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Leek & Cauliflower Cheese
“Cauliflower cheese is a classic family favourite, made even tastier with chunks of sweet and tender leeks and crunchy breadcrumbs. This is fab served with a roast or sausages, or it could easily be served as a vegetarian main dish with fresh crusty bread and a green salad.”
This is the third comforting recipe Olivia Galletly shared with us from her first cookbook, The Hungry Cook.
Rustic Fruit Tart
“In my eyes, a seasonal fruit tart is hard to beat. This tart is the perfect way to use up any of the final sun-ripened autumn fruit.”
This is the first of three recipes Jaz Mathisen shared with us from her cookbook, A Year at Awakino Station.
Turning up for Each Other
Kath Menpes, 48, a born and bred Southlander, grew up inland in Heddon Bush and now lives in Orepuki, a small coastal settlement, with her husband, Paul, and their two children, Jamie, 15, and Lizzy, 13, on Paul’s family’s third-generation sheep farm. Three years ago, she joined PGG Wrightson as the store manager at Tuatapere. Five times a week, she channels her commitment to staying active into community fitness sessions for local women, where it’s not just muscles that get strengthened.
Hearts Racing
A shared passion for horse racing brought Jessica Murphy, known as Jess, and Marc Hamilton together, so when the couple exchanged vows on a bluebird autumn day in Central Otago, it made sense for Jess’s Appaloosa gelding, Micah, to take a starring role.
Generations of Care
Robyn Stephens, a Te Rohe Pōtae King Country farmer and grandmother of nine, took up dog trials at the age of fifty-nine, following in her father’s footsteps, and at seventy-six is still working as a casual musterer. Here, she reflects on her connection to the past and how her whānau Māori has influenced her.
Still Here
Her father’s influence and a deep love for animals inspired her to become a shepherd, but it’s not been an easy road for Wairarapa-based Lara Smith, 29. Here, she shares how her persistence has paid off.
A Dream & Hard Graft
A way of life with a love of horses at its core, encompassed by a strong belief that horses can heal.
Slow Stitches
Self-taught fibre artist Fleur Woods is crazy about the chaotic creative process. From her eclectic home in Upper Moutere, she surrounds herself with colourful fabrics and threads, combining them with beads and paints to create the intricate stitched paintings she’s known for.
Crookston
After finishing university, Kirsten McIntyre, 33, returned to her West Otago hometown, Crookston. Today, she helps out on her partner’s and parents’ family farms, teaches at the same rural school she attended and strives to inspire a passion for agriculture in her students.
Herb & Vinegar Potato Salad
My German-born husband loves this potato salad, as it reminds him of one his oma used to make. The combination of sharp vinegar, gherkins, fresh herbs and red onion are the secret to this flavourful potato salad, and I make it often through the summer months to take to potlucks and barbecues.
Knitting Yourself Together
The small Southland township of Manapōuri – population around 200 – has an unusual claim to fame: it has possibly the most bookshops per capita in Aotearoa, thanks to Ruth Shaw and her husband, Lance.
From Cows to Cabernet
Karen McLeod was raised on a dairy farm, and it was to dairy that she returned sixteen years ago. But viticulture has always been her passion.
A Cosy Spot
It’s a picturesque, sheltered cove with a wee fishing village that’s popular in the summer for swimming and holidaymaking, featuring views across the water towards Cathedral Rock and, further in the distance, Rakiura Stewart Island.
Takurua Winter 2026 Edition
Twenty-Sixth Edition
Our beautiful Takurua Winter 2026 Edition is out now.