Vegan on a Budget by guest blogger Kat Barry

I’ll be the first person to admit that I’ve never really been one to function well on a budget.  For many years I was fortunate enough that I could pretty much spend what I wanted especially on something as important to me as good food.  To me, healthy food is invaluable, so when I first became vegan and people would say to me, “isn’t it expensive to eat like you do?” I would agree, sort of.  And I’d come back with some smart remark like, “Eating good food is expensive period.” 

While this can no doubt be the case, it doesn’t have to be true.  When I started my own business early this year I knew I was going to have to make some changes and learn to live on a budget.  I started paying a lot more attention to what I was spending at the store and at the farm stand.  I’m here to tell you first hand that if I can eat healthy on a budget, then anyone can.  It’s just like anything else, once you learn what you have to do, actually doing it is pretty easy.

One of the most common misconceptions about veganism (aside from that “fish is acceptable”) is that it is an expensive lifestyle.  I’m not saying it can’t be, because it certainly can.  Cheeses made from vegetable sources such as tapioca and almond are quite expensive as are “fake meats” like seitan and tempeh.  Prepared vegan meals by brands like Amy’s are pricy as well.  Vegetable oil spreads used as butter substitutes, vegan mayonnaise, and rice or soy milk can add up, too. 

However, if you think about the cost of high quality meats per pound and then look at what it costs for a bag of beans (or even a can) then it is pretty much a no brainer.  In fact, according to Kathy Freston’s book Veganist, the average vegetarian family spends about $2,000 less per year than a family on a typical American diet. 

If the concept of veganism is new to you, then it’s understandable why you might find this hard to believe.  But let’s really look at the cost of things.  Since it’s been years since I’ve eaten meat, I never pay attention to what it costs.  I was recently speaking about plant based diets at a women’s group and I took a poll.  I asked the group, “How much does it cost for a pound of meat?”  I think the answer was an average of about $7 per pound.  Well, a pound of dry beans costs less than $2 at the grocery store and a one pound can of beans is usually less than $1.  Like I said before, a no brainer: that’s a $5-$6 savings right there.  And I promise you, a one pound bag of dried beans is going to last a lot longer and go a lot farther than that pound of meat.

Aside from tofu at about $3 per pound, now that I’m living on a budget, I seldom buy meat substitutes.  Instead, I use beans and nuts.  I’ve weaned myself off of expensive cheese substitutes as well.  I bought a giant bag of chopped, raw cashews at a local health food supplier and I’ve been making my own cheese.  I’ve also been making my own tofu ricotta for years.  It’s simple, easy, and delicious (recipe available at http://www.katshotcakes.com).  In addition, I learned a few years ago that making your own pasta sauce, vegetable stock, and salad dressing is way cheaper and tastes better than anything you can buy at the store.  Is this starting to sound complicated?  You’re probably thinking, “Oh great, next thing she’ll have me canning.”

Everything I’m suggesting here is easy and delicious.  I rarely have time to make any meal that takes longer than 30 minutes to prepare.  Seriously.  Another likely objection is, “Well nuts are expensive.” True.  Nuts are expensive but it only takes a small amount to satisfy your hunger, and they last for a long time.  They last a lot longer than cheese which is not cheap either.  In fact, when I was doing some research for this piece I looked at the costs of deli cheeses for the first time in years.  I was shocked to see how expensive even just American slices are.  One local grocery store is currently advertising a sale of $4.99 per pound.  I mean, that’s not even good cheese.  That is crazy expensive for any person or family living on a budget.  As one friend recently put it to me, “I never buy cheese anymore.  It’s pretty much cost-prohibitive.”

So let’s look at the costs of nuts, which we can all agree are considered expensive, versus cheese.   I mentioned before that I recently bought a large bag of cashews to make my own cheese and cheesy sauce.  A 5lb bag of raw cashews cost me $33.75 in late May.  I’ve made some type of cashew sauce or cheese spread at least once a week since then (often more frequently), and I’ve only used half the bag.  I would encourage any cheese eater to look back at how many pounds of cheese you’ve purchased from the store in the last five months.  Let’s assume you buy one pound per week of standard pre-packaged cheese at about $4 per pound.  It’s the beginning of October so Memorial Day was about 18 weeks ago.   18x4= $72.00.  So it looks like I saved myself at least $38.25 by not eating cheese this summer.  That’s enough money to buy almost 40 cans of beans, at least two week’s worth of produce at the Farmers Market, or about 10 gallons of gas.  The numbers never lie, and furthermore, I can tell you that if I was a cheese eater I would probably be eating a lot more than one pound of cheese per week.

Now let’s move on and take a look at the cost of fresh produce.  It’s very commonly thought that buying fresh food is costly.  Being vegan, obviously I pretty much live off of fresh fruits and vegetables so this is something I wanted to think very seriously about.  I mean, is it really that expensive to buy good, fresh produce?  Let’s see…  One thing I always do, especially because I am fortunate to live in an area where there are a plethora of farms within minutes, is buy local produce directly from the farmers.  All summer long I would take $10-15 to the Farmers Market with me and stock up on seasonal fruits and veggies.  One of the best things about being vegan is that there are SO many vegetables to choose from.  You really broaden your horizons, and you learn what gives you the most bang for your buck in terms of not only dollars but also nutrition. 

Here is a good example of how inexpensive it can be to eat vegan.  On Saturday I went to the Farmers Market with $20, $16 of which I spent and here is what I got: a pint of apples, a pint of potatoes, two bulbs of garlic, a huge bunch of broccoli, 10 tomatoes, two giant branches of fresh basil, a head of cabbage, and some kale.  I bought everything except for the potatoes from a local organic farmer and I also bought some packaged dried onions with Chia seeds from a raw chef friend of mine.  The dried onions were by far the most expensive single item I purchased at $5 for a pint, and I still spent less than $20.  When I came home and looked in my pantry, examining my stock of both dried and canned beans, nuts, whole grains, and pasta, I realized that I really had enough food to feed myself for a good week.  I really don’t know how you can get by much cheaper or healthier than that. 

Now, let’s say the amount I spent on the portion of dried goods I’m going to use this week is another $20 (which I am 100% sure it is much less than that) that means as one person I can eat for an entire week for $40.  That’s pretty cheap.  Cheaper than the pizza and beer for two a friend and I shared on Saturday night at a local eatery.  To back my numbers up, I took a poll of some friends of mine who also shop at Farmers Markets in the summer.  Some of these friends have families and all have at least a partner.  Every one of them said they spent between $15-20 per week on fresh produce (usually buying things like bread and fresh flowers too) and that was enough to feed their household for a week.  So I am not alone in these findings. 

So what do I typically buy?  I do want to share with you some of the key staples of my kitchen.  These are all foods that are super healthy, filling, seasonal, and can be stretched a long way in a variety of uses.

Here are some of my fresh essentials:

Onions, tomatoes, kale (a bunch goes a long way!), potatoes, corn, cabbage (again, goes a LONG way), peppers (sweet, bell, & hot), carrots, beans, and squash.  All of these veggies are available in several varieties, for months at a time, have a wide range of versatile uses, are filling, have a range of health benefits, and are delicious.  For years I’ve purchased a large amount of kale at the end of the season, chopped it, blanched it, and stored it in my freezer all winter long.  This saves me a lot of money that I’d spend buying chopped, frozen spinach which I use tons in recipes, especially pasta.  I did something similar with corn this year.  I bought a dozen ears, peeled it, cut it from the cob, and put it in airtight containers in the freezer.  These are just a few examples to get you thinking.  I really suggest using carrots, potatoes, and cabbage in soups.  These are all very filling veggies that are inexpensive from your local farmer or even, gasp, at the grocery store.  For fruit I generally buy a large amount of whatever is in season.

I can’t leave you without the pantry and freezer essentials since that is crucial to being vegan on a budget:

Dried beans (especially things that cook quickly like lentils), canned beans, vegetarian refried beans, nuts purchased in bulk (must haves include cashews, walnuts, pecans, and almonds), Vegetable bullion, bulk quinoa, barley, bulgur wheat, millet, corn meal, corn grits (great for breakfast!), couscous, whole grain pasta, multi grain bread, bulk nutritional yeast, canola oil, grape seed oil, extra virgin olive oil, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, rice milk, natural peanut butter, Earth Balance natural buttery spread, frozen spinach, frozen corn.

So here is a basic list of tips for eating healthy on a budget.  The vegan part is a given but the crux of all of this is that you can, in fact, eat healthy inexpensively. 

Here’s my list of 10 money saving tips:

1.     Use beans and nuts instead of expensive meat substitutes

~     Focus on dried beans but keep canned on hand too for quick meals

2.     Wean yourself off of expensive cheese & cheese substitutes

~     Make your own out of cashews

3.     Make your own pasta sauce

4.     Don’t buy vegetable stock.  Making your own is easy with veggie bullion

5.     Buy in bulk

6.     Buy fresh local seasonal veggies in season and freeze for later use

7.     Make things like soup, pasta , and casserole that go a long way

8.     Don’t buy prepared meals

9.     Stock your panty with lots of whole grains

1.     A PB & J made with natural peanut butter is healthy, delicious, and cheap

I’m sure these tips and equations are helpful, but how about some practical applications?  Lucky for you, it is pretty much impossible for me to write about food without including some recipes.   Let’s put these tips to use with some of my favorite basics. 

Walnut Grounds

Last holiday season I was hanging out with a bunch of guy friends watching football and everyone was getting a little hungry.  I ventured into my friend’s bachelor pad kitchen and ended up making them a great goulash out of the very simple ingredients I had access to.  The basis was the walnut grounds I’m going to clue you into now.

·       1 ½ C chopped walnuts (buy whole and chop yourself so you can save some $$)

·       1 T Soy sauce

·       2 T Vegan Worcestershire or  about a ½ T dried steak seasoning

·       A dash liquid smoke

·       Sea salt and black pepper (generous on the pepper)

·       1 T olive oil

Chop the nuts.  Meanwhile, heat a skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil.  Next add the nuts and seasonings.  Sautee until the nuts brown a bit.  If they start to stick to the bottom of the pan add a touch more of one of the liquid ingredients (preferably vegan Worcestershire).  Toss with pasta, use to top a salad, or full a squash half.  Yum!

Simple Kale Salad

·      1 bunch organic kale

·      ½  large red onion finely chopped

·      1 cucumber cut into ½ in cubes

·      4 heirloom tomatoes cut into ½ in cubes

·      1/3 C chopped walnuts

·      Newman’s Own Olive Oil Vinaigrette (or your own)

Rinse and dry the kale.  Chop into long ribbons and throw into a large mixing bowl.  Add remaining ingredients and toss lightly with Newsman’s Own or some other vinaigrette. 

Basic Onion Stock           

This is a really simple way to avoid buying expensive vegetable stock at the store.  It only takes a few minutes and you can freeze any extra stock you don’t use or keep it in the fridge for about a week.  You can substitute the onion and shallot for really any type of vegetable.  I pretty much save the stems and cores of everything I chop and make basic vegetable stock the same way.

·       Rinds of one onion

·       8 C water

·       2 cubes veggie bullion

·       5 cloves garlic

·       1 shallot

·       Black pepper

·       2 bay leaves

Combine everything in a large stock pot and bring to a boil.  Boil for about 15-20 minutes then strain.  I usually place a colander over an 8 cup liquid measure and pour the stock (slowly) through that.  Allow to cool fully before attempting to make soup or a roux out of it.

Spicy Marinara Sauce

This is a simple and versatile recipe that I use weekly for pasta, polenta, lasagna, what have you.  It goes really well with my tofu ricotta too.  Spicy food increases your metabolism so I try to eat as much spicy food as possible.  If you can’t take the heat though then just omit the crushed red pepper flakes; it will still be good!

·       1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes (or crush your own fresh ones when in season by using a food processor.  Use about 4 fresh tomatoes but be sure to measure once they’re crushed).

·       3 T tomato paste

·       3 cloves garlic

·       3 T olive oil

·       1 whole yellow onion

·       A generous amount of sea salt ( start w 1 t and see what you think)

·       Black pepper to taste

·       2 T crushed red pepper flakes (1 T for less spicy)

·       2 t agave nectar (or raw sugar)

·       1 t oregano

·       1 t thyme

·       3 T basil

·       1 T parsley

·       1 green bell pepper

Heat a sauce pan over medium high heat then add the olive oil.  Sautee onions until translucent then add everything except the bell pepper.  Bring to a rolling simmer for about 10 minutes then add the bell pepper and simmer another 5-10 minutes and voila, homemade pasta sauce in a flash!

Laura’s Creamy Vegan Mac

All my friends know this recipe well as it is a serious comfort food staple at my house.  It doesn’t taste like mac and cheese but it’s got that creamy quality that will certainly satisfy your cravings.  I’ve been making this one since my early vegan days and it never gets old.  It’s even good cold with a little ketchup.

·      1 lb whole wheat or rice pasta (I prefer Rotini)

·      Half a head chopped cabbage

·      2 C rice or soy milk

·      2 T Earth Balance or other vegetable oil spread

·      2 T vegan mayonnaise (available at Meijer)

·      1 C nutritional yeast (available at health food stores and some large groceries)

·      1 t turmeric

·      ¼ t ground sage

·      1 t sea salt

·      ¾ t black pepper

·      ½ t garlic powder

·      1 can chick peas

Cook pasta according to instructions.  When it’s a couple minutes from being done add the cabbage.  It will only take 1-3 minutes for the cabbage to cook.  Drain and return to stock pot.  Meanwhile add all other ingredients to a sauce pan and whisk gently while bringing to a simmer.  Once everything is a combined liquid and starts to thicken you’re done.  Add to the pasta and bring back to a boil until the sauce thickens up and everything is nice and creamy.  I actually like to serve this with ketchup and a simple salad.  You can toss in one can of any white beans or ¾ cup pine nuts.