One-Pot Pasta e Fagioli

This Italian peasant soup has been feeding families on nothing for centuries, and the math still works. A can of cannellini beans ($0.89), a box of ditalini pasta ($1.29), canned tomatoes ($1.00), an onion, garlic, and some dried herbs. Total cost: about $5 for a pot that serves six — that's 38% less than the average cost of the other items on this list. It's thick, hearty, and tastes like it simmered all day even though it takes 30 minutes. Add a parmesan rind if you have one, and it becomes restaurant-quality for pocket change. Outperforms #2's cost per serving by over 20%, and a standard bowl of minestrone from chain restaurants costs $4.50 per serving — here you feed six for the price of one.