Issue 33

Nicky McArthur, 55, has known the depths of despair but is now at the pinnacle of her life, creating her alpine legacy on the country’s highest privately owned property.

“When I texted my friend and trainer from the 2006 National Triathlon Championships to say ‘Bronze medal and place on NZ team’ she just texted back ‘Now will you believe in yourself?’ It was 18 months after my soul mate died in a tragic accident, aged 42. There was no way around the grief; time was the only healer. My gift was the knowledge that he would not want me to waste a single day. I did not believe in myself until the day of that medal.

“I have had quite a chequered career, from cordon bleu cook in London to volunteering aged 18 during Israel’s 1973 Yom Kippur War. This taught me about valuing what we have. We are so privileged to live in New Zealand when there is so much sadness elsewhere.

“In 2003 I became involved in a tourism venture in Kaikoura as a guide, partner and director of a wilderness walk which now takes hikers to eco-luxury Shearwater Lodge. It’s at 1000 metres in the Seaward Kaikoura Mountains. I had never done anything like this before but leapt at the chance to be in the mountains. When in 2008 I became sole owner and operator of Kaikoura Wilderness Walks and Shearwater Lodge, my friends thought I was mad. Some were sceptical as with 1618 hectares (4000 acres) rising to 2438 metres (8000 feet), this is not an easy place for a woman on her own. It’s the highest privately owned property in New Zealand and has its own micro-hydro scheme. There was not one aspect of the business that I knew much about. It has been the sharpest learning curve of my life, second only to having my three children!

We took ten liberties with the original version of this artwork - here are the changes we made.

EVER SINCE I SAW that black cat leaping onto the back of the chair on our cover, making me think about luck, I keep hearing What’s luck got to do with it? Tina Turner is singing it in my head yet her song isn’t about luck at all but What’s love got to do with it?

What does luck have to do with it? Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States (1801–09) had a view: “I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more luck I have”. So the Declaration of Independence wasn’t his only inspirational bit of thinking. Legendary South African golfer Gary Player (US Open, PGA, British Open among other conquests) refined Jefferson: “The harder I practise, the luckier I get”. Many people interviewed for NZ Life & Leisure say they feel lucky yet when we observe their achievements we see them as being blessed with the hard-work ethic. Luck, it seems to us, was along for the ride.

Studies conducted by Dr Richard Wiseman* to assess the intuition of people who considered themselves lucky when it came to winning a lottery concluded that luck has nothing to do with it. Lucky people think they are lucky but actually are no luckier than anyone else. Repeat winners of lotteries just entered more times than those who considered themselves unlucky, thereby increasing their odds.

• 2 cups walnuts
• 1 cup water
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• ½ cup neutral oil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• salt and ground black pepper
• 18 fat spears asparagus, ends trimmed
• a little olive oil to fry or roast
• Garnish: about 50g parmesan or pecorino, shaved with a vegetable peeler

Make the walnut crema. Place 1 cup of the walnuts in a pot with the water and garlic. Boil for 10 minutes. Transfer mixture to a food processor, add oil and lemon juice and purée until smooth, adding another ¼-½ cup water to achieve a thick, creamy texture. Season to taste. Place in a small bowl and put to one side.

Roast the remaining walnuts on an oven tray at 180?C for 10 minutes. Boil trimmed asparagus in lightly salted water for 3 minutes, drain and cool in cold water. Drain. Either pan-fry asparagus in a little olive oil or roast at 220?C for 8-10 minutes until just starting to brown.
Spoon a little walnut crema on to 6 serving plates. Divide asparagus among plates, sprinkle with roasted walnuts and shavings of parmesan or pecorino. Serves 6

• 4 rashers streaky bacon, very finely diced
• a little oil for frying
• 2 dozen oysters on the half-shell
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 4 tablespoons melted butter
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon very finely chopped parsley
• pinch of salt and sprinkle of ground black pepper

Fry bacon until very crispy, drain and discard fat. Place oysters in a shallow baking dish and arrange bacon over the top. Mix together all other ingredients. Spoon about half a teaspoon of mixture over each oyster and place under a preheated grill for 2-3 minutes to just warm through.
Serves 4 as a starter and 6-8 as a pre-dinner nibble

Roasted hazelnuts and crispy bacon make the most wonderful garnish for this soup. You could use just hazelnuts but the combination of both makes this soup really special.

• 1 whole cauliflower, trimmed, outside leaves removed
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• salt and fine white pepper
• 6 cups vegetable stock or water
• 100g blue cheese, crumbled
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 2 cups milk
• ½ cup cream
• Garnish: ½ cup roasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
• Optional: 4 rashers streaky bacon, diced and cooked in a little oil until crispy

Cut cauliflower into small florets and place in a roasting dish. Drizzle over butter and toss to lightly coat. Spread out in a single layer, season with salt and pepper and pour 1 cup of stock or water into the base of the dish.
Roast at 180?C for about 40 minutes until tender and just starting to caramelize around the edges.

Purée cauliflower with its cooking juices until smooth then transfer to a pot; add the rest of the stock or water, blue cheese, parsley, milk and cream. Bring to a simmer; adjust seasonings to taste. Divide among serving bowls and garnish with crispy bacon and hazelnuts. Serves 6

Mad about all things equine, a Hunterville family travels the country in a custom-built vehicle with all mod cons – and horses – on board. Words: Ann Warnock; Photos: Nicola Edmonds

This peaceful little fishing village beckons as a stopover point with views out to some of New Zealand’s most dramatic coastal scenery. Moeraki (Maori for “a place to rest by day”) is not only home to award-winning restaurant Fleurs Place (see our story on page 100) but also the famous Moeraki Boulders, large spherical stones scattered over sandy beaches.

Unlike ordinary boulders which are shaped by rivers and pounding seas, these were formed during the early Paleocene period 60 million years ago in similar fashion to oyster pearls, where layers of material cover a fossil shell or bone fragment. Over time, lime minerals in the sea accumulated on the core and the concretion grew into perfectly spherical shapes up to three metres in diameter and weighing several tonnes.

Moeraki has strong Maori, whaling and sealing heritages and was North Otago’s first European settlement. According to Maori legend, the boulders are remains of calabashes, kumara and eel baskets which washed ashore after the wreckage of legendary canoe Araiteuru at Shag Point. The long Maori history is represented in the town today by the Kotahitanga Maori Church and a pa site nearby.

Syria’s ancient cities, exotic markets and overwhelming sense of history are a revelation to two Kiwi travellers. Words: Polly Greeks. Photos: Ryan Rodrick Beiler/dreamstime, Max Galli/laif.