Here in Sydney and in other places around Aus that I have been, there is a plant so common that you would walk straight past and not see it, but during some reading a few years ago I found out that it was edible, and it now forms a regular part of our diet. That plant is, of course mallow. It takes very little effort to grow, is prolific and well worth finding and cultivating.
There are a number of species of mallow but the one we get around here is dwarf mallow (Malva Neglecta) which will grow to about a metre in height. The leaves have a characteristic shape (see below) and are found on the end of a long stem. The flowers are small, cup shaped and pink or white generally and produce flattened button-like seed pods up to a centimetre or more in diameter. Mallow is a Mediterranean weed of cultivated ground and they can be found in gardens, along road and path sides and vacant lots. Mallow generally is found most commonly in the colder months but some plants will survive into the warmer weather. I seeds very freely and once you have it, you have it for life.
Mallow is rich in vitamins and the leaves, young shoots and immature seed pods can be eaten. In Egypt mallow is known as Khobaza and is made into a soup with chicken stock, rice, butter, garlic and ground coriander seed. I have also heard of large leaves being stuffed with rice etc in the manner of dolmades. The flavour of mallow is mild enough for the leaves to be included in salads although generally we tend to put them into stir fries or steam them. Unlike some of the Asian greens they do not get a bitter flavour as the plant gets older and they crop for a long time. 
Mallow can provide a healthy and tasty meal for free with no food miles if you can gather it locally. As with all wild herbs, if you do gather it from outside your own garden make sure that it has not been sprayed with something horrible by some do-gooder thinking they are doing good by trying to wipe out this useful plant, that does not deserve the term “weed”.
