You’ve seen the commercials: A $1.00 box of macaroni and cheese serves three, a boxed dinner involving ground beef and pasta feeds a whole family for under $10. Sure, it’s easy to find cheap food. But staying on track with your healthy diet and tempting your taste buds on a demanding budget — well, that’s a little harder.

So what’s the trick? Look for recipes that use inexpensive ingredients and allow for some flexibility to “clean out the fridge” or add a few extras to vary the taste. If you’re looking for ideas, check out one of these tasty choices.

Taco Lentil Rice Casserole Recipe

Lentils and beans are staple foods in many regions of the world for good reason. Not only are they inexpensive, they’re packed with vitamins, fibre and protein. In a pinch, they can serve as a meat alternative and vegetable all in one, and they have a very long shelf life. Rice with lentils is a familiar recipe for frugal cooks, but to make it more interesting it’s all about the seasoning.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup lentils
1/4 cup brown rice
1 envelope taco seasoning
3 cups broth

Pour all into casserole dish and cook at 300 degrees F for 2 – 2 1/2 hours.

Serve on soft tortilla shells with traditional taco fixings. Also makes base for a taco salad. Serves four people.

(Source: CDKitchen.com)

Vegetarian Stew

There are many reasons stews are so popular: they’re hearty, they make great leftovers and they freeze well. To cut the costs even further, cut the meat out altogether. This easy stew recipe from CDKitchen.com uses inexpensive ingredients like rice, beans and cabbage:

Ingredients:
1 can kidney beans
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion — thinly sliced
4 large clove garlic — minced
1 green bell pepper — coarsely chopped)
1 cup green cabbage — coarsely shredded
1/2 cup diced potatoes
16 ounces diced tomatoes — undrained
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
4 cups water or vegetable broth
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in Crockpot. Cover; cook on low for 6 hours. Serves 6 people.

Vegetarian chili, white bean stews and lentil stews are also good alternatives for a heart and filling meal. For more recipe ideas using chick peas, beans and lentils, see Beans really are good for you.

Mushroom and garlic greens

Green, leafy vegetables are good for your health, not just your pocket book. To keep them from being bland, try this simple technique:

Ingredients:
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tbsp butter (or margarine, canola oil or olive oil)
1 bunch spinach

Heat the oil in a frying pan, then sauté the garlic on low-medium heat for about one minute. Next, add the mushrooms and sauté until they are almost cooked. (If you need more liquid, add a little water or broth).