Four healthy, budget-friendly recipes for everyday eating

Eating well does not require complicated recipes or expensive ingredients. Physician and nutritionist Mark Hyman presents four go-to staples that anchor a healthy diet without spending more than roughly six dollars a day per person.

Protein breakfast: Greek yogurt parfait

The first mistake Hyman identifies at breakfast is sugar. Processed cereals and fruit juices are, in essence, dessert in disguise. His alternative: a bowl of Greek yogurt with fruit and nuts.

Ingredients for two:

Full-fat Greek yogurt (not non-fat, which has less protein)
Half a banana per person
A handful of fresh or frozen berries
Walnuts and almonds to taste

Full-fat yogurt provides protein and fat that keep you full for hours and prevent the blood sugar spike produced by sugary breakfasts. Current dietary guidelines no longer recommend restricting natural fat from whole foods.

Overnight oats: the resistant starch advantage

Hyman is not generally a fan of oats, but cold-soaked overnight oats are an exception. When soaked overnight, oat starch converts to resistant starch, which feeds the gut microbiome and improves blood sugar regulation.

Preparation:

Half a cup of rolled oats and half a cup of water in a jar.
A quarter cup of full-fat Greek yogurt.
A pinch of salt and cinnamon (cinnamon also improves insulin sensitivity).
Banana, berries, and a handful of nuts on top.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The result is a nutrient-dense breakfast that requires no cooking and can be made for several days at once.

Snack: homemade hummus with vegetables

Hummus is an affordable source of plant protein, fiber, and healthy fats. Making it at home takes under ten minutes.

Ingredients:

One can of cooked chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
Juice of half a lemon
A drizzle of olive oil
Minced garlic to taste
Salt

Mash with a fork or blend with a food processor. Serve with carrot sticks, celery, or green pepper strips, which replace bread and add extra fiber.

Dessert: crispy apple wrap

For a sweet craving, Hyman offers a light take on apple turnover using rice paper sheets.

Preparation:

Slice the apple with the skin on (where most nutrients are concentrated).
Sauté in butter with cinnamon until softened.
Soak a rice paper sheet in water for about a minute.
Place the apple in the center, fold the edges, and seal.
Pan-fry the wrap in butter until golden and crispy.

The result is a naturally sweet dessert with no added sugar and far less glycemic impact than a processed snack.

The six-dollar challenge

Hyman issues a challenge: follow a whole-foods diet for seven days on a budget of about six dollars per person per day. The goal is not to suggest that eating healthy is easy for everyone, but that it is possible even on a tight budget with some planning.

The recipes in this video are part of a free guide with over 30 additional recipes, weekly meal planning templates, grocery lists, and batch prep guides. You can start with just one change: one whole-food dinner this week, or swapping out processed foods for real food for a few days. What matters is that you start.