If you’re on a tight budget the idea of cooking healthy meals on a regular basis can seem daunting, and it’s very easy to fall into a rut eating the same foods over and over again.

However, the good news is that it is possible to cook healthy meals for your family, while living frugally.

Check out these simple, yet effective tips for healthy eating on a budget:

#1 Eat before you shop. This is a total no-brainer, but if you shop hungry you’ll be more likely to impulsively buy, rather than sticking to what you actually need. So, make sure you grab a healthy snack prior to hitting the aisles!

#2 Purchase only what you need and can use. Do you discard food each week? If you don’t have a weekly menu plan you’ll end up with foods you can’t use, and you may even forget things you do need. Try setting aside some time each week to write a list of meals for the week ahead, then produce a detailed shopping list from that plan, and aim to stick to it when you get to the supermarket.

#3 Take advantage of shopping incentives. If your store offers a frequent shopper program, sign-up to receive advanced notice of special offers, and other money saving information. You should also keep an eye on local newspapers and flyer’s for specials, particularly on costly items such as meats, fruit and veg.

#4 Create your own price book. This is a system for tracking store prices so that when you see an item on offer, you’ll immediately know whether it’s a good deal, or not. You’ll want to record the date, store, item, size, price, unit and sale price. Admittedly, however this isn’t for everyone, but you may find it a useful practise.

#5 Shop in season. Buying fruit and vegetables that are in season will be much easier on your pocket. Search the web for a list of items if you’re not sure what’s in season. Another option is to go for frozen produce, which prevents wastage and is more cost effective. Tinned fruits and veg are also fine, just opt for the lower salt version of vegetables, and fruits canned in natural juices.

#6 Buy in bulk. Purchasing apples, oranges, potatoes, onions, etc. by the bag, rather than per piece can work out much cheaper. However, this is only cost effective if you can use them. Large packs of meat, re-portioned at home can also be good value for money.

#7 Experiment with stores own brands. Most of the time the only difference is in the price, not the quality of the food.

#8 Avoid pre-packaged foods such as ready meals, pre-cut vegetables, or diced meats as they tend to be much more expensive. Ready-to-cook meats are also more expensive, for example marinated boneless chicken, or seasoned roasts. A cheaper option is to purchase plain meat, and prepare yourself at home.

#9 Vary where you shop. Visit your local ethnic store or local fresh food market for a variety of different foods not available at mainstream stores, it can also be a great way to save money, particularly if you buy in bulk.

#10 Buy coupons on ebay. You can often pick up coupons for different products online, or check out sites such as Hot Dockets for money saving deals available in your local area.

#11 Cut down on junk food. Soft drinks, chips, and cookies are a major drain on the family budget. Instead of eating this highly processed junk, try baking your own cookies and cakes, or switching to water, tea and coffee rather than the more expensive sugar-laden alternatives. A cheaper and healthier substitute to chips would be unbuttered popcorn.

#12 Get creative in the kitchen! Cook at home using a few basic ingredients, check out 25 Minimalistic Meals: 5 Ingredients or Less. If you struggle to completely ban convenience foods, why not try making your own? For example, a homemade pizza will cost you around $3-$4, while a frozen or take away pizza can cost anything from $7-$20.

#13 Make meals go further. You can extend your meals by adding extra vegetables, grains or pulses. For example when cooking spaghetti bolognese substitute half the meat for canned beans, onions, and carrots; this will save money and make the dish healthier. Remember, meat should only make up a small part of your meal, it shouldn’t be the main focus.

#14 Make use of your freezer. Cook extra portions of curries, soups, stews, and casseroles and place in the freezer for a later date. One-pot dishes save on prep time, money, and dish washing, and are the perfect option for those with a busy schedule.

#15 Occasionally eat away from home. You can save a considerable amount of money if you make eating away from home only for special occasions rather than a weekly event. Check out your local newspaper for special meal offers at nearby restaurants.

Unfortunately, there’s no magic formula when cooking on a budget. It does take a little planning, creativity, and effort. However, the benefits to your health and your pocket will make the extra effort worthwhile long-term!

Melanie Thomassian is a professional dietitian, and author of the award winning Dietriffic.com.

Perhaps you are the sort of person who likes to live life by the seat of your pants! What I mean in terms of personal finance is that you run your money between what comes in and what goes out on a very tight line. Perhaps you assume that since nothing bad has happened to you up until the present, that things will continue to go like this. However, what would happen to your personal finances when an emergency happens that cost you around …… say $2000? What would you do? Do you have enough money saved away to absorb the loss? and when is your next pay cheque coming in?

Let us give you 10 real life scenarios when a personal warchest (emergency fund) would be helpful:

1. Car Breakdown - Engine trouble, a cracked radiator or temperamental electronics will instantly set you back $100’s of dollars. And if you’re one of many Australians who drive with only third party car insurance you’ll have to cop the repair bill on the head. For example, a friend once drove from Sydney to the Gold Coast but suffered major car trouble en route (thanks to his own ineptness!). With no NRMA cover, the car worth nearly $5000, blew its head gasket resulting in $1500 in repairs plus an extra unscheduled two week stay on the Gold Coast! It wasn’t all bad news though. My friend is a surfer and the Gold Coast isn’t a bad place to break down! However, now you see how he could have done with a personal warchest instead of going into debt on his credit card.
2. Computer Crash - It happens all too often, especially if you are Windows user (cough cough). Outside of warranty cover, if your desktop computer dies because it needs a new hard drive or say your laptop battery dies you will need to fork out substantial money to get it back up and running.
3. Urgent Travel - If for some reason you need to urgently fly interstate or overseas, it won’t be cheap, especially because of the lateness of booking your flight and hotel. Here is a real-life scenario: I once worked with a British ex-pat living here in Australia. Sadly, a close relative died suddenly and he had to request time off work and book a flight home all within 24 hours. Asides from the grief, the costly last minute flight, the lost income from work and the mortgage repayments still needing paid, the whole thing would be a big hit for anyone to take.
4. Sudden Health Problem - Assuming you don’t have private health insurance, if you became ill or broke a leg in a sporting accident, unfortunately Medicare won’t cover all the costs. Depending on how far away from the hospital you are the cost for the ambulance alone is substantial. And depending on the severity of your injury you could be in for hefty bills in terms of costs associated with rehabilitation (crutches etc) plus the lost income.
5. Unexpected Bills - Have you ever received an unexpectedly monsterous phone bill? or have you ever been invoiced for something which you bought and subsequently forgot about? or are you one of the 1000’s of motorists sent a nasty fixed camera speeding ticket via the post? If so, your personal finances could easily take a big hit. Ouch!
6. Theft - You should always try to protect your assets - your health, your home, your car and your investments. But if you don’t have insurances or coverage then you’ll be especially wise to set up an emergency fund. Whether its the theft of your car or some other household item… it not that often that you’ll get it back.
7. Accidental Damage at Home - Its no secret that Aussies love flat-screen HDTV’s because over the last few years since they arrived in the market Aussies have gone out and bought them en-mass! Consider though the cost of repair and maintenance to your beloved 40″ plasma screen when the warranty runs out. Your initial investment of $2000+ is too high to simply write off if your screen goes on the blink. Repairs due to a technical problem or smashed screen regularly exceed $500. Often tho, the cost of repairs can be the same as the cost of a brand new TV.
8. Investments Take a Dive - If you rely upon your stock market investments to make money, you especially would be wise to build up a personal warchest in the event of your portfolio takes a considerable drop.
9. Storm Damage to House - Of course you should protect your most important asset by having home and contents insurance but what if you are one of the many Aussies who aren’t covered sufficiently? Could you absorb the cost of roof damage due to a fallen tree and still be able to make mortgage repayments? Think of flooding which could ruin your flooring and kitchen appliances. Tradesman call-out fees and work costs are usually very steep. Remember storm damage won’t be limited to the wild weather experienced in July 2007.
10. Job Loss - To some degree or another, we all live in a state of suspicion about our job security. An economic downturn could cause big employers to lay off workers. How much money have you got in savings to sustain you until you get your next job? Its a very prudent idea that you save up enough money before making a switch to a new job. That way your transition into the new and somewhat unknown territory is made more confidently. In the case that you should lose your current job or simply not transition well into your new job, can result in weeks-upon-weeks of stressful, unpaid job-hunting to get through the recruitment process and into regular paid work.

Its a Flamin’ Good Idea

Of course you cannot plan for every bump in the road but if one of the above were to strike you today, would you reach for your credit card? or have to dip into your major savings account earmarked for your house deposit? There’s no doubt that a credit card is the fastest way to solve most emergency situations that involves money within your credit limit. However, for the purpose of emergencies credit cards can have negative effects on your long-term financial plans.

There are two options:

• Plan Ahead: Earn interest on money set aside for the emergency before it happens.
• React After: Pay interest on amount owed on a credit card or personal loan after it happens.

Why not use money which you actually have stored away for the purpose of emergencies instead of putting yourself in debt. Personal warchest money which you put away should ideally be put in a smart place i.e; choose a high interest savings account which is linked to your checking account. This rules out a fixed deposit savings account which would give you the highest interest rates. But it would be no use in the event of an emergency.

Set a Realistic Goal
So if you’re interested in setting up an emergency fund, ask yourself how much is needed and how much is realistic? For example, open a high interest rate savings account and set your own goal. Perhaps start by adding a small amount of $100 every month for a year. At the end of the year, you’ll have $1200 stored away for a legitimate emergency all the while its earning a respectable level of interest. You’ll be well on you’re way to absorbing unexpected and unwanted costs.

Just like businesses operating online can make money through offline methods, there are a number of ways that people can generate money offline using the internet for support. In today’s world there is very little sense in having no presence on the internet because as figures show, more people are spending more time browsing, researching and socialising online. Just because you run an offline business rather than an online one, it simply does not mean that you cannot use the internet in a variety of different ways in order to boost your offline business and to stay in touch with customers past and present. You will be surprised at how successful some of these tactics can be at keeping in touch with your customers. So here are ten of the most interesting and cost effective ways that income can be generated offline simply by using the internet.

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