by Stacey Mcclure

Created on: November 18, 2009

It's the last week of the month. Your food budget is looking a little skimpy. Don't panic, I will give you some tips on how to s-t-r-e-t-c-h those last few food dollars!

Some people may look at meal planning on a budget as a chore. I prefer to look at it as a challenge. If you have read my article How to feed your family of 4 on less than $12.00 a day, then you will know that feeding your family on a budget is not as difficult as you may think.

I could suggest that you eat ramen noodles if you are running low on cash, but that would be irresponsible and flat-out bad advice. Instead, I will offer up some common sense ideas that should help you learn how to fill your belly without breaking the bank.

The first and most important thing to do when planning your meals is to find out what is on sale. For instance, let's say your local market has chicken on sale for .99 a pound. With a typical meat portion per person of 6 to 7 ounces, you can get a few meals planned for very little money.

Here is an example:

Buy a family pack of the chicken. Let's say it is a 5 lb package. You will need 2 lbs. to feed 4 people.

For the first meal, bake 2 lbs. of the chicken in the oven with a little lemon pepper or your favorite spices. Serve with baked or mashed potatoes. You can usually buy a 10 lb. bag for 2.99 or less. Add 2 cans of vegetables which should cost about 50 cents each. Throw in some Macaroni & cheese for 69 cents and you have just fed your family for $4.19!

Now, you still have 3 lbs of chicken to work with. Take the remaining 3 lbs. and boil it. Pull the chicken off the bones and set aside about 1 lb. for later. Now you have this nice boneless chicken meat to use for another dish. Here are some inexpensive hot chicken dishes you can make:

Chicken & dumplings

Chicken noodle soup

Chicken Tacos

Chicken pot pie

Chicken ala king

Chicken casserole

All of the dishes above can be made by only adding a few inexpensive ingredients.

Use the other pound of chicken to make chicken salad. Keep this in the refrigerator for sandwiches or spread it on crackers for a healthy after-school snack.

Tip: If you are not going to use the chicken stock right away, pour it in an air-tight container or zipper bag and freeze it. You can also freeze the stock in ice cube trays for smaller portions to add to vegetables or other dishes. Canned chicken stock is expensive!

Here are some ways to stretch ground beef:

Buy a 3 lb. package of ground beef. This will probably run you about 6 dollars.

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