Brown Bag Basics
If you’re looking to cut corners, it may be time to get back to basics – especially when it applies to your daytime meal. With some organization and a brief allocation of time, you can save considerable dollars and enjoy nutritious meals by packing your own lunch.
For the ultra-frugal experience, stick with sliced meat or PB&J sandwiches. Complement it with fruit and vegetable servings, throw in a treat such as cookies, pretzels or chips and you can come away with a well-balanced meal that is likely to cost you no more than $3.00. For variety, slightly increase the size of your evening cooking portions. Immediately after dinner while in clean-up mode, pack the leftovers for the following day’s lunch. There are a wide variety of lunch containers that can preserve heat or cold and help keep your meal fresh. Let’s assume that dining out will run about $8.00 per meal. Brown bagging will save you over a thousand dollars a year and still leave money for the occasional splurge. In the meantime, by taking less time for lunch, you can shorten work hours or take care of errands in the middle of the day.