{"id":25406,"date":"2016-05-03T07:53:45","date_gmt":"2016-05-03T11:53:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/canadianbudgetbinder.com\/?p=25406"},"modified":"2025-01-22T08:09:56","modified_gmt":"2025-01-22T08:09:56","slug":"affordable-meatless-meals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digitalskyweb.co\/canadianbudgetbinder.com\/2016\/05\/03\/affordable-meatless-meals\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Delicious Meatless Meals for a Budget-Friendly Menu"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Discover the simplicity and savings of meatless meals. Enjoy delicious vegetarian dishes with alternate proteins for a budget-friendly menu plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Balanced Meal Plan Helps To Balance Your Budget <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We enjoy the simplicity of vegetarian dishes that include organic veggies and alternate proteins other than meat and fish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meatless meals have become a regular part of our menu plan for savings and healthy living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That might sound awkward to someone who doesn’t use a grocery budget<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A budget is essential for our family to keep us accountable for the food we purchase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meatless Meals Aren’t Just For Monday’s <\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you aren’t aware, there is a<\/span> day dedicated to meatless meals: Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It doesn’t mean you are required to forgo meat on a Monday because it sounds good. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a weekend of comfort food with the family, a meatless Monday is an excellent way to start the week. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it’s also an excellent way to end the week or slow it down in the middle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What I love about ditching the meat is that I can batch-cook easy meatless meals and enjoy leftovers the next day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m not a massive fan of re-heated meat, as it tends to be dry the next day unless it’s buried in a sauce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’ll eat it, but I might not enjoy it like when it was freshly cooked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I find any minced meat or sausages bulk my dinner meals for work, so I tend to favor those proteins. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both ground beef and sausage vary in price depending on flyer sales, and like everything else, we’ve seen an increase in prices over the past two years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Calculating Your Grocery Budget <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Mrs. CBB and I decided to stick to at least one meatless weekly meal a few years back. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We would typically eat meat of some description every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once we found out that we could save up to $400 or more each year by going meatless just one day a week, we were hooked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though we eat less meat, we must replace the protein with nutritious eggs or pulses (Beans). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We became hooked on beans so much that we bought bags of dry chickpeas, kidney beans, black beans, and lentils to help save money on groceries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’ve never had a vegetarian black bean burger, put it on your recipe list. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s flavourful and filling, and you don’t miss the meat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buying and rehydrating dry beans will save money, but canned beans are just as delicious, however you’ll pay more for the convenience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You’ll pay more but get instant gratification of beans on demand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other ways we save money on meatless meals are to buy in season, shop at local markets during the growing season, or grow our vegetables. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take the opportunity to visit at the end of the market day to find reduced produce when farmers want to get rid of their pickings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ditch the sugar and use natural alternatives such as fresh honey from a local market or producer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m still a sugar guy with my coffee and when I bake, but that’s about it unless it’s specific to a recipe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You’ll pay a fraction of what you will pay in-store for market honey; you know it will be the good stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fresh Homegrown Herbs Save Cash<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Growing herbs is another great way to save money because they can be pricey at the grocery store. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fresh herbs like basil and parsley added to Italian pasta sauce<\/a><\/strong> add abundant flavor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We’ve made basil pesto every year from herbs grown in the garden. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes, herbs grow quickly and abundantly, making them hard to keep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A fantastic way to use excess herbs is to make an Italian pesto<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our favorites include chives, spring onion, garlic, parsley, basil almonds, walnuts, and pine nuts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quick and Affordable Meatless Meals <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Our meatless dinner ideas<\/strong> involved collaboration with Mrs. CBB, which meant we would experiment to find out what we enjoyed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the years, we’ve managed to grow our free recipe index<\/a><\/strong> on Canadian Budget Binder with some of the best recipes in our kitchen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, I want to showcase meatless meals from the CBB household and other amazing Food Bloggers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You don’t have to go broke to eat well!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Importance Of Going Meatless For Grocery Savings <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Many CBB fans wanted to share their meatless Meals with all of you, so they wrote to tell you just how important going meatless is for their grocery budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Beans & fried potatoes can’t be beaten<\/span><\/span>! I also prefer fried okra to meat, which I dice in coins and roll in seasoned cornmeal. Fry until brown and crispy. Veggie burgers are my favorite.<\/span><\/span> – Donna P.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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Potato cheese omelet<\/span><\/span> and homemade mac and cheese with peas are the go-to. Cheese is an excellent addition to any meat-free meal here or with meat. My boys love cheese!!<\/span><\/span> – Christine W.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Below is a recent meatless omelet<\/strong><\/a> that we made in the CBB house!<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Keto-Baked-Frittata-with-Mozzarella-and-fennel-greens\"
Meatless Meals: Baked-Frittata-with-Mozzarella-and-fennel-greens<\/a><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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Chickenless Chicken Mushroom Fettuccine is a favorite here. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n