My mother used to make us pancakes for dinner. What a treat! It never occurred to us as children that it was all we could afford.

She also used to make chicken soup using the chicken feet. They were yummy! We would suck all the juicy goodness out of the bones and eat the little bit of fat/skin with barely a touch of meat. With a couple carrots, an onion and a piece of celery, add a couple bouillon cubes, cook some rice and you have a good nourishing soup. Back then, I think the butcher gave her those chicken feet for free (or at least very cheaply).

Spaghetti is also cheap, and if you take the cheapest cut of bony beef, you can make a big batch of delicious sauce for pennies a serving. Brown the beef and put it in a large pot or casserole dish or slow cooker. Sauté an onion if you like, and/or garlic, bell pepper, whatever you want in your sauce and can afford. Add canned diced tomatoes if you want. It’s okay if you just have the meat and bone, it will still taste great. Pour over the cheapest jarred sauce you can find, around here it’s about $1 a jar or large can. Three jars will make a big batch and you can freeze some to have later on. Cover your cooking vessel and either bake at 300F, or bring to a simmer on the stovetop and then turn down to almost low, stirring occasionally, or turn on the slow cooker to “high”. Cook for at least two hours (slow cooker 4 hours), but longer is better. If you want to cook all day, after the initial 2–4 hours turn the temperature down (oven 250F, stovetop low and stir occasionally, slow cooker “low”). The meat and bone flavor will cook into the sauce and it’s delicious.

I hope this answers the question!