Whole-Food, Plant-Based on $5 a Day—Day 10
Today is the last day of my Five Dollar Feast Challenge!
I started this because I wanted to see if it was possible to make tasty, plant-based meals on a budget of $5 a day. I wanted to challenge myself to create a variety of new dishes using limited resources and ingredients.
According to the USFDA, the average food budget for a single person on a thrift plan is around $ 6.73 a day. I decided to be even more conservative and spend only $5!
What an interesting time it’s been!
In some ways it was easier than I expected and in other ways it was harder.
I didn’t starve, that’s for sure! I always had plenty to eat. And of the $50 I started with 10 days ago, I had $7.46 to spend on my last day.
Not bad!
The most difficult part was not having access to a wide a variety of ingredients. Because I was only spending $5 a day, and I didn’t pool the $50, lots of items were just too expensive to buy on the daily budget. Things like organic greens, which are around $2.49—$2.99 a bunch.
When I found a store that sold items in bulk, it was a real boon. My local Whole Foods was good in this way.
And boy did I use them today. Check out today’s bonanza of ingredients! 
Today I bought:
1/3 lb rolled oats
3 organic mejdool dates
1/3 lb organic quinoa
1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
2 big organic russet potatoes
1 bunch organic spinach
1 small organic white onion
My menu for the day:
BREAKFAST: Oats & Dates
LUNCH: Borscht leftover from yesterday with Curried Quinoa & Cabbage
SNACK: Banana and peach leftovers for snack.
DINNER: Spinach Shepherd’s Pie for dinner. And I had enough pie to share with my boyfriend!
Now what?
Overall, I enjoyed the challenge and would definitely say it’s been a success!
I came up with some great new recipes. And was delighted to see it’s possible to eat well on a low budget.
I’m going to continue for a few more days—although I won’t need to go shopping tomorrow as I have enough leftover food to last me another day. Yay!
But now it’s time to celebrate the end of the challenge, and everything I’ve learned in the last ten days.
Ka-chink!
Darshana
XX
PS: To see what happened on the other 9 days, click the links below:
Day—1
Day—2
Day—3
Day—4
Day—5
Day—6
Day—7
Day—8
Day—9
