cutting costs...

Okay, so my previous post was about a useful kitchen tool that's a bit on the pricey side. The way I see it, though, it will probably end up saving us money in the long run. I won't go through the total cost analysis that I mentally did on it, but for us it came out to be a winner.

Anyway, one of the biggest concerns people have about changes to their diet, aside from the foods themselves, is the cost. It can be really expensive to go gluten-free, since bread and pasta are staples in most people's diets and they're cheap. Cutting out most of the other allergens can be equally expensive- eggs, dairy, nuts... all staple foods or ingredients in staple foods that are generally only expensive if you opt for the gourmet varieties.

The thing is, if you know what you're doing, it doesn't have to be that much more expensive. Rice flour is a perfect example. At the health food store, it can cost $4 or $5 for a package. If you have access to an Indian grocery store, like Rice & Spice in Emmaus, PA, you are likely to find it at a much lower price. Chickpea or garbanzo bean flour is another thing that can be purchased at the Indian market for a lower price, as well as millet.

DeLand Bakery, which I mentioned in a previous post, has loaves of bread for $3-$4. It's not as cheap as a loaf of store brand white bread, but it's about the equivalent of a good quality whole grain bread in price and quality. If that's not an option, soft corn tortillas can usually be found at the grocery store and make for a nice wrap sandwich (just hit a frying pan with a spritz of cooking spray or oil, and give the tortilla 2 minutes on one side, then flip and fry another minute or so to take away the sensation of it being uncooked).

Rce and potatoes are good base starches to build a meal on. And making your own broths and stocks from scratch is much less expensive than buying it, even if it's an off-brand. Then when you want gravy, you can simply thicken it with a little cornstarch (instead of wheat flour) and season it as you see fit. Tomato sauce (or spaghetti sauce, or tomato gravy) can be made from tomatoes you grow in a large batch and then canned or frozen. Sloppy joe filling can be made with some of that tomato sauce and a bit of tomato paste and some seasonings, then frozen in single serve portions to be reheated in the microwave. Breadcrumbs can be replaced with crushed corn flakes in most recipes.

If you find there's a product that's expensive and you tend to use a lot of it, look into buying it in bulk. For example, a dairy-free creamy topping is made with a base of raw cashews. My local grocery store has a 10 oz package of raw cashews for about $8. I did a quick web search and found that if I were to buy broken cashews from a bulk seller online it would be between $3.50 and $5.50 per pound (16oz), depending on the seller and quantity. That's about half of what it is at the grocery store!

So my advice for those who are trying to cut a particular food or foods out of their diet is this: do your homework. There are alternatives to the fancy and expensive stuff you find at the grocery and health food stores, you just need to track them down. Go to the ethnic markets and look around. Search the web for options. And spend a couple of hours at least once a week making 'ingredients'.

It also might be worth your time to learn how to preserve food by canning, dehydrating, etc. and maybe, if you have a green thumb, try your hand at growing some of your own food. Even if you don't have a giant yard, or live in an apartment, a tomato seedling is about $3 and a basic container ranges from $5 to $25 (depending on the size and how fancy you want to get). A big bag of soil costs around $2. I don't know about you, but I know I spent a lot more than $30 on tomatoes and tomato products in a single season before we started growing them! A package of sun dried tomatoes costs around $4 and usually contains 4 or 5 tomatoes worth of halves. I used my food dehydrator and ended up with 2 gallon size freezer bags by the end of last season. (We had 8 plants, and I also made salsa, tomato sauce, cooked with them, snacked on them, and generally had my fill of them).

So, yeah. Do your homework, look around, and make it yourself when you can. That will do wonders for cutting the costs!