The best bet for stretching your food budget—use every bit of what you buy. Even stale bread. The Italians have understood this for a long time. Which explains their panzanella, or bread salad. This summery salad features stale bread, ripe tomatoes and almost anything else you have in your vegetable bin, including carrots, bell peppers, even diced avocado.

Recipe: Panzanella (bread salad)