Why organic food isn't just for the wealthy

People assume that you have to spend a lot of money to eat healthy, and that eating quality food will break your bank.

Not so my friends, not so!  One of the goals of this blog is to demonstrate that healthy and traditional foods can be purchased on a strict budget.  How do I know?  I do it every damn week/month!  Today's receipe is a frittata that uses all organic foods (some local) and is a whopping $.41 per serving.  You read that right; don't adjust your monitors - $.41.Per.Serving.

 Fritattas are one of my favorite go-to weeknight meals because they come together super quickly and are almost a complete meal.  Using one dish.  Definitely my kind of thing!  It's basically a quiche, or "egg pie" without having to mess with making a crust.  The cost breakdown is below.

You'll need:
-6 eggs
-2 potatoes, thinly sliced
-chives (fresh or dried) - 2 tsp
-lemon pepper - 1/4 tsp
-dill (fresh or dried) - just a dash
-a shit ton of fresh garlic
-salt & pepper to taste
-1/2 cup of half & half, milk, or cream
-spinach or kale (or greens of choice)
-meat (optional).  I used diced ham leftover from Easter.  Thanks mom & dad!
-olive oil
-2-3 slices of cheese

1) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2) In a cast iron or other oven-proof pan, heat a few tblsp of olive oil and add your sliced potatoes.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Stir for a few minutes until they're a bit softer.
*Have a busted and nasty old cast iron pan at home?  Try refinishing it using my tutorial here.  New available here, but Goodwill and other thrift stores usually have lots of old cast iron for sale!

3) Add a plethora of minced garlic, and a handful of your favorite greens.  Stir until the greens are wilted a bit.  Add your meat here if you're using it.  And if it is already cooked!

4) In a medium bowl, whisk your 6 eggs, milk, dill, chives, and lemon pepper.  Add to the pan.
5) Top with cheese.  I used cheddar and a little bit of feta to this one.  I think smoked gouda would be amazeballs on this.
6)  Bake for 7-10 minutes or until the eggs are solid.
7) To me, this dish is a complete meal because it has veggies, protein, and a little bit of meat.  I always go simple and simply serve with a side of fruit.
Troy is always stokked to come home and find this for dinner.  He makes "yummy sounds" while eating all 3 of his pieces of it.

Let's run the numbers.  Keep in mind this required me to do math and convert things using the metric system.  It's probably not 100% correct, but it is an accurate representation.
6 eggs - $2 (I buy local eggs from pastured chickens.  $4 for 12)
2 organic potatoes - $.33 ($2.49 for the bag and there were 16 potatoes in the bag.
1/2 cup of raw local milk $.21 ($3.50 per half gallon)
Cheese - $.25 (this is a guess)
Olive oil - $.34 (half gallon of organic olive oil from Costco is about $11)
Spinach - free (from my garden)
Spices - $.10 (probably over estimating)
Garlic - free, but at the most, $.33 for a head of the stuff

*I didn't include the cost of meat in this, because in all honesty this dish doesn't need it.  The ham I used in the photos above were leftovers from Easter.

If you use the prices above and take in to account the measurements from the recipe above, you're at $.418 per serving.  This dish made 8 servings, so enough for 2 people and 1 toddler at dinner, and 2 lunches for the next day. 

Still think that local, healthy, organic foods are just for the wealthy?  And hipsters too I guess.  Had I served this with a can of Pabst Blue Ribbon while wearing huge Top Gun 80's glasses without lenses, then I would say yes - this is a hipster meal.

Labels: , ,