CCN Food Budget Tips

Plus our Top 20 Favorite Products from Costco

It’s pretty well known that healthy eating can be expensive. The key word here is “can be.” This week, we will discuss how to make CCN budget-friendly and stretch those food dollars.

Will your weekly grocery bill be as cheap as it would be if you bought nothing but processed and artificial foods? No. But we here at CCN like to think of it as an investment in your family’s health. The few extra dollars you spend on what your family puts into their bodies will help keep them strong and healthy! With a bit of planning, healthy, delicious, whole foods can be a regular thing in your house—without sacrificing your hard-earned cash.

Here are a few CCN Budget Tips:

1. Seasonal Produce – Produce that is in season is always less expensive. Sure, you can probably get strawberries year-round but expect to pay twice as much in December for them as you would in May. Take advantage of these low prices by cooking recipes that utilize seasonal ingredients (like any of our challenge recipes).

2. “The Dirty Dozen” – If you aren’t familiar with this term, these are the top 12 produce items that generally contain the most pesticides. If you can’t afford to have all your produce be organic, then make sure at least these 12 fruits and vegetables always are: strawberries, spinach, kale, collard & mustard greens, grapes, peaches, pears, nectarines, apples, bell & hot peppers, cherries, blueberries

   and green beans (Note: A small amount of sweet corn, papaya, and summer squash sold in the United States is produced from genetically modified seeds. Buy organic varieties of these crops if you want to avoid genetically modified produce.) 

3. Meatless Mondays – No, it doesn’t have to be a Monday, but try to have at least one meal a week that utilizes another source of protein. Beans are a great source of protein, a nutrient-dense food, and extremely cost-effective. 

4. Leftovers/Repeats – Our challenge goal is to give you different options for each meal. Variety is always a good thing. But the longer your grocery list is, the more money you’ll probably spend. Keep things simple and plan to repeat meals and utilize leftovers. Look for recipes with similar ingredients and pick only a few snacks to eat throughout the week. The plus side of doing it this way is ensuring you have new recipes to try long after our challenges are officially over! 

5. Bulk/Warehouse Shopping – To get the best value, Shop for CCN staple items at warehouse stores. Nuts, seeds, and nut butter will be cheaper here than at your regular grocery store. You can check out our top 20 favorites from Costco below.

As many of our long-term CCNers can attest, the longer you eat the CCN way of life, the more efficient you become in your shopping. Your first challenge, the grocery bill will always be the biggest, but don’t let this deter you. Following these tips above will help you cut costs where you can and still get the benefits of healthy eating!