Money Saving Meals

Make the most of money-saving silver beet (Swiss chard) in season or in your garden

In the Kitchen Garden at school, I have just discovered how incredibly easy it is to grow silver beet (also called Swiss chard) and rainbow silver beet. It is very prolific, providing a bountiful harvest with leaves you can pick as you need to, so there’s no waste.

It likes full sun and fertile, well-drained soil – dig in plenty of compost before planting. Plant your seeds or seedlings about 40cm (16in) apart from early spring through to autumn in temperate areas (or year round if you live in the tropics) and water regularly in hot weather. Watch out for slugs, snails and caterpillars. It also loves being picked. Harvest the outer leaves first, cutting them off close to the base – it also helps stop it going to seed. And remember that like spinach, it really cooks down a lot, so it won’t hurt to pick more leaves than you think you need. You do need to cook it a little bit longer than spinach (otherwise the leaves can be on the chewy side).

If your garden is small or you only have a deck or balcony, take the pot option. Silver beet (like many herbs and vegetables that are harvested on an ongoing basis) is very happy growing in a tub providing you use a good potting mix, water it regularly and feed it occasionally.

Leek, silver beet & feta slice

To use our bumper harvest of silver beet, I made a silver beet tart one week (there was nearly a stampede for seconds) and this slice the following week – it’s an adaptation of a zucchini slice made with silver beet, leeks and herbs from the garden. It disappeared just as quickly. It looks very pretty if halved cherry tomatoes are placed on the slice before cooking (but we never have any because little hands like to eat them straight from the plant). It’s a perfect dish for a light meal and the leftovers are ideal for lunch boxes. It can also be frozen. You remove the stems and just use the leaves in this recipe. Don’t throw the stems out – wash and chop them and add to gratins and curries, soups and stews.

Makes 10 slices

2 tablespoons oil
1 leek, halved lengthwise, washed, dried, sliced
10 silver beet leaves, washed, dried, shredded
1 carrot, grated
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon chopped spearmint leaves or 2 tablespoons chopped mint
¾ cup finely grated parmesan cheese
60g (2oz) feta cheese, crumbled
1¼ cups self-raising flour
5 eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 180ºC (350ºF) and grease and line a 16 x 26cm/6 x 10in (base measurement) slice pan.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a frying pan and cook leek for 4–5 minutes until soft. Stir in shredded silver beet and cook for 3–4 minutes until silver beet has wilted. Spoon the mixture into a heatproof bowl and leave to cool. Add the carrot, herbs and both cheeses to the silver beet bowl and stir to combine. Sift in the flour and mix well.

Whisk the eggs in another bowl with the remaining oil and milk together and pour into silver beet mixture and stir to combine.

Spoon into the prepared slice pan, smooth the surface and bake for 25–30 minutes, until set and the top is starting to brown. Stand 10 minutes and then serve immediately or cool and serve at room temperature.