Health for life

Back to the Poor Man Diet.  If you missed last weeks post, you should probably read that first.  Otherwise none of this will make any frickin sense.  In the last post, I talked about 5 of the best choices you can make if youre compromising cost and health.  Theyre not the healthiest 5 foods in the world, and theyre not the cheapest 5 foods in the world... but theyre just about the most nutritious foods you can find for the least amount of money.  Its all about compromise.

Today, though, Im giving you 10 complementary foods.  Ive given you a solid base, but its the complementary foods that can make or break your diet.  If youre eating pop-tarts and ho-hos on the side, you could be in trouble.  These arent foods you need to eat every day, and because of that Im being a little more forgiving on the cost end of things and leaning more towards nutrient-density.  Still, you wont find lobster tail here, or raw oysters, or white truffles... okay nevermind Ill stop blabbering and get on with it... here you are, 10 nutritious complementary foods for your Poor Man Diet.


1. Chicken Thighs
$1.29/lb (bone-in), $1.99/lb (boneless)
$0.50/serving
Youre in luck.  Since everyone has gone chicken boob crazy, thats left chicken butt on the sidelines.  Little does everyone know, chicken thighs are much juicier and more flavorful than breasts... and theres nothing wrong with a little more fat in your life, especially if youre looking to get the most food for your dollar.  In terms of nutrition, theyre a great source of protein, B vitamins, and zinc.  Probably your most cost-effective source of meat!


2. Onions
$3.49/3 lb
$0.44/onion (size matters)
One of the most versatile foods in your Poor Man kitchen is onions.  They work with just about everything, whether its a rice dish, a stir fry, a salad, or meat.  Although theyre not particularly dense with vitamins and minerals, they make up for it with a few other interesting benefits.  Onions are allyl propyl disulphide, a compound that has a blood sugar lowering effect; great for diabetics.  Theyre also really high in antioxidants, including quercetin, which has known anti-cancer properties.  You can eat them liberally.


3. Sweet Potatoes
$1.29/lb
$0.52/serving
Theyre a little more expensive then regular potatoes, but theyre just as nutritious (if not more so).  The nutrient breakdown is similar to a white potato, the only major difference being the huge whack of beta-carotene in sweet potatoes.  I honestly dont know where this good-sweet-potato/bad-white-potato nonsense came from... theyre both great foods, and they should be an important part of a healthy diet.  As for the sweet ones, bake them, boil them, mash them, roast them with cinnamon and coconut oil... any way you prepare them, theyre a yummy treat. 


4. Liver, heart, or other organ meat
$1.11/lb (chicken liver), $2.49/lb (beef liver)
$0.37/serving
Yuck, right?  I know, personally I have a hard time eating liver; I just cant get used to the pungent flavor.  But liver is by far the most nutrient dense food for your dollar.  Its the best source of vitamins A and B12 youll find, and its also very high in iron, zinc, folate, and all the B vitamins.  Luckily, it only takes a little liver to get a nice burst of all these important vitamins and minerals.  Cant get past the taste?  Give beef heart a try... its not as gross at it sounds; if you put it in a stew it would be indistinguishable from normal beef, I promise.  And the nutritional content is in the same league as liver.  Be brave and try it!  Heart is for lovers <3.


5. Grass-Fed Butter
$2.99/8 oz
$0.19/Tbsp
Yup, butter is on the list!  Its inexpensive, tasty, and full of good fat (believe it or not).  Grass-fed butter, which you can get in just about every grocery store in America at this point, is not your average butter.  It comes from cows grazed on pasture, not penned up indoors eating corn, and that has a big impact on the nutrient content of the butter.  Grass-fed butter has more vitamin A, K2, and CLA, and it has more flavor than grain-fed butter.  Give Kerrygold a try, youll never look back.


6. Baby Carrots
$1.99/lb
$0.40/serving
Carrots arent the most nutritious vegetable around, but theyre not too shabby.  And considering the price, youve got yourself a winner.  Theyre a great source of fiber, beta carotene, and theyve got a little bit of just about every vitamin and mineral we need.  Theyre versatile and convenient; you can snack on them as is, throw them in a stir fry, or use them in a stew.


7. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
$19.49/3 Liters
$0.10/Tbsp
But... extra virgin olive oil is so expensive!?!?  Shut it.  Its not.  Every time I go to the grocery store, theres at least one giant container of extra virgin on sale.  It may not be the worlds most yummiest olive oil, but its still decent nonetheless.  Its full of heart-healthy fats, you need it in your life.  Use it in salad dressings, pour it over steamed veggies, or cook with it.  Keep the temperature to a low-medium in cooking though... extra virgin isnt really meant for high heat cooking.


8. In-Season Fruit
$Cheap
$Cheap/serving
Where else can you find something for $Cheap???  No matter the time of year, theres something in season.  In the summer its berries, in the fall its apples, in the winter its oranges, etc etc etc.  Buying a giant bag of whatever it is will get you the most fruit for your dollar.  But buying fruit in season has benefits that go beyond price, too.  Most importantly, it tastes better.  Youll notice that immediately.  But its also better for the environment and it promotes a more sustainable agricultural system.  We cant afford to be shipping this stuff around the world all the time. And if you happen to live in an area where avocados grow... then god bless you child you dont know what you got.


9. Canned Wild Salmon
$3.79/lb
$0.95/serving
Thought wild salmon was out of your price range??  Not when youre buying it canned!  For reasons that are unknown to me, salmon in a can is far more affordable than fresh or frozen.  And its nearly always wild, not farmed.  The wild type is higher in important omega-3s, and its full of lots of important vitamins and minerals, like B12 and selenium.  And canned salmon, unlike fresh or frozen, actually has a good amount of calcium... there are little bones in there too.  You wont even taste them.  This stuff works wonders on salads... very super-convenient and tasty.



10. Whole Milk
$3.89/gallon
$0.24/cup
Only for the dairy-tolerant, of course.  Despite what youve been told, whole milk is your best milk option.  The fats wont kill you.  Besides, you cant afford to be throwing the fat out when youre poor.  Skim milk, on the other hand, is downright scary.  Its an empty food, and it tastes like nothing.  And of course, milk is a great source of calcium, along with fat soluble vitamins like A and D.  Oh, and dont forget B12 and potassium.  Of course, raw, grass-fed milk would be better... but you cant afford that.



Phew!  All done.  Now... with the 5 base foods, and 10 complementary foods, Id say weve got a pretty solid, nutritious, affordable diet here.  As far as I can tell, Ive covered all of the nutritional bases... plenty of protein, healthy fats, and good carbs, as well as adequate vitamins and minerals.

Now that its all out there, Id love some feedback.  Do you agree with these?  Are there foods I left out that you feel should have been included?  Do you think Im a complete moron and should shut down my blog altogether??  Let me hear it in the comments section!

Miriam Isserow is a fundraising consultant based in Silver Spring, Maryland. In her misspent youth, she loved to make dessert. Now she likes to cook delicious and healthful meals.

This time of year, we seem to go from one food-centric event to another. This is a particular challenge for my dear husband, otherwise known as The Man Who Discovered Food Has Calories. I know my new nickname for him is a mouthful, so from here on in, Ill call him TMWDFHC.

I recently mentioned to TMWDFHC that for our own holiday meal, I would make a bulgur stuffing instead of our traditional bread stuffing. Years ago, my cousin whipped up a similar dish that I still remember—and given the dieting and monitoring of cholesterol we’ve been doing at my house, I thought it would be a great alternative to soaking bread with eggs.

But when I told TMWDFHC I would be doing a bulgur stuffing, he flipped out.

“How can you make stuffing without chestnuts?”

You see, one core principle in our house is that stuffing has chestnuts. I assured TMWDFHC that the bulgur stuffing would have chestnuts, too.

So, I found some bulgur stuffing recipes, added chestnuts and played around a little. This was the result. You can make it in the turkey, or, if youre expecting vegetarians or happen to live with someone who discovered that food has calories, you can bake it in a pan. An additional healthful plus: You don’t have to grease the pan as you would with classic stuffing.

Chestnut & Bulgur Stuffing
Serves 12

2 ½ c water,
2 oz. dried porcini mushrooms (around 2 cups)
1 oz. dried morel mushrooms (around 1 cup)
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 chopped medium sized onion
5 ½ c. broth
2 ½ c. bulgur (it’s good if it’s coarse but it really doesn’t matter)
1 c. flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup shelled chestnuts (use a freeze dried package that you can buy at an Asian market for next to nothing).

1) Bring water to a boil. Pour over mushrooms and soak for half an hour.

2) In a 4 quart sauce pan or chefs pan, sauté onion in olive oil until softened. Add broth and bring to a boil. Stir in bulgur and cook around 8 minutes more, uncovered.

3) Remove mushrooms from water, squeezing if necessary. Reserve soaking liquid, strain, and set aside. Rinse mushrooms and coarsely chop.

4) In a large bowl, toss together bulgur, ½ cup of the reserved liquid, mushrooms, chestnuts, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Let cool completely.

5) Now you can either stuff it in a turkey or bake it. If you are baking it in a pan, no need to grease the pan—and bake it at 325 for 40 minutes, covered.

NOTE: Our custom is to use some as stuffing and some in a pan for the vegetarians (using vegetable broth in that case). After all, even those who have discovered that food has calories and who are trying to be really good through the holidays are entitled to the divine taste of chestnut stuffing with turkey drippings.