How To Eat 'Ordinary Food' Without Starving

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This article includes my grocery shopping lists and meal plans for several weeks, along with some choice money-saving recipes. The prices I quote are what I'm paying at the local IGA as of late 1974 . . . and I should point out that there's no tax on food here in the small town in northeastern Kentucky where I live.

WEEK NUMBER ONE

SUGGESTED MENUS

BREAKFAST

Milk, 5 ounces
Toast with margarine
Orange juice
Applesauce

LUNCH/SUPPER

Choose from:
Grilled cheese sandwich
Soup
Macaroni and cheese
Green vegetable
Jell-O
Milk or Kool-Aid (alternate as beverage)

Lunch and supper menus can be interchanged depending on when and what you prefer eating. The idea is to balance the nutrients your body needs. Keep in mind that eggs, dried beans, peanut butter and cheese are all protein foods that replace meat. Know the good buys for each month and weave them into your basic diet.

With a week-by-week approach like mine, economy takes on a whole new slant. At first it may seem that you consume all you buy in a single period . . . but cooking for one hardly requires four sticks of margarine, for example, or a box of macaroni or two pounds of sugar all in one week. With these items and small amounts of other leftovers in mind, you can plan each shopping trip more economically.

You'll notice that my menus do involve some "cooking", though not in the sense of elaborately planned meals. There are many simple recipes and preparations that even the most helpless bachelor can "cook up" for himself.

A good start for the beginner is fruit gelatin or pudding (just add water or milk respectively). And almost everyone can make a sandwich and heat soup. Add to this the ever-popular grilled cheese technique: If you can smear margarine on bread and add a slab of cheese between slices, smash the result down and watch the filling melt in a skillet or under the broiler, you're on your way to successful economy-minded cookery.

OK. After that elaborate introduction to culinary techniques, you should be ready for my macaroni and cheese recipe (a good one because macaroni goes a long way and cheese is a meat substitute). Follow the directions on the package and cook as much pasta as you can eat in one serving. Then add margarine and cheese spread (left over from a previous week) or slices, and stir the mixture until the sauce is blended. That's it!

WEEK NUMBER TWO

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