The Edible Garden Adventure Begins at Woolworths with Jamie Oliver's Garden Collectibles

As a passionate horticulturalist, real food cooking presenter and mum I was thrilled when I was contacted about the new Woolworths Jamie's Garden Collectibles.
Already a long time fan of the inspirational Jamie Oliver I was just so delighted about these new collectibles and stickers from Woolworths inspiring kids with the incredible world of food. Growing food, cooking food and seeing food as the amazing and beautiful part of our lives that it can be.

"The Jamie's Garden Collectibles range includes 128 stickers featuring fresh produce and garden animals with special effects such as 3d, thermal ink and scratch and sniff technology.
Children can keep track of their stickers in a special scrapbook-style album with interesting facts, puzzles and kid friendly recipes that teach children about healthy nutrition, fresh ingredients and the origin of food.

There are also eight of Jamie's super power fruit and vegetables plush toys to collect as well as gardening tools and a nifty tin to keep stickers safe.
What did my kids think of it all?
Well lets just say that there was serious sibling rivalry going on over who got the Super Broccoli Man and who got the sticker album!! Yes, absolute hit with my two, even with their 5 year age difference (and yes, looks like I will be getting a second album and plush toy and more stickers ASAP!)
So I can say these will no doubt be an even bigger hit than the previous  hero's Woolworths cards and how exciting for us parents this time too, not only seeing our kids excited about something and collecting things and interested in things outside electronics but they are excited and its all about real food and growing food!!!

I am so excited about these because I believe, every time a child wants to grow something edible at home, even a single tomato plant, a whole new door to an exciting healthy life begins for that whole family!

And kids just really do love to eat vegetables that they themselves helped to grow, they just do!

"

Growing Tomatoes and A Tasty Spelt Tomato Tart

I love tomatoes. I love cooking with them, eating them, and especially growing them. This is a great recipe to really showcase their taste and beauty.

Tasty Spelt Home Grown Tomato Tart

This recipe was featured in Holistic Bliss Magazine

Ingredients
• 1 & ½ cups mixed fresh home grown tomatoes ( I have used heirloom varieties here)
• ½ medium sized leek
• 3 free range egg yolks
• 1 & ½ cups spelt flour
• ¼ cup fresh parmesan cheese, finely grated
• ¼ cup cheddar cheese, finely grated
• 85 g goats cheese
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, stalks removed
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme, stalks removed
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• 125g butter, chilled and cut up into small cubes

Method
• Pre heat oven to approximately 180’c.
• Grease a tin or dish for your tomato tart.
• Wash and then dry the tomatoes.
• Sift flour into a bowl.
• Add in the chilled butter, rub into the flour using your fingers, working your way through the mixture until it looks a little bit like breadcrumbs.
• Add in the rosemary, mix through.
• Add in the egg yolks and the water, kneading it into a smooth looking dough.
• Wrap and chill in the fridge for around 20 minutes.
• Remove from fridge and roll it out between 2 sheets of baking paper to make a reasonably thin large shape.
• Cut to shape to fit your prepared tin, pressing edges into place around the pan.
• Layer the pastry with the leek, followed by the grated cheeses.
• Break up the goat’s cheese and place in segments around the tart.
• Slice all the tomatoes to a similar thickness and arrange on the tart. Trying not to have it too thick in any one place and a nice even coverage, sprinkle the thyme over the top.
• Bake in a medium hot oven for approximately 30 minutes or until pastry is cooked. Pastry should be golden and cooked and tomatoes should be visibly cooked on top.
• Serve with a fresh green salad.

Notes
• This is a great recipe for home grown tomatoes, especially organic, interesting heirloom varieties. If you don’t grow your own you can use bought tomatoes like cherry, roma or other varieties. If you don't have your own tomatoes look out for a packet of heirloom tomatoes when you are shopping.
• Tomatoes are an easy and rewarding crop to grow and one I recommend highly for kids.

Tomatoes

Solanum lycopersicum, Tomatoes are one of the easiest vegetables to grow and they have so much reward, and because of this they are great for getting kids interested in real foods and gardening. Kids love being able to pick tomatoes and eat them fresh straight from the garden, especially cherry tomatoes.

Belonging to the nightshade family and originating from Mexico and eaten widely around the world there are estimated to be more than 7 and 1/2 thousand cultivars and several wild varieties and some of these are truly incredible but for me it is the older, heirloom varieties that interest me the most along with some of the trusty favourites.

My top tomato growing tips:

• Tomatoes love and need lots of SUN. Make sure where you plan to grow them gets lots of lovely full sun.
• Get the soil right. I say this all the time in gardening workshops, one thing you should never scrimp on in gardening is getting your soil the best it can be. This means compost, manure, lots of organic matter, and for tomatoes some lime and a little potash too all prepared into a beautiful, rich soil mix before planting. The more effort and time you spend here in the beginning, the better, healthier and stronger plants you will get. 
• Water right. Try really hard not to be a sposmadic waterer. Get yourself into a routine. Don't give them heaps one day and then forget them for a week only to drown them again. Try and water them well (not drowned) on a regular basis, and water at the roots rather than spraying water on their leaves. 
• Keep them healthy. Strong tomatoes are pretty hardy, but tomatoes are of course susceptible to a few pests and diseases. Prevention is always better than cure. Tomatoes can get a disease from calcium deficiency, hence why it is good to add lime to to soil when you prepare it, before planting, another tip > back in my nursery days the best tomato grower I knew, an elderly Italian man with his prize winning tomatoes gave his epsom salts, how do they work? They give the plants magnesium, when plants are deficient in magnesium it makes it hard for them to absorb other nutrients they need and they can be weak and even get sick. A good rich soil should provide them with this but you could also try just a little, every so often watered in around the roots at a weak ratio.
• Seasol. Seaweed emulsions and fish emulsions are my favourite fertiliser. Seasol can be added to your watering can and poured right over the entire plant, it is one of the safest of all fertilisers, even safe with orchids, and protects and strengthens plants making them better able to cope with stress, frost, drought, winds even salt spray and plants fertilised with it are much less likely to suffer insect attack.
• Companion plant. I plant carrots, basil, mint, parsley, marigolds and chives around my tomatoes.
• If you see just a few insects, don't panic straight away! It is important in an organic garden to encourage natural predators and many of these will be insects too, killing all bugs kills them as well so this means letting a good balance develop in your garden and only treating insects in large numbers or hand removal if possible. If your plants are healthy and strong, well nourished and watered, they are far less likely to be attacked so focus on keeping them healthy, right from the start.
• Support them, remember to stake and trellis where needed.
• As much as you can, try and grow them organically. Avoid the synthetic fertilisers and if you do have to spray try natural remedies. 
• Grow to your climate. Tomatoes are pretty versatile and in a lot of Australia will grow pretty much all year round but if you live in a specific area like a cold climate or really tropical spot - check with your local nursery for varieties that grow really well where you live as some will be more suited than others and you may also need to grow only in a set season or with some added tools.
• Be adventurous. Tomatoes vary from tiny pea sized to giant beefsteak varieties, so don't be frightened to try a few different ones, look out for heirloom, organic and unusual varieties. I would recommend getting seed from seed saver clubs as well as seeing what your local nurseries have to offer.
• Growing in pots. Yes tomatoes can be grown in pots, if needed, some varieties are much better suited than others and go for a nice, really large pot and a really good potting mix with plenty of added compost.
• Get the kids involved, right from the start. Let them help choose seed or seedlings, prepare the soil, I always tell my kids it is like a giant cake mix and you need all the ingredients just right. Let them help water and why not make it an experiment and let them keep a journal, writing down each step and taking measurements at how they are growing right through to their first harvest. They can then look up recipes and you can do some fun cooking together with your own home grown tomatoes!
  Why not check out a gorgeous PLANET ECO kids gardening gift pack!
• Stay interested. One of the biggest thing I have seen is people starting out really well but losing interest after a few weeks and then plants get neglected and neglect usually leads to weak plants which leads to sick plants or insect attack and so on.
  I recommend planting some very pretty annuals along the edges of your garden bed, seems such a little thing, but it truly can help you interested and enjoy being out their more watering etc it makes the whole area inviting and beautiful. I often grow vegetables in amongst flowers, to me vegetables are gorgeous plants well worth showing off and make stunning centre pieces too.

Happy Cooking & Gardening!

Bek XX

recipe, text and photography (c)RebeccaMugridge2013

Making Healthy Eating An Experience

"Eating delicious meals made from fresh ingredients is one of the things that makes living a healthy lifestyle such an enjoyable, rewarding experience."
"The best chefs in the world will tell you - the meal is nothing without quality ingredients." Rebecca Mugridge in The Pram Diet book, Random House

Growing food, sourcing great ingredients, these are things we can do to make healthy eating a wondrous experience - not a daily task.

I love great ingredients and love to cook and create recipes like those in the Pram Diet book and on the Maleny IGA Local Product Local Recipe - recipe cards, I am so fortunate on the Sunshine Coast to have great conditions to grow beautiful organic vegetables at home with my girls and to be able to buy fantastic local products from my local Maleny Supa IGA including locally produced cheeses, yogurts, cream, sauces, pasta, bread, jams, chocolate, eggs, honey, lettuce, oils - more products than I can list.


I will be giving a talk and demonstration at the Mudjimba Community Centre on November 24th on growing organic food at home and composting - if you would like to come and hear me speak.

Rebecca x

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beatiful Planet Eco Gardening Kits for Kids

As a horticulturalist and a mum I just love seeing kids in the garden, growing things, eating freshly picked veggies, smelling flowers, picking and cooking with herbs, discovering amazing insects, exploring and learning, unleashing their imagination in the natural world.

As parents we can help to inspire and nurture the love of the outdoors that children just overflow naturally with by giving them spaces in our own backyards or on our patios where they can grow things.

I have worked in the nursery industry for many years and one of the greatest joys is seeing children get excited about a gardening project.

The kits by Planet Eco  are amazing, they are beautifully presented and packaged and full of things for the children to get excited about. The fact that they are also environmentally friendly means they tick all the right boxes.
They would make an ideal Christmas Gift or Birthday Present.
I know they are going to be on our families Christmas shopping list!

This kits are so beautiful and give children a present that not only unleashes their imagination but gives them the opportunity to experience all the benefits of their own garden, to get excited about getting outside and seeing things grow.
Gardening has so many benefits to children including building a sense of accomplishment, responsibility and best of all a real sense of wonder as they nurture and then see their tiny seeds grow into plants and then into beautiful flowers, useful and fragrant herbs or delicious, healthy food they can eat!
The garden is a live science lesson as they learn about plants, what plants needs are, the insect world and how things grow and work together in the garden.

These would have to be the most beautiful and also practical children's gardening kits I have seen - I was very impressed.
And what better way to inspire a fussy eater to eat their vegetables - than to grow their very own!!

You can buy your very own Planet Eco Kits at http://planet-eco.com.au/

Earthy Fun With Kids

Earthy Fun With kids

Step away from the TV, the game console, the dvd's.

The best fun to be had these school holidays is OUTSIDE

Not only is outside play FUN and best of all generally FREE it teaches kids about their environment, the natural world, creative play, active play and uses their imagination.

Combine their play with some educational follow on and it becomes a live science lesson.

We spent the morning in the garden the other day, tying up some wayward snow peas, fertilising, sowing some seeds and because our garden is organic admiring the bugs, we have a wide variety of bugs and insect activity, the majority of them are very amazing to look at.

After Lily discovered a beautiful beetle that she was very taken with, using her imagination she decided to build a house for the beetle in what became a gorgeous afternoon of artistic play, even after the beetle had long since flown off!

She spent ages constructing her very cute little house and was so enthralled we decided to follow up the following day with a trip to the library and look at some books on insects, such a simple, fun activity to do with your kids.

Some other great ideas for some earthy fun these holidays are:

• Make a mini garden where they can plant some easy things like lettuce and spinach seeds, alyssum and lobelia, marigolds.
• Create a leaf collage.
• Make a fairy garden.
• Set up a worm farm or compost system together.
• Visit a national park and take the time to find out what some of the trees and birds are within it and see if you can all spot any of them.
• Visit a local mountain if you have one. Learn its name and how high it is, make an adventure of the day.
• Pick a bird species of your local area and go bird spotting, research them for the older kids, draw them. You can even do this at home. Record what birds you see each day and how many each day.
• Write your own nature story. Get the kids to pick a nature animal or insect and create a short story around it and illustrate with their own pictures.
• Create a mini pot plant garden - these are great for kids of all ages and easy to manage. You can even often pick up second hand pots at recycle centres, garage sales.
• Plant a sensory garden with plants of all different textures and smells and experiences so children can learn as they explore. Some great plants could include lamb's ears, a wide variety of herbs, cousin it plants, different textured low ground covers - take the kids to a plant nursery and let them choose a plant each that they find fascinating. Take some cuttings together, collect and plant seeds.
• Growing veggies with kids
• Make a dry creek bed area in your garden for lizards and frogs. After construction make a log book to record any visitors they see. They could draw them or photograph them. 
• Go on a bug hunt. Explore the backyard and find 5 different bugs. Draw or photograph them and then go to the local library and look them up to identify them. Fine out what they are, what they eat and what they do, bugs are fascinating and some are very cool critters indeed! Even older kids will be amazed at some of the facts about them, some of the gory habits!
• Build a frog pond, learn what some native grasses are that you could plant around it, look up together what frogs need to be healthy and happy and what types of frogs are in your area.
• Grow something edible like Growing Your Sprouts 
• Finding a kids gardening activity in your local area, comunity gardens often have kids programs.
• Visiting a community garden.
• Visiting a botanical garden.
• Go on a neighbourhood explore and see who can name the most plants, trees and birds that they see. Again another great one for a log book, drawings and photos.

There is also a fantastic KIT now available especially for kids is at www.planet-eco.com.au - look out for my review coming soon!! It is really beautiful and a perfect Christmas Gift idea.

Grow Your Own Sprouts! A FUN way to get kids excited about fresh food

GROW YOUR OWN SPROUTS!

Another fun activity to get children loving healthy food, learning about food and enjoying food, and this one has quick results!!

Kids in the Kitchen FUN
GROW your own SPROUTS
©rebeccamugridge2012

Growing fresh sprouts is a really fun way to get kids excited about healthy eating.
Unlike a lot of vegetables there is really quick results and each day something new to see, you can do it in any home space or classroom and they are eating the results in just a few days!!

What you will need:

·         1 medium sized clean jar.

·         1 small square of clean, new flyscreen (or something similar)

·         1-2 tablespoons of alfalfa sprouts (these can
 be found in most garden centres- look for organic ones too - you can also sprouts lots of other things, ask the nursery staff)

·         2 rubber bands

·         Water

Method:

·        Place the seeds in the jar, cover the opening with the flyscreen and secure in place with the rubber bands

·         Fill with water approximately half way and let sit for 8 hours

·         Drain

·        Set upside down on a slight angle so they can dry and get air circulation, a dish rask can be  good for this – leave for 12 hours

·         Fill up again with water, swish around so all
are well moistened.

·         Drain for 12 hours

·         Fill with water, swish around

·         Drain again for 12 hours

·         Continue this method for between 3-6 days and lots of big sprouts should be well visible

·         When sprouts are grown and green place jar
in a well lit place for approximately 4 hours

·         You may want to separate the husks now

·         Rinse and enjoy

Notes

·         Do not place in direct sunlight

·         Experiment with other sprout types and combinations

·         Make into delicious salad sandwiches, salads
 or on top of crackers with a great cheese, tomatoes and avocado for a fun, delicious lunch!

Make it a real live science lesson for kids by writing notes
at each step and on what they see each time they re-wet and drain. They could even take a photo each day from
start to finish and create a poster of the whole experience, great for show and tell too!

My girls like theirs fresh on Quinoa crackers XX

EASY Broccoli, carrot and mushroom stir fry the kiddies will love

This is so quick and easy and kids do love it.

To be honest I am not a big fan of a pile of flavourless steamed or boiled veg thrown on the side of the plate with insistence that you have to eat it- kids I probably wouldnt eat it either!

Food should be fun, joyous and most of all delicous!

I believe if we are forced to eat something we could be put off it for life and really the exact same ingredient with some fun and funky thinking can be eaten most willingly without any prompting!

5 TIPS To Get Kiddies To want To Eat Their Veg

• Colour. Kids love colour. Just look at any day care centre, childrens hospital ward, toy section in a store. Colour means something to children, especially young children.
  And fortunately there is an array of gorgeous coloured veg out there! From bright orange carrots, pumpkin and sweet potato, to red tomatoes, capsicums and deep red beetroot, to bright green snow peas, spinach and celery to purple capsicums, carrots, cabbage, even broccoli and so on and so on.
  Next time you want to serve up veg make it bright and colourful!
• Grow. Kids and gardens just go together. They really do. Inspire your children about the wonderful world of vegetables by starting growing some together at home. There is something so exciting about children growing up icking and eating fresh snow peas, cherry tomatoes, herbs and spinach leaves, strawberries and capsicums straight from the garden!
• Cook together. Let them help source the veggies (garden, shop or market), help choose a recipe and then helpt to make - trust the appeal factor of that meal has just gone sky high!

This is a recipe my two girls (both under 7) just love.

Easy Broccoli, Carrot and Mushroom Stir Fry

Ingredients

• 1 cup broccoli
• 1 carot
• 125 grams mushrooms
• 1/4 cup red capsicum  (optional)
• 2 cups glass noodles  prepared according to packet ( these are super cheap and found in the asian section of your supermarket)
• 1 tablespoon ABC Kepac Manis Sweet Soy Sauce
• 1 tabelspoon honey

Method

• Cut the broccoli into small, cute little florets
• Cut carrot into thin circles
• Cut the capsicum into little squares or long thin strips
• Lightly fry the carrot in a little olive oil until slightly soft, add in the broccoli and capsicum, honey and soy
• Stir and cook until vegies are penetratable with a fork, add mushrooms and a littl extra soy or honey if need
• When cooked stir prepared noodles through, mix together well
• Sevre on plates with an optional sprinkling of cashews

Notes

• You can fry some chicken or tufu before the carrot, making sure it is cooked and then follow the rest of the recipe.
• Add some garlic for an extra boost of flavour and goodness.
• Through some fresh baby spinach leaves in with the mushroom, even better if the kids can pick these from the garden. They can also be very finely chopped and put in too.
• Through some fresh snow pea sprouts through just before serving
• Use three different coloured capsicums cut into ling thin strips for a diferent effect.
• For older kids make it a really fun experience with a well set themed table, hot green tea and use chop sticks!

Toddler Tips

• Cut the noodles up with clean, kitchen scissors before putting through veggies to make it easier to eat

Enjoy!
Stay tuned for the release of my new upcoming e-cookbook packed FULL of fun and exciting recipes for kids (and mum)
Coming Soon!!
Rebecca xx

Healthy Food IS Beautiful

BEAUTIFUL FOOD Healthy, natural food is gorgeous.

Appreciate the wonder of nature and its bounty or edibles.

Take the time to have a clean fridge and display your vegetables with care and thought so when you open the door a beautiful collection awaits you - filling you with inspiration for a loving family meal or a great quick bite to eat.
Select your produce with interest, smell the fruit, think of exciting ways to cook the vegetables, new recipes to try.
Look for interesting types you have never tried, heirloom varieties, organics grown with passion. Appreciate all the nutrients these wonderful foods will provide you and your family.

Find local suppliers, farmers markets.
Swap produce with neighbours.

Have fruit out on show in a bowl. Edible art.

Grow vegetables in your flower gardens - they are beautiful plants.

Plant a fruit tree.

Help your local kindergarten grow cherry tomatoes for the kids.

When we start to see healthy food as the delicous world of flavours, nutrients and ingredients it is, when we take the time to discover how interesting it all is we do fall in love with healthy eating and healthy food.

Rebecca x







STAY TUNED for information on my exciting new cookbook
Healthy Mumas loving Healthy Food

PS Hope you like the pictures of some of our families home grown edibles :)

Kids and Healthy Food

Kids and healthy food are just meant to go together.

 Both my girls have grown up loving fresh fruit and vegetables and healthy homemade meals.
 They love healthy food and healthy snacks and while both have very different personalities and are 5 years apart in age both eat pretty much anything healthy food wise BUT I am the first to admit I myself was definately not always a healthy eating person and I was never a big fan of fruit and veges-instead I became one after having my first baby!
As I told in The Pram Diet book when I sarted on my healthy journey my daughter was my inspiration. My inspiration to find the healthy, energised version of me, to fall in love with healthy, real food.

Just like everyone, everwhere can too!

One of the greatest things we can pass on to our children is the tools to live a healthy, happy lifestyle and the best way of doing this is by actually living one ourselves!

So where do you start?

Start with you-be inspiration to your children.

As with a lot of things it is always important to start with changes you enjoy doing or feel the benefit from, changes that aren't overwhelming or extreme, changes you will keep doing. Start with small steps and let them become natural to you and then build on them and add more as it becomes a momentum that creates an exciting love of healthy living that flows through your whole life.  

For more ideas and easy to follw advice on starting a home edible garden, composting, finding motivation, creating a healthy kitchen and a healthier less stressful home environment, cooking healthy meals that the whole family will actually eat, getting healthy and losing weight on budget and lots of recipes check out my book 

 Becoming a healthier family doesn't have to be hard, expensive or UNFUN in fact it can be a great bonding experience and have fantastic long term health benefits.

One of the best ways that as a mother I know you can get children eating healthier is by actually involving them with food. Real food. Not a packet you open or something you zap or that is handed to you through a drive-through window.

Real exciting food experiences.

Things like:

• GROW some edibles at home. Kids just LOVE this! They get so much out of it; it provides you with beautiful fresh ingredients and kids can't wait to eat veges they themselves helped to grow-combine growing with some cooking together and they will never look back. Plus as a mum you will be far more inclined to cook with lots of vegetables and herbs when you have them right there, FREE in the garden. Beautiful as fresh as fresh can be, organic and so tasty.
  Both my girls have grown up with edible gardens and watching your toddler and kids eating fresh organic snow peas, tomatoes, strawberries, watermelon, beans, celery and other ingredients straight from the garden is just priceless.
• Take them to market. Take the kids and let them help pick the fresh fruit and vegetables. Let them smell, feel, experience. Even at the supermarket make your first stop the fruit and vegetable section. This should ideally be around 1/3 of your trolley. Get them involved and have a look around together at what looks good, whats on special, what meals could be made out what ingredients.
  If your a mum sometimes caught in that spot of an upset toddler where you might give them a little something to nibble on while you shop or once you get in the car to keep them occupied what about a stalk of celery? Leave the leafy top on to make it even more fun-or a punnet of tomatoes or strawberries that aren't sold by weight, much better than a biscuit.
• Find out what they like. There is not much joy to be had consistently putting fruit and vegetables in front of kids that they don't like or that is prepared or cooked in way they don't like. Why force apples if they love mandarins or pears? The same with veges is they hate boiled veg why not try them with a fresh, dressed salad, vegetable stir fry or raw crunchy finger food veges? 
• Appreciate quality ingredients and foods. Try not to be caught up in the too expensive fruit headspace and then turn a few isles and put chips, soft drink and party pies in the trolley-in the end what would you really prefer they were munching on?
• Get healthy takeaway. Think creatively. When heading to the beach or park on a hot day why not swap the icecreams with a fresh whole watermelon chopped up on the spot for the kids to tuck into? You could even but it in advance and chill it in the fridge.
  Make your own spinach and feta sausage rolls, pizza and party pies and use things like whole grain pastry.

Read my post on Healthy Lunch Box Ideas For Kids at SunnyCoastKids.com.au by

Clicking HERE


Rebecca xx

Garden Bug Detectives

http://buginabook.wordpress.com/2011/06/15/garden-bug-detectives-by-rebecca-mugridge/

Read my Garden Bug Detectives story part One-The Good Guys on
the BUG IN A BOOK blog!

Find out more about Bug In A Book!
http://www.buginabook.com/
The comprehensive resource of writing and books for chldren.

Kids in the garden

There is something so wonderful about children in the garden.                                               The garden can be a neverending source of learning, joy and wonder. A place to discover amazing insects, pick and eat fruits, herbs and vegetables and marvel at all the amazing things to see, eat, feel and smell.

From veggie gardens to cacti and succulent gardens. Herb gardens to fairy gardens. Pot plant gardens on a balcony, hanging baskets of strawberries and herbs, fruit tree forests, amazing landscaping to sensory gardens. There is a garden to capture everyone's heart.

Gardens really are as unique as their creators and only limited by imagination.

Gardening teaches children the rewards of responsibility, patience, teamwork and to care about the natural world around them while showing them what an exciting and fun filled place to be the garden really is. Just like a live science lesson.

The home garden can also be a fantastic source of ingredients, saving you money on your grocery bills and providing you with the fresh ingredients that make home made meals come alive.

Having fresh produce on hand is great inspiration to try new recipes, cook more and eat more healthily.

When you look after a home garden as a family it becomes a beautiful bonding experience that creates memories that last a lifetime and gives children so much more understanding about food, where it come from and what it goes through before making it to the dinner plate.

And the very best bit of all...Children really enjoy eating fruits and vegetables that they themselves helped to grow and harvest. THEY REALLY DO!

(C) RebeccaMugridge2011