$ 10 Challange

KFC has recently come out with a new ad challenging consumers to feed a family of four for under $10. It is true a family wouldn't be able to make that meal (7 pieces of fried chicken, 4 biscuits, and a large side) for under $10 because of the initial cost of the ingredients. However, USA Today asked four dietitians to come up with healthy and creative ways to feed a family of four for under $10. They readily met the challenge, and this is what they came up with:

Dawn Jackson Blatner makes a pizza dinner for $9 using pre-made refrigerator crust, tomato sauce, low-fat cheese, a green pepper and a pint of mushrooms. Serve it with broccoli.

Or, if you are in the mood for the advertised chicken, make an oven-fried chicken recipe or buy/make a roasted chicken. Remove the skin so you consume less fat. Serve it with a dark green salad or fresh vegetables and brown rice with garbanzo beans.

One of Elizabeth Ward's favorite meals for about $10 is Sloppy Joes, milk and fruit. Her recipe: Brown three-quarters of a pound of lean ground beef or 100% ground turkey breast ($3 to $4), drain fat off meat, add one can of drained and rinsed black beans ($1) and one can of Manwich Sloppy Joe sauce and cook. Serve on whole-grain rolls.The beans do double duty — serving as a protein source and vegetable, she says. "It only costs a quarter for about 8 ounces of milk, and it's an incredibly cost-efficient source of calcium and vitamin D."

Make your own large sandwiches using fresh baked whole-wheat bread, sliced turkey, cheese and dark green lettuce. If you want to have a hot meal, turn it into a panini, she says. Side dish: Seasonal fruit.

Serve veggie burgers on whole-wheat buns. Top with lettuce, tomato and onions and serve with fruit.

Other suggestions to cut on cost include shopping with a list, cook big and freeze the leftovers, look in ads before going to the store and buy on-sale items (buying extra if you can and freezing the extras), and incorporating left-overs into the next night's meals. Bonnie Taub-Dix suggests adding leftover vegetables and chicken pieces to spaghetti sauce and serving it over whole-grain pasta, or topping a dark green salad with leftover meat, vegetables and cheese.

One man took the challenge on himself; he made the same meal for just over seven dollars. Check out how he did it by clicking here.

For more recipes and cost saving ideas see Frugal, healthy: Feed 4 for below $10.

**Also feel free to share any cheap and healthy ideas you use in your own apartment or family. **