensive. Especially if you buy them plain—not in entrée dishes or with sauces included. All year long potatoes, carrots, celery, onions, garlic and most lettuces are available at low prices. Mirepoix, a staple in Italian and French cooking, is simply a mixture of diced carrots, onion and celery cooked very slowly in either butter or olive oil, until tender and aromatic. You can add small diced ham, garlic or other herbs (bay leaf, thyme, etc.) according to your taste. This mixture will ensure that an otherwise ordinary dish will taste divine. I make a lot of it at one time and freeze it in small plastic bags, enough for an individual dish. Thaw in the microwave, start it in a skillet or Dutch oven and use it as a base for a dozen dishes.

One more thing about those vegetables: when you trim celery, peel carrots, onions or take the outer leaves off Romaine lettuce or cabbages; put those scraps into a zip-lock freezer bag, label and freeze. When you have a lot, simmer in water (water that vegetables have been cooked in, if you have saved it) for 2 or 3 hours and add seasonings to make a delicious and vitamin-packed vegetable stock. (Discard the solids when they are finished cooking).

The following recipe was given to me by a Creole woman friend who I have mentioned in this column before—boy did I get a lot of great recipes from her. Thanks, Janice.

Beans ‘n Rice

2 cups dry pinto or kidney beans
Ham hocks, seasoned ham pieces or ham bone
1 large onion, chopped
½ cup green bell pepper (chopped)
2 or 3 garlic cloves
Salt and pepper to taste
Bacon drippings or cooking oil
Hot Rice
Kielbasa (any amount) optional

Wash beans and soak in a deep pot (4 quart) with enough water to cover beans overnight. In the morning fry ham in bacon drippings. Fry sausage. Remove from pot and add onion, garlic and bell peppers and sauté until medium brown. Add 1 cup water to this mixture and bring to boil. Pour mixture in deep pot with beans which have been drained and put back into pot. Add about ½ gallon of water. Raise to a boil and cover and simmer about 4 hours, stirring occasionally, adding more water if pot seems dry. Add meat about 1 hour before beans are ready. Season with salt and pepper and pour over hot rice to serve.