Healthy $1 Dinner Recipes – Easy Budget Meals! – Mind Over Munch

Hey munchers Welcome back and welcome if you're new I'm Alyssia

About a month ago I shared a video for a campaign to help the American Foundation for Children with AIDS where I was challenged to make breakfast lunch and dinner for under $2 You guys seemed to love it and requested more budget meals so today I am sharing $1 dinner recipes and if you want this to become a miniseries for breakfast, lunch and more for $1 or less let me know in the comments below and thumbs-up wouldn't hurt So all the meals that I'm sharing today are less than $1 per serving Now that doesn't mean that the ingredients cost $1 it means that through budget shopping and sales at affordable places like Aldi and the dollar store or in bulk places like Costco you can spend less than $1 per serving on these meals You may choose to buy certain items higher quality, so if you want organic produce or meat or eggs of course those will be a bit more

The $1 calculation that I'm sharing today was made using the most affordable ingredients available The point isn't really that $1 number but more so to show you that if you shop around you can really make some healthy meals for very little money which a lot of people are convinced cannot be done First up is a completely vegan dish, my black bean burgers For this recipe you will need black beans Now it is cheaper if you want to buy dry beans and rehydrate them but I am frankly too lazy and canned beans can be pretty darn cheap too

You can get it for less than $060 a can if you shop around Pumpkin Canned pumpkin is also affordable and a lot of people don't realize is available year-round Plus it's adding extra nutrition

You'll also need oats which, budget tip, are cheaper if you buy in bulk bins, as well as onion, garlic, olive oil, cumin, chili powder, paprika, and salt Add all of your ingredients into your food processor and blend it on up Another tip on spices buying bulk spices will significantly lower the price per ounce and a little goes a long way Transfer your mixture into a large mixing bowl and divided into fourths like so This mixture will be a bit wet so transferring to the fridge for a few minutes before can help make it easier to work with

Spray down a large pan over medium heat and place on a quarter of your mixture shaping it into a nice patty Cook for about 5 minutes before flipping and cooking up the other side You can also bake these in the oven if preferred and I will include all of these recipes and cooking times in the recipe PDF in the description Serve as you'd like I chose my favorite toppings with a bun but you could of course do a lettuce wrap or bread or even tortilla if you prefer

The total cost for this meal only $061 per serving That does not include the toppings but it does include the bun Thumbs up for affordable weeknight meals Next up are my asian chicken kabobs or skewers

This dish is great because the protein and veggies are all in one place You'll want to start by soaking your wooden skewers for 1-2 hours so they don't burn in the oven I just add mine to a shallow dish or pan with some water and weigh them down to keep them submerged For this recipe you will need chicken thighs, budget tip, thighs will almost always be cheaper than breasts They aren't as lean but dark meat is still high in protein and it's actually higher in iron too, plus a little bit of extra fat is going to add a lot of flavor and make it much more moist

You will also need bell pepper I went with green because it is usually more affordable than other varieties, onion, zucchini which are so cheap especially in season and that is another budget tip shop seasonal, soy sauce, olive oil, sesame oil, cilantro fresh herbs are going to add so much flavor to our budget meals, and salt and pepper Let's start by making our sauce In a small mixing bowl add your soy sauce, olive oil, sesame oil, cilantro, and salt and pepper Whisk to combine

Now let's load up our skewers Place the skewers onto a large baking sheet lined with foil and sprayed and I like to use a baking rack so I don't have to flip them halfway through Now it's time to brush on your sauce mixture Once nice and coated bake in oven preheated to 450 degrees fahrenheit for about 20 to 25 minutes until the chicken is completely cooked through Remember you could always use tofu as a vegan protein option for this dish

I also served it with some rice on the sign because for me a dinner just isn't complete without some carby goodness Total cost per serving $057 and yup that does include the rice Rice is another super cheap ingredient especially if you're buying it in bulk and cooking it up yourself Lastly we've got my new favorite thing ever spaghetti pie

I don't even really like spaghetti but I do like it if its pie This dish is another option for the vegetarians or anyone looking for meat free options #MeatlessMonday say what!!! For this recipe you will need cooked spaghetti and I recommend cooking 3 to 4 minutes less than the package recommends for al dente because it will cook up a little bit more in the oven, black beans or your favorite beans of choice or ground meat if you want the protein, onion, garlic, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, salt and pepper, garlic powder, eggs, Parmesan cheese, ricotta or cottage cheese which can often be cheaper but both will work, mozzarella cheese and when it comes to cheese it's always cheaper to buy the block and shredded yourself, and fresh parsley Spray down a pan over medium heat and add your chopped onions Saute until translucent and then add your garlic, black beans, and garlic powder

Sautéing the onions and garlic first is going to add soo much flavor which again is so important in those budget meals Affordable does not have to mean bland In a large mixing bowl add your tomato sauce, cottage cheese, eggs, parmesan, parsley, and salt and pepper Whisk to combine and then add your diced tomatoes and your onion bean mixture Mix again and then fold in your cooked spaghetti gently

Grab a sprayed springform pie pan and pour in your mixture and sprinkle on your shredded mozzarella cheese Bake in an oven preheated at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 40-45 minutes If the cheese starts to brown too much on top then about halfway through add a sheet of foil to cover Allow to cool for about 20 minutes and then you can run an offset spatula around the outside, pop it open, and cut into wedges Now there's nothing left to do but enjoy

It really is so delicious and what a fun dish that can be healthy and affordable I hope you guys liked this episode, thumbs up if you want a series of $1 meals and I will keep them coming Also a quick announcement snapchat I have one I haven't really been using it but I'm going to and I'm challenging myself to 30 days of healthy snaps So I'm going to share tips, recipes, tutorials, meal prep, and general motivation for 30 days in a row starting this coming Monday, the 12th and hopefully that will turn into a habit where I do it more to

So follow me on snapchat alyssa sheikh and all my other social media is mind over munch So that's it for today I hope you all have a wonderful week and remember it's all a matter of Mind Over Munch

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