Oily Rag: Kids grow their own spinach and eat it

Scattycat from Mooloolaba in Australia has a tip to make cheap crumbed steak with a difference.

"You will need enough meat to serve a family - I use blade steak.

Cut the meat into the sizes you want to serve and then get the mallet out and pound it on both sides.

Make up a milk and egg mixture, put out a tray with plain flour, and a tray of a cheap home brand of stuffing mix you use in a roast chicken, etc.

Coat the meat in the flour, dip into the milk/egg then into the stuffing mix and place in the fridge for at least of an hour. Then pan fry using light olive oil. It doesn't take long to cook.

Serve with mashed potatoes and any other vegetables you want."

Maureen had some good Oily Rag wisdom to share: "I am 76 years of age so was brought up in the days of 'waste not, want not'. It amazes me sometimes when I see waste, especially electricity - lights being left on, food being thrown out when it could be used the next day, vegetable scraps going down the waste disposal unit instead of being composted, huge sections covered in lawn or weeds instead of it being used to grow vegetables, etc."

Last week, Young Mum asked for help with ways to introduce silver beet in a way that is palatable to young tums.

Silver Beet Fan from Whangarei has this suggestion. "Not sure if kids like it, but adults will. You need a big pan with a lid. Cook roughly chopped silver beet in a little water (cut off big stalks), then drain well and chop it up a bit more. Separately cook two rashers of chopped bacon, and a cupful of chopped pumpkin in the microwave. Combine it all in the big pan with a dash of olive oil. Stir till mixed well and hot, then sprinkle chunks of feta on the top, put the lid on, turn the heat off, and leave five minutes. Yummy!"

Another trick to getting young ones to eat their greens is having a kids' garden. Suzanne from Rotorua writes, "When my grandchild was a preschooler and I looked after her during the day, we spent many long hours in the organic vege garden. One thing Emma wanted to do was to grow something herself, by herself. Together we chose the silver beet plants that were purchased, and Emma planted them, watered them, and cared for them. Now I am thrilled to say that she will go down to the garden, pick the leaves, wash them and above all loves to eat her silver beet."

The good thing about a kids' garden is that it doesn't need to be big ... something about 1sq m should be enough. We recommend a raised garden, using a timber frame with a minimum height of 150mm (and if they get tired of gardening it can always be turned into a sand pit).

Place the frame on a flat sunny spot free from shadows and chilly winds. Line the bottom with newspaper then fill the frame with a mix of topsoil and compost or growing mix - you will need only about half a trailer load. You're now ready to plant, and you won't need special equipment.

You could grow anything, but to avoid disappointment start with things that are easy and don't require sprays. Try various types of lettuce, dwarf beans and peas, mini tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, silver beet and capsicum. If you have space try watermelons, courgettes and pumpkins (grow the giant ones and use the shell to make a Halloween face).

Frank and Muriel Newman are the authors of Living Off the Smell of an Oily Rag in NZ. Readers can submit their oily rag tips online at www.oilyrag.co.nz