I registered just for this post, as it is something near to my heart. I had a loved kitten who died of something I believe could have been prevented had he been fed properly. Not related to the pet food scare by the way.
Cats are obligate carnivores and need to eat protein from animal flesh and calcium from the bones. Commercial cat food is carbohydrate based for its calories, cats don't do carbs. My wife and I have been feeding a raw diet for over 2 years now and the word "amazing" doesn't describe it enough. They are lean, muscular and fit. Our vets marvel at their body structure when we bring them in for check-ups. They have not visited the vet for vaccines or any kind of sickness, just a heating pad and rest for them.
We had to buy a meat grinder, about $200 for an electric one. Generally whole chickens that we cut up and grind, with fresh liver. Fresh heart is always something we look for, but hardly fine. We round it out with a handful of supplements. Mix it all up, package and freeze. We do this about ever 14-16 days (@20lbs) and it takes roughly 90 minutes from start to cleanup. Rabbit, foul, sheep and a little fish are generally the guidelines. Beef in small quantities, as with goat. Never, ever, ever pork. Ever.
Where you live determines your cost. If you can source foul for cheap, you are in. The rest is for variety, but chicken is our main diet. Below I have listed our main sources that we base our cats diet on. One is a book, the other is a website, which basis a lot on the book. I hope this helps.
Raising Cats Naturally: How to care for your cat the way nature intended by Michelle T. Bernard in Pets Feeding Your Cat♥♥ Know the Basi