I didn't plant a garden to save or make money. I planted it because I love homegrown tomatoes and have been fantasizing about growing my own for years. I came across an article on the Vermont extension service website about intensive gardening, and it included a list of the 15 most economical plants to grow in a veggie garden, based on their price in the grocery store at the time of harvest, the yield per square foot of garden, and the time it takes them to mature. I discovered that I am already growing (or planning to grow) 13 of them. Here's the list:

Tomatoes
Green bunching onions
Leaf lettuce
Turnip (greens + roots)
Summer squash
Edible podded peas
Onion storage bulbs
Beans (pole, bush)
Beets
Carrots
Cucumbers
Peppers
Broccoli
Head lettuce
Swiss chard

The two I am not growing are peas and cucumbers. The site only lists four low-value veggies, but it is not surprising that they take up a lot of room in a garden:

Corn
Winter Squash
Melons
Pumpkin

I'm not growing any of the low-value veggies.