Monthly Archives: May 2015

$29 Food Stamp Challenge – the recipes

Ohai.  I present three recipes with my #FoodBankNYCChallenge haul.

Baked Lentils

1 1/2 cup lentils
4-5 garlic cloves, minced
diced fresh tomatoes
1 teaspoon dal spice mix (more or less according to personal taste)

Wash and drain lentils first. Then mix everything in a casserole dish and cover with water by one inch.  Bake in a 350F oven for 40-55 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.  Stir half-way during the baking process.

Serve with rice, which you can prepare according to package directions.

I didn’t buy olive oil because its cost doesn’t fit into the $29 budget.  I wondered if it’s possible to roast vegetables without oil.  The internet says yes, it is so.  So here we go…

Dry Oven Roasted Bitter Gourd

Slice gourds in thick rounds, roughly 1 inch thick.
Season with a bit of salt.*
Arrange in pie plate.
Bake in 350F oven for 30 minutes.

*The Food Bank NYC Challenge Took Kit states that common spices (like salt) already in your pantry is okay to use.

No-cook oatmeal
This one is easy to put together.
Mix together equal parts raw rolled oats and almond milk in a bowl or mason jar.  Add in as much raisins as you like.  Let it sit in the refrigerator overnight.  In the morning, add in some sliced fruit (banana or apple) and eat.

The $29 food stamp challenge

So I was compelled to take on the #FoodBankNYCChallenge for one week.  The challenge dictates that you try to live on $29 worth of groceries for seven days.  And you can’t use stuff you already have sitting in the cupboard.  With that in mind, it’ll take lots of strategic planning to make the dollar go far.  Buying in bulk would give a better deal.  When you buy in bulk, you’d end up eating the same thing pretty much at every meal, but you’ll make it through.  A restricted budget means that you only eat to live, not live to eat.

So this is what my $29 food stamp challenge haul looks like.

Trader Joe’s
Instant coffee: $3.99

I realize that I can forget about the organic free trade non-fat soy latte brewed with whale tears from some trendy coffee house down the block overrun with hipsters.  Because budget.  Regardless, coffee is still an absolute must for me to be able to function in the morning. This is where instant coffee comes in.

I thought about picking up produce there, but figured that I might find a cheaper price at Aldi or the ethnic markets.  I know because I once brought a 2 pound bag of bananas from Aldi at an exorbitant price of 44 cents.

Patel Brothers
Indian bitter melon at 1.79/lb: $1.58
1 pound bag of raisins: $2.99

Subzi Mandi
Box of spice mix: $1.29
1.25 pound bag of lentils: $2.49
Domestic garlic from California at 2.49/lb: $0.60 (Because “hell to the naw” to Chinese garlic.)
Plum tomatoes at .79/lb: $0.65

Aldi
2lb container of oatmeal: $2.49
Half gallon almond milk: $2.39
3 pound bag of rice: $1.59

Sadly the bananas and avocados were sold out so I had to go to a fifth market for fruits.  Because the oatmeal need fruits.

Yellowstone Farm
Bananas at .79/lb: $2.29 (That comes to 0.38 per piece.  Fuck, I should’ve gotten them at Trader Joe’s in the first place. Oh well.)
Apples at .99/lb: $0.93

My meal plan will be oatmeal and fruits for breakfast. Lunch and dinner will be lentils and rice with a veggie side.  The total cost of this shopping spree came to $23.28.  This leaves me with $5.72 to come up with another side dish for the mid-week. I get the feeling the bitter gourd won’t last a whole seven days.