This isn't all that badass, but something that helps keep me fit (and even lose weight if wanted) while stretching food $, is to always eat something healthy that I like, just before every meal. For me, it's a banana before every meal, because I love them, never get tired of them, and they are healthy, filling, available year-round, and not expensive. You could use apples, salad, healthy nuts, oatmeal -- whatever works for you.
It's amazing how this will help you keep a healthy weight or even lose weight if that's your goal, while saving money at the same time and never feeling deprived or like you're "dieting." As an example, if I eat a banana before lunch, then I will consume less of the higher-calorie foods in my lunch, and often-times will eat only half of a prepared dish or half of a meal when going out. It becomes easy to turn one meal into two, and I'm never left hungry or wanting more. You don't have to be religious about it, just make it the default to eat one banana/apple/whatever before starting your regular meal. It also helps to drink a glass of water before eating too to help fill you up.
Here's another real example of how it saves calories. Say I would have eaten a meal that was 500 calories, but instead I eat a banana first. One banana has about 100 calories, but it makes me full enough that I only eat 250 or 300 calories of the regular meal. I've automatically eaten 100 - 150 calories less in that one meal, but I'm just as full. Over three meals/day, that's up to 450 calories less per day. After one week, you will lose nearly one pound of fat.
This is all without *ever* being hungry or feeling deprived, since you are consuming just as much volume. I always eat the rest of my meal until I'm full and satisfied. The point is, you will automatically get full before you can consume all the higher-calorie/more expensive foods, because you started to fill up first on the healthy and less expensive food.
Bananas cost about $0.50 each, so it's $1.50 per day to eat something I love that keeps me fit and saves a lot more money in other food costs (since meat, etc. costs more).
