50 Healthy Foods for Under $1 a Pound

These cheap healthy meals prove eating well doesn't have to cost a fortune.

Read more: http://www.thedailygreen.com/living-green/blogs/save-money/cheap-healthy-food-

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* Apples - One a day keeps the cheapskate away.
* Asparagus - HUGE store special at 99 cents a pound during Easter week. I bought 10 pounds, blanched it and then froze it.
* Bananas - Potassium for pennies.
* Barley - A tasty alternative to rice and potatoes.
* Beans - (canned or dried) Kidney, pinto, navy, black, red, and many more.
* Bok Choy - Steam and serve with a little soy sauce.
* Broccoli - Yes, a store special. Usually closer to $2 per pound.
* Bulgar Wheat - Try it in pilaf or a tabouleh salad.
* Cabbage - Green and red -- I like mine fried.
* Cantaloupe - No, sorry, I can't; I'm already married.
* Carrots - Raw or steamed; rich in carotenes, a healthy antioxidant.
* Celery - Stir fry it for a change.
* Chicken - Whole or various parts, on sale.
* Chickpeas - AKA garbanzo beans -- mash 'em up as a healthy sandwich spread.
* Cornmeal - "Polenta" is all the rage these days, but I loved it 40 years ago when Mom called it "cornmeal mush."
* Cucumbers - Try peeling, seeding, and steaming with a little butter and salt.
* Daikon Radish - My new favorite raw veggie.
* Eggs - Don't overdo them, but eggs provide high quality protein and still cost about $1 per pound. (Plus, there are many eggscellent things you can do with the shells.)
* Green Beans - Frozen, but fresh are sometimes on sale for under $1 a pound in-season.
* Greens - Kale, mustard, turnip, and collard greens are rich in vitamins and a good source of fiber. Here's how I cook 'em.
* Grapes - Store special @ .99 a pound.
* Grapefruit - Bake with a little brown sugar on top for a healthy dessert.
* Lentils - Perhaps the perfect food -- healthy, cheap, and versatile (think soups, salads, sandwich spreads -- and those are only some of the "s" possibilities).
* Liver - Chicken livers usually cost under $1 a pound, and sometimes beef and pork liver can be found in the DMZ ("Dollar Maximum Zone").
* Mangoes - High in fiber and vitamins A, B6, and C.
* Milk - Yep, on a per-pound basis, milk still costs well under $1 a pound.
* Napa Cabbage - Delicious steamed or raw in a salad.
* Oatmeal - The good old-fashioned "slow cooking" kind...that takes all of five minutes.
* Onions - Try baking them whole in a cream sauce.
* Oranges - Frequent sale price when in-season.
* Pasta - Store special @ .89 a pound -- I nearly bought them out!
* Peanut Butter - Special sale price, but stock up because it usually has a long shelf life.
* Pork - Inexpensive cuts of pork frequently go on sale for 99 cents per pound or less; sometimes even ham during the holidays.
* Potatoes - White and red - baked, mashed, boiled, broiled, steamed.
* Pumpkin - Yes, you can eat the same ones you buy as holiday decorations, and they usually cost under 50 cents a pound.
* Rice - White for under $1 a pound; brown, a little more expensive but better for you.
* Rutabagas - Hated them as a kid; can't get enough of them now.
* Sour Cream - 99 cents on sale, but long shelf life, so stock up. My cucumber awaits.
* Spinach - Frozen (but Popeye doesn't care).
* Split peas - Add a hambone and make the ultimate comfort soup. Try it in the crock-pot!
* Squash - Try baking acorn squash with a little brown sugar.
* Sweet corn - Canned, or fresh on the cob, in-season. (Try this recipe for summer corn fritters.)
* Tomatoes (canned) - Canned are often better than fresh to use in cooking, and occasionally you can find fresh on sale for under a buck, in-season.
* Turkey - A popular bargain priced loss-leader around the holidays -- buy an extra bird and freeze it for later.
* Turnips - Make me think of my grandparents, who always grew them.
* Watermelon - Whole, in-season melons can sometime cost less than 20 cents a pound if they're on sale and you find a big one.
* Wine - Well, at least the stuff I drink - 5 liter box (approximately 11 pounds) for about ten bucks, on sale. (BTW, the beer I drink is even less expensive per pound.)
* Yams/Sweet Potatoes - One of the healthiest foods you can eat, and usually available year around for under $1 a pound.
* Yogurt - 8-ounce containers on sale two for $1.
* Zucchini - OK, they're a type of squash (above). But I love them so much they deserve their own place on the list
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