Been poor a long time and we eat like kings. LOL
You just discriped my childhood to a "T"
My granny would be so proud.
"She needs to watch for the sales and buy a WHOLE chicken, cut it up and make it stretch 3 meals."
And boil the chicken first, so she can get chicken soup out of that bird. And close her legs so she doesn't have any more mouths to feed.
Exactly. I buy whole chickens on sale and keep them in my freezer...after you eat the chicken, you can use the carcass to make soup. It doesn't cost that much to buy lettuce, an onion, and carrots and make a nice healthy salad. A cooked dinner also often produces leftovers that can stretch for lunch the next day, etc.
A sack of potatoes fora diabetic? Oatmeal? Do you know anything about diabetic diets? All the cheap stuff like breads, potatoes, and pastas are very high in carbohydrates.
Probably not ... her mother may well not have known either.
I spent a few years being poor; working really sucky jobs before getting my life (sorta, kinda, more-or-less) sorted out. Mom & Dad taught me (and my brothers & sisters) how to cook from 'scratch'. That was quite the survival skill when the paychecks sucked. I found it was actually cheaper to cook fresh vegetables than canned or frozen, and that by catching the sales chicken and hamburger weren't really all that expensive either.
What it took was effort. I won't claim to have eaten like a king in those days, but it wasn't bad.
I believe that in order to receive Food Stamps, the one who cooks for the family should attend classes to learn how to prepare healthy foods. Face it, in many cases, these families that are on welfare have been on welfare for at least two generations so they've never had anyone who could teach them the stuff we learn just growing up in a normal 'have to work for a living' family where Mama had to stretch that last week before payday to make sure the family ate. May have been a lot of pancakes that last week, but at least it wasn't greasy unhealthy frap.
A few days ago I purchased a 4 lb sirloin roast on sale for $1.99 a lb. In the crockpot it went with vegies and seasonings. First night we enjoyed roast, big salad, vegies including carrot, onion, celery, potato and gravy from scratch. Second night we enjoyed open face roast sandwiches and another big salad. My husband took the leftovers to work with him to work today and he'll be sharing with a co-worker. If he didn't take it as lunch I would have had enough roast to make enchiladas. Mind you...we are a family of 3 (2 adults and 1 teen) and usually have 2 extra people dining with us. That $7.96 roast went a long way.
I purchased 4 lbs of ground sirloin (not your typical fat laden hamburger) on sale the same day, for a mere $1.79 lb. I have big plans for that meat.
I purchase boneless skinless chicken breasts - the individually frozen kind - $5.49 for 3 lbs. There's usually 6-7 pieces in the bag. I marinate and grill them then refreeze. I take out what I need for a meal, cutting the meat thin and at a diagonal. I find it goes a long way doing that.
Vegies? :o) I usually buy what's on sale. This week broccoli is on sale for 59 cents each bunch. Loose carrots are 29 cents. Dark leaf lettuce is 79 cents. No excuse to not purchase vegies. We're never w/o vegies and other healthy foods.
I found whole wheat pasta (Barilla brand) on sale for $1.29 for a 1 lb box of linquini.
Most people grab every opportunity to be creative and wise in shopping when **the money is coming out of their own pocket**. When the government **hands it to you**, you're stuck on **stupid**.
...stepping down from my soap-box...but it was peachy being a bit taller for a moment or two. :o)