If you’re hungry for ways to stretch your food dollars at the supermarket, you’re in luck. On today’s podcast, you’ll be eating well on just $4.00 a day. Why $4.00? That’s the amount provided by SNAP, the USDA’s food stamps program, and the inspiration behind Good And Cheap, written by Leanne Brown. From large families and seniors to college students, people across the country face food insecurity every day. Whether you want to save pennies on your weekly grocery bill or cut your food budget in a big way, my guest, Leanne Brown, makes saving money at the grocery store doable, delicious, and nutritious.
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Photo credit: Jordan Matter
Leanne is a big proponent of cooking from scratch using real, wholesome, unprocessed foods. She says eating on a budget doesn’t mean you have to live on ramen noodles. The recipes in her book are inventive, creative, and mostly plant based, because meat is expensive. Good and Cheap is available for purchase, or you can head to Leanne’s website and download a copy (English or Spanish) for free. And if you do purchase a copy, a second copy will be donated to someone in need.
“If you cook things yourself from basic ingredients, it ends up being a lot cheaper.”
– Leanne Brown
Read on for Leanne’s recipes for Brussels Sprout Hash and Eggs and Cauliflower Cheese … and to enter to win a copy of Good and Cheap.
I’m giving away a copy of Good and Cheap: Eat Well on $4/Day by Leanne Brown (Workman, 2015)

Excerpted from Good and Cheap by Leanne Brown (Workman Publishing). Copyright © 2015. Photographs by Leanne Brown.

Excerpted from Good and Cheap by Leanne Brown (Workman Publishing). Copyright © 2015. Photographs by Leanne Brown.
Show Highlights:
- The whole story behind why Leanne decided to write Good and Cheap.
- The Good and Cheap Kickstarter story.
- How Leanne blends quality food with a strict food budget.
- Eat less meat, increase your vegetable consumption, and buy eggs.
- How you can repurpose wilted vegetables in recipes like crustless quiche.
- Ideas for using up leftover fish, including fish tacos or a seafood omelet.
- Leanne’s recipe for Brussels Sprouts Hash and Eggs.
- Saving money by meal planning, getting organized, freezer cooking, and cooking from scratch.
- Download my 7-Day Meal Planner for FREE!
- Take advantage of oatmeal. It’s only as boring as your imagination.
- Leann’s recipe for Cauliflower Cheese.
- My recipe for Corny Salmon Cakes.
- Leanne’s favorite recipe in the book: Chana Masala.
- Leanne’s favorite cookbook that changed her life.
Links:
My email: [email protected]
Resources:
Download a copy of Good And Cheap
Download my 7-Day Meal Planner
Connect with Leanne:
Leanne’s Website
Leanne on Facebook
Leanne on Twitter
Leanne on Instagram
Sponsors:
I’m able to bring this podcast to all of you thanks to my sponsors: Zespri Kiwifruit and Bush’s Beans.
Have a question about the show or a suggestion for a future show? Ask away by posting a comment below or joining my Podcast Posse.
I’m so excited to listen to this episode! My family’s budget friendly meal is chili! Thanks so much!
Chili is a favorite around my house, especially in winter. Enjoy the show!!
I would love this cookbook! It’s a personal challenge for me to keep our food costs under budget, while still eating healthy, quality meals.
I’m personally working on this very thing. The key for me is to plan more!
Just found this site today & am loving it so! Our fave budget friendly meal is Breakfast for Suppertime, as we’re down in the Deep South, so love our eggs, grits, biscuits and meat(or Not). It is a comfort food in winter, too.
I’m so happy you found me. Enjoy the podcast and tell all your friends down south about it 🙂 As for your breakfast for suppertime menu, it sounds delish! I lived in Atlanta back in the late 80s / early 90s and I really loved grits, which I had never tried before. I’m a cheese grits girl!
I have stopped buying boneless chicken so that I can use the bones to make chicken broth. Much healthier, better tasting, and cheaper than canned broth! After boning the chicken, I just toss the bones into a zipper bag until I am ready to make broth. It is a snap in my pressure cooker.
I love that tip. So you have a pressure cooker or an Instant Pot? I am itching to get one of those.
We do a ‘Create Your Own’ Omelet night and we incorporate our leftovers. We’ve used chili, stir fry, sloppy joe meat and any and all veggies in our fridge. There have been some truly ‘magical’ creations! Who knew that chili would taste so good in an omelet!
OK. Now I need to try that!
I love cookbooks, always ind something or different than my norm.
I love cookbooks, always find something new or different than my norm.
Our favorite budget meal is savory oatmeal for dinner.
What do you add to make it savory?
Frittata with leftover veggies is a fave here.
I am excited to listen to this podcast and I would love this book because I am working to try to get our food budget under control. I use the grocery store app for digital coupons and use the ibotta app for rebates but I need to do more meal planning and less procesed food , less impulse buys.
We love to do a rice and bean night on Monday nights. I worked with a population where many people are on food stamps and don’t have access to the internet, this book would be so fun to share with them! Thank you!
My Husband eats his specific things that I don’t eat,, so I think it’s time to cook healthier for myself and save myself some money. A New Year resolutiuon!
Sounds like a good resolution to me!!
My favorite low budget meal is soup, of any kind. It’s always filling and you can get by with just a little meat, which can save on the cost.
My family fortunately eats a good amount of beans, (deconstructed hummus is a favorite!) which are low cost, high fiber & filling!
Would love to win this book bc the podcast episode was so interesting and everything she highlighted, we would eat!!
I work at a center that treats low income families. This cookbook would be a perfect accessory to share with my clients.
Honey Weiss MS RD LD
I could not agree more. Thanks for stopping by!
They love spaghetti with garlic bread.
It’s not from scratch, but my family’s favorite budget dinner is to heat up two cans of Campbells chunky soup and pour servings over cooked brown rice!! It’s stretches the soup to four servings easily. ?
Great tip. What’s your favorite soup?
I would like to learn new healthy recipes for my husband and myself and save money at the same time.