Our Place Magazine Issue 46

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Founders Rachelle & Christopher Duffy

Creative director Christopher Duffy Editor Sarah Nicholson sarah@ourplacemagazine.co.nz

Social media manager Millie Guest social@ourplacemagazine.co.nz

Advertising enquiries Rachelle Duffy 021 032 7873 rachelle@ourplacemagazine.co.nz

Contributors Jessica Agoston Cleary, Carla Bragagnini, Sue Hoffart, Holly McVicar, Clarissa van Emmenes

Photographers ilk, Adrienne Pitts

Pick up your copy from The Little Big Markets, plus at selected cafes, restaurants, shops and businesses.

Want to receive regular copies of Our Place for your business to distribute? Email rachelle@ourplacemagazine.co.nz

To tell us about anything happening in your area right now, email sarah@ourplacemagazine.co.nz

Cover & contents photography

Cover: Maree Paynter & Craig Lovell (p 31) by Adrienne Pitts.

Contents: Omanu School gardners (p 40) by ilk.

That’s why school gardens are so important — arming kids with the know-how and confidence to not only grow fruit and veges, but to enjoy them. Plus there’s the host of other positives (mental and physical), gained from working outside, getting your hands dirty. You may have seen first-hand the joy these gardens provide — as parents, volunteers or members of the community that have contributed in some way. The people from PiPS oversee seven fantastic local gardens so we joined them at Omanu School to see the kids in action (page 40).

Maree Paynter and Craig Lovell have created Bee First Aparies mead, with Maree schooling up in the art of honey fermentation to make this ancient drink (31). Between the clever pair, they’ve collected the honey, erected a shed, blended, bottled and even dealt with the odd explosion...

If your whare walls are looking a bit bare, the time might be right to start buying some art. Jessica Agoston Cleary’s piece (53) is basically art collecting 101. Wannabe collectors will be reassured to read that buying that first piece needn’t be an intimidating process or cost a bomb.

Tauranga Moana’s 2023 Matariki theme is Tupuānuku — one of the stars in the Matariki cluster that’s connected to kai and rongoā (traditional medicines) that are grown in the ground. Mark this uniquely New Zealand celebration by joining in one of the many events at mymatariki.co.nz

Mā te wā The Our Place team

The power of growing your own affordable and healthy food is more apparent all the time.

Coronation Park, Mt Maunganui

Williamson Park, Whangamatā

9am—2pm

For winter dates: thelittlebigmarkets.co.nz

Craf t

Food & Art Market

What’s Up

Trading Places

The Trading Post has lost “French Bistro” from its name, but gained “Osteria Italiana” — the eatery now owned by Italian chef Simone Saglia and his Waikato-born wife, Kylie. Simone has worked in Michelin-starred eateries in Italy and the UK, and top Melbourne joints too. Dinner is degustation only, currently with braised osso buco with polenta, and a chocolate and hazelnut lava cake. It’s à la carte by day, with casual offerings (eggs or a BLAT) as well as the makings of a lazy lunch with cured duck breast, truffle risotto (with Te Puke truffles), and cannelloni. Simone hails from Piedmont, an area famous for wines such as Barolo and Nebbiolo, so expect great Italian vino.

→ 1 Hall Rd, Paengaroa (10 minutes from Te Puke) thetradingpost.nz thetradingpostnz

Generally Speaking

One of Mount Maunganui’s favourite cafes has hitched a ride over the bridge and landed in The Lakes. The General at the Lakes has taken over the former Maude site at The Lakes Shopping Village (right beside the great little playground, and the walking and cycling paths around the picturesque Lakes area). The daytime menu (Mon Amour French toast, pictured) is similar to the Mount offering with good cabinet food. Come night time, there are cocktails, bar snacks and regular live gigs, plus a new dinner menu that ranges from dumplings and Coromandel mussels to ribeye and lamb shanks.

Go Underground

Learn all about the intriguing world of truffles at an experience offered by Kitchen Takeover and Te Puke Truffles. The two-hour truffle hunts with tastings will run Friday to Sunday, until 30 July. Maureen and Colin Binns have been cultivating some of Aotearoa’s best black Périgord truffles since 2015. After the farm experience, you have the option of a two-course Italian lunch at Sugo in Tauranga, where truffles will take centre stage.

→ kitchentakeover.co.nz

1 Caslani Ln, Pyes Pa @thegeneralatthelakes

Food Lovers’ Kitchen

A husband-and-wife team, Food Lovers’ Kitchen offers traditional handmade dumplings and pork buns, and an excellent pure chilli oil. The oil stars in its delicious signature dish of Sichuan Spicy Noodles. You’ll love it!

@foodlovers_kitchen_bop

Green Tiger Interiors

Green Tiger Interiors is passionate about colour, texture and great design. It believes in fair trade and only sources exceptional quality, handmade items. Check out the range and support traditional arts. greentigerinteriors.co.nz

@greentigerinteriors

Neufound

Neufound eyewear is found at selected boutiques nationwide and online. The frames are handcrafted for sunseekers who share an appreciation of premium and sustainable materials. neufound.com

@neufound_eyewear

Me & the Brave

Beautiful 100% wool, wide-brim fedoras, plus jewellery and apparel for all those brave, authentic and fearless souls. Showroom at 12b Kopukairoa Boulevard, Pāpāmoa. @meandthebrave meandthebrave.com

Kai Fusion

A boutique catering company specialising in gourmet street food around the Bay of Plenty. Kai Fusion caters weddings and corporate office events as well as get-togethers with friends. It’s food you won’t soon forget. @kaifusioncatering

When you buy local, it has a positive impact on the whole community. Check out these fantastic products from The Little Big Markets and see all the market dates in our Events Guide (p 96).

Delicious Dosa

Food Point, aka Delicious Dosa, has more fans each market. Dosa is a fermented savoury crepe made from stone-ground rice and lentils, and has a range of fillings. Served with salad, peri peri sauce, coconut mayo and coconut chutney.

@foodpointdosa

Mon’s Flavors

Mon’s spices are handmade and have no artificial colouring, refined sugar, MSG or salt. Just ground and roasted, ready to make your food taste great. Ingredients are selected for their high nutrient values and are organic, where possible. monsflavors.co.nz

Defy

Defy is a New Zealand owned and operated brand that prides itself in creating high-quality and functional clothing with a distinct street aesthetic — think hoodies, tees, shorts and activewear.

defyclothing.co.nz

@defy_clothing_nz

Noxen

100% cotton hooded poncho towels, surf accessories and custom apparel for everyone in the whānau, from groms to grandparents. Call in to the showroom at 12b Kopukairoa Boulevard, Pāpāmoa.

noxen.co.nz @noxensurf

Dr Bucha

Dr Bucha’s craft kombucha is made locally and delivers full-bodied natural flavour with real fruit pieces you can see. Made the traditional way, it will satisfy the kombucha lovers in your family. Visit TLBM or your local farmers’ market to taste. drbucha.co.nz

Stick Hunters

Stick Hunters is a local clothing range for adventurous kids who live an outdoorsy lifestyle. From puddle jumping to beach play, it’s all about exploring and having the most fun. Join the hunt.

stickhunters.co.nz

@stick.hunters

DISCOVER YOUR IMPACT ON THE PLANET

FutureFit is a simple yet powerful way for you to engage with climate change. By answering a few quick questions about your lifestyle, FutureFit provides a snapshot of your carbon footprint. You can compare results with the NZ and world (OECD) average or delve deeper for a more accurate result and to learn about how you can make positive changes.

Take the quiz at futurefit.nz

The Little Big Markets

TLBM is a thriving community hub on a Saturday. This issue we meet a diverse range of local stallholders with an array of talents, from sourcing artisanal homewares and jewellery to whipping up excellent street food.

Words by Carla Bragagnini

Photography by ilk Art direction by Millie Guest

Wahine Silver

Since becoming a mother to an adorable, energetic little boy three years ago, Monique Marques (right) has been on a mission to inspire others to find their identity as women and as mothers. “I love making women feel empowered,” says Monique. In that spirit, a year and a half ago, she founded Tauranga-based Wahine Silver. Monique sells quality sterling silver 925 pieces made by artisans from her homeland of Brazil. She works closely with the makers, at times designing the pieces herself. Her range includes necklaces, chokers, bracelets, earrings and pendants. “It’s so important to be part of the community,” she says, which is why she loves being a vendor at TLBM. Monique’s a peopleperson; she thrives on engaging with customers and has impeccable taste when helping to select jewellery.

Monique feels that wāhine are often called to wear many hats in life, sometimes losing themselves in the process. But just like tarnished silver jewellery, sometimes it just takes a little TLC to bring out the shine once again. “When women wear my jewellery, it’s a reminder that they can shine and feel their inner glow and have the power to follow their dreams.”

wahinesilver.com @wahinesilver

Kai Fusion

Dan Williams (left) went to culinary school in his hometown of Wellington, but always kept his passport handy. He worked in Australia, the UK and US as a chef, before returning to New Zealand and launching the Kai Fusion food truck with his wife Julianna in 2017.

Dan specialises in up-scale Asian street food and at TLBM, he’s best known for the pork bao buns and hawker rolls, but his time overseas allows him to cook French, Mediterranean, Mexican and more. “I’ve got a broad range of recipes, so I can cater for any type of food,” he says.

The idea for a food truck came from working in the States for a mobile catering company, seeing spontaneous food pop-ups on the streets of LA, as well as from his profession. “Being a chef you never really have time to sit down, so it’s awesome to be able to eat amazing food on the go,” Dan says.

The connections at the markets have helped Kai Fusion catapult into the world of catering weddings and other functions through word of mouth and private requests. “The markets help me brand and promote my business — without that platform, it would be like starting completely from scratch,” he says.

@kaifusion @kaifusioncatering

Green Tiger Interiors

Amber Miller is a multi-disciplinary talent — an interior designer, an artist and the founder of the homeware store, Green Tiger Interiors.

“It started off with a need and desire for colour,” she says. Having lived overseas for over a decade, in the UK, Kuwait and Qatar, her far-reaching experiences inspired a love of vibrant hues, travel and design, which are all channelled into her fair trade shop of handcrafted global goods.

While working as a nurse-turned-teacher in the Middle East, Amber was able to travel with her husband, prompting exotic trips to the ruins of Petra in Jordan, the rock formations of Cappadocia in Turkey and the peaks of Zhangjiajie, China. “We would fly into a country in Africa with nothing booked, not knowing where we were going next,” she recounts.

In 2013, she returned to New Zealand and to her roots in art and design, studying to be an interior designer. Five years later, with all these experiences in her metaphorical backpack, she tapped into her international contacts to launch Green Tiger Interiors, selling artisanal goods, including baskets, jewellery,

throws and rugs, made by expertly-skilled craftspeople from around the world. In a time where many things are massproduced and poorly made, Green Tiger Interiors offers high-quality and durable products made by hand. “People are going back to appreciating the workmanship of the handmade, the environmental — and looking after and supporting communities.” This summer, Amber brought her online shop to life at TLBM. “I wanted to... meet other people and crafters in Tauranga,” she says. “I needed to get out in the community, and also use my interior design side.” Her services include colour consultancy house calls at an affordable flat rate. “I just love going to a person’s house to help them — that’s what feeds me...” Amber hopes to mitigate rising shipping costs by also selling some of her own artwork — canvases of colourful New Zealand landscapes that are painted with bright, playful strokes that match her shop’s colourful vibe. The next phase might involve bringing the community in — she dreams of one day opening up her home studio to showcase her offerings.

greentigerinteriors.co.nz @greentigerinteriors

↑ Amber Miller from Green Tiger Interiors curates a collection of handmade goods from around the world.

Umami Larder

For Colleen Harrington, eating good food made with care is more than a way of life, it’s her family heritage. “I come from the handmade, the homemade and the homegrown,” she says. The kitchen and garden of her parents and grandparents taught her to value the “slow journey to deliciousness” — a concept she passed onto her children and grandchildren.

Umami Larder was a natural progression for Colleen, after a lifetime of preparing homemade food that sparks joy and conversation. In 2021, Christmas gifts from her kitchen were so highly praised that they unexpectedly became the business’s first prototypes. “It started with our family and friends...” she says.

With the encouragement of her daughter Holly Johnston, a creative professional based in the UK, the two partnered up to launch an initial line of bar nuts, using Colleen’s culinary know-how and Holly’s skills on the e-commerce side. Just over a year later, they expanded to include nut dukkahs, buckwheat and seed crumbs, dry rubs and sauces.

Their artisanal, ready-to-use products can be tossed and sprinkled onto everyday meals or served as stand-alone snacks. In Umami Larder’s world, your morning porridge meets the floral and citrus goodness of a cardamom, rose and pistachio dukkah, while a

toasted five seed scatter takes an omelette to the next level. “You can have a simple salad and top it with a blend that I’ve taken the slow journey to create,” Colleen says. With an ethos focusing on spray-free, organic and local, Umami Larder prioritises sustainable and ethical practices in ingredient sourcing, packaging and its supply chain.

Maintaining a sense of closeness, although the pair are a world apart, helps the business run smoothly. “Every single market mum has, I stay up — it’s my way of being there,” Holly says. If there’s a problem with the point-of-sales or website, Holly’s there, virtually.

They are grateful for the opportunity to connect and create community at TLBM. “We live in a fastpaced world — The Little Big Markets slows everything down,” Colleen says. “No one is in a hurry.” She gets the chance to share recipes, taste test, receive feedback, follow up with regular customers, as well as support other vendors, which is important to them both.

Fuelled by a love of good food and good people, the future promises product and wholesale growth, and dreams of women-centred events, homewares and community outreach. One thing’s for sure, even though Umami Larder is founded on the concept of slow food, it shows no signs of slowing down.

umamilarder.co.nz @umamilarder

↑ Colleen Harrington’s lifetime of making quality food made launching Umami Larder a natural next step.

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YOGA & RETREATS

Find out more about the Winter Wellness Retreat and Ali at the Big Little Markets

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@alignandnourishnz based in Ōhope

The Mead Makers

Story by Sue Hoffart Photography by Adrienne Pitts

Whakamarāma mead brewer Maree Paynter is buzzing over her latest career swerve.

The qualified mechanic, animal scientist, former orchardist and ex-veterinary nurse is launching a honey-based alcohol venture alongside her partner, beekeeper Craig Lovell. Together, they’ve spent five years learning about the ancient beverage and working towards opening their own meadery in the Kaimai foothills. They erected the coloured steel shed themselves, installed pumps, filters, vats, windows and doors, then insulated and painted to create a temperature-controlled fermentation room, and a reception and tasting area.

While both learned the basics of brewing and bottling, it is Maree who has buried herself in research. She found the expert help they needed, chased all the necessary council permits and mastered the art of fermenting honey to create Bee First Apiaries mead.

“Maree is the bigwig, she’s a superstar,” Craig says of his multi-talented partner. “The fermentation and blending and tasting, that’s all Maree. I just lift and move things, provide honey, help put labels and caps on.

“She’s super practical. My truck blew up the first day of pollination and the next day, Maree had the motor out on the ground ready to go to the engine builders. She knew what was wrong, up to her elbows in grease.”

However, the man who provides the meadery’s key raw material is no slouch either. He has a mechanical engineering background, has held a pilot’s licence and once built a KR2 aeroplane in a farm shed. He also speaks conversational Thai courtesy of the years spent managing railway station construction in Thailand.

“He’s really clever,” Maree says. “He’s a numbers man, he’ll stand there calculating and come out with the figures he needs. He’s better at welding than I am and he’s one of those very likeable people who can connect with anyone.”

It is Craig’s beekeeping skills and willingness to clock up 18-hour days that have seen their original Bee First Apiaries company fly. At summer’s peak, he’ll oversee somewhere between 1000 and 1400 hives to supply customers with pollination services and honey. Every off-season, he works fulltime as a boat builder while Maree juggles apiary feeding

duties with school and sport runs for their two busy preteen sons Ross and Kurt. She is in charge of all resident animals — a few cows, horses, sheep and a goat — on their three-hectare block. After all, she’s the one with an advanced diploma in horse husbandry and management, as well as experience nursing thoroughbred racehorses. Then there’s the rural management degree she’s trying to find time to finish; just four papers to go.

The met in passing while growing up in rural Taranaki, only reconnecting when they each landed in Tauranga after overseas travels and other careers. In the Western Bay of Plenty, they were both involved in a family kiwifruit orchard before Craig’s first love won out. “Beekeeping was just something I had to do. I’d always had an interest in bees, even when I was a little tacker still in primary school. When I came back to New Zealand and bought a hive, it was just a gateway drug. I got a job with local beekeepers and they encouraged me to go out on my own. The rest is history.

“It’s a whole world in a beehive, it’s really easy to get in there and get fascinated. It’s the quiet and calm, the smell, it’s the fresh air, the fact you’re moving as well so you get a different office every day. Sometimes, I think I’m sick of it until I open a hive and feel the bees working. It’s like patting a cat all day, it slows you down, makes you a little more comfortable in life.”

Maree, meanwhile, is utilising her biology background, rearing queen bees and keeping an eye on genetics within their apiary business. Bees and large mammals are not so different, she says. “There are so many parallels. Neither will thrive without nutrition. And if you don’t cross breed, you end up losing traits you want to retain. We’ve started bringing in fresh genetics, new queens to cross with our chosen colonies to breed for what you want to achieve in the field.”

Her analytical, scientist’s brain has also proved useful in the meadery, where she meticulously records every successes or failure. Maree is constantly striving to gauge seasonal variations, or the way different batches of honey respond when mixed with water to create the house specialty. The fermentation process uses only naturally occurring yeasts, in much the same way that traditional winemaking methods utilise yeast found on the skin of grapes.

Maree Paynter has a slew of skills, from fixing machinery to nursing animals, but she’s now deep in the world of mead making, launching Bee First Aparies with her beekeeping husband, Craig Lovell.

Maree and Craig undertake a late-afternoon honey harvest from hives on their Whakamārama property. Opener: The clever couple have complementary skills that work perfectly for their mead making.

→ At his busiest period during summer, Craig will oversee between 1000 and 1400 hives.

Bee First Aparies mead is sweet, like a desert wine. The first batch to be released has notes of field flowers, and you’ll taste the clean honey base if it’s served cold, but more earthy tones come to the fore, if warmed.

Opposite: Bottles of golden nectar ready for the public to try.

The learning curve has been steep. One batch of mead exploded all over the walls. Another early batch was strong enough to be flammable and made taste-testing friends and neighbours wince.

“We’re harnessing the wild yeast that’s around us all the time. It’s its own eco-system on a microbial level, it’s temperature and light sensitive, it needs the right nutrition to ferment. We’re trying to keep it really old school, just using yeasts that are within the honey already so it does take longer. We’re hoping our new fermentation tanks will speed things up but, at the moment, anything you taste from us took a good nine months.”

Their meadery — dubbed The Brewed Nest for the brood nest present in every thriving hive — can blame its genesis on a misplaced drum of honey. By the time the container was located and returned, two years had passed and water had seeped inside to kick-start fermentation. The resulting carbon dioxide by-product made the plastic drum balloon dangerously and the honey was unsalvageable. “So we thought we’d have a play.”

The learning curve has been steep. One batch of mead exploded all over the walls. Another early batch was strong enough to be flammable and made taste-testing friends and neighbours wince. Subsequent efforts were so fiercely alcoholic, they have either been tossed out or repurposed as engine cleaners.

A turning point occurred three years ago, when Maree heard retired winemaker Michael Sweetlove speak at a food festival. He mentioned his interest in mead, she approached him and he has been mentoring the couple ever since, as they continually strive to refine the product.

In March this year, almost 80 food lovers visited the property to try beekeeping and sample mead during the annual Flavours of Plenty Festival. The tastings drew an overwhelmingly positive response, as well as several pages of orders from participants. “It was really, really great and gave us the confidence to push ahead with licensing,” she says. “We knew we liked the taste but we needed to know what more people thought.”

If all goes well, Craig says, they’ll expand the domestic market, investigate exports and grow the range to include a carbonated mead and one that’s more full-bodied. The goal is to slowly

scale up the beverage business and cut back on beekeeping, with its intensely long hours and merciless seasonal forces. Last season saw honey production plummet and hives hammered by frosts, endlessly rainy weather and the invasive varroa mite. Another 28 hives were wiped out by floodpropelled forestry slash and silt.

For now, Maree plans to open the meadery two days a week, selling mead as well as their own rewarewa, manuka, bush and pastoral honey. And she will continue to hone her craft with a scientist’s precision, a mechanic’s pragmatism and the curiosity of an eternal student. “We’re five years in and I only have another 120,000 to go before I get the hang of it,” she says, laughing.

“Beekeeping and mead making are hard work. Some days, you wonder why the hell you’re doing it but we wouldn’t be doing it if it wasn’t fun.

“I love that creation of something you can see from go to whoa. I love the fact every batch is different. I know exactly where the honey’s come from, how it’s been treated the whole way through, I’ve watched it ferment and monitored it on a daily basis and find the end result very nice. Hopefully other people do, too.”

Esdaile Rd, Whakamārama beefirst.co.nz

At the time of print, the alcohol license for Bee First Aparies was imminent. Once approved, the meadery will open to the public and online orders will be available.

325c

Outside the Box

Words by Sarah Nicholson

Photography by ilk

Omanu

(People &

“Let’s do some herb smelling!” Nina Henderson says to the Omanu School kids who are gathering around. “Can you tell me what this is?” she asks, holding up a vibrant leaf. “Basil!” answers a chorus of voices.

“And what did we make with basil?” she asks.

“Ice cream!” someone shouts, with the rest of the group chiming in:

“It was so good.”

“It was delicious.”

“Lots of people hated it!”

Nina smiles at the answers, “Yes, it was unusual. And we made pesto too, remember?”

Nina is a facilitator from PiPS (People & Plants in Schools), an interschool collective that oversees the gardens at seven schools around the Mount and Pāpāmoa. Today she’s in the Omanu garden with a lively bunch of year 3 and 4 students.

We’re down the side of the school hall, inspecting the herb garden that Nina and the children have planted. “Smell this,” a student says, offering up some fragrant lemon balm. Sage is being sniffed, coriander being munched. A praying mantis is being paraded around on someone’s hand, rosemary is being stuffed into a shirt pocket.

Nina’s responsible for the school programme, educating tamariki on how to grow their own food: readying the soil, planting, harvesting, tasting and regularly cooking. There’s lots of research showing the positive effect school gardens can have on everything from mental health and nutrition to academic achievement, and today we’re getting to see the student’s enthusiasm and knowledge first hand.

We follow the group to the main garden, which is currently being prepared for the winter months — it’s an impressive cluster of raised beds with a load of different plants, such as cauliflower and kale. Nina draws the students’ attention to the flourishing kūmara patch with its mass of

lush foliage, and encourages them to push back the leaves and gently dig around to show us the soon-tobe harvested vegetables. “We grew the kūmara for the school hangī last year,” says a student proudly. Nina points out 11 new feijoa trees lining the school fence, with a row of dwarf mandarin trees alongside. One day the students will be able to help themselves to the fruit. Other recent garden projects have involved setting up a worm farm and utilising the resulting compost, and skewering little white plastic butterflies (they made from milk bottles) around the organic garden, in an attempt to scare off the real ones, which are territorial. “With kids, it’s also a fun thing to find the caterpillars and pick them off — at St Thomas More’s garden last week, we had 144!” says Nina.

The students lead the way to Omanu’s sentinel garden, where they give the plants a quick inspection. PiPS has partnered with Tauranga Moana biosecurity so all its schools have one of these kiwifruit-binturned-planter-boxes with plants designed to attract any new, unwanted arrivals to the area (from the port or elsewhere). Trouble might come in the form of the brown marmorated stink bug that could decimate the kiwifruit orchards, or the fungal disease myrtle rust. The project is designed to give an early warning to the horticulture industry.

The nearby shadehouse has a flower-filled pollination garden and shelves of seedlings, such as marigold, broccoli, silverbeet, and swan plants that are destined to be munched by monarch caterpillars. There are also some rather special harakeke (flax) plants that are part of the Mauao Regeneration Project, which sees PiPS students collect seeds from the maunga, germinate them back at their schools, then return to Mauao for a planting day. “The Mauao ranger Josh Clark is coming in today to see if ours are big enough,” says Nina.

School garden is one of seven local projects run by PiPS

Plants in Schools). We visited the kids in their outdoor learning environment to hear about the garden’s positive impact.

→ Nina at Omanu School with some of her keen gardeners

(left to right): Elliot, Alex, Mac, Tabitha, Harriet and Marley.

Bottom, left to right: Colourful blooms in the pollination garden; harakeke grown from seeds taken from Mauao.

Opposite page: The tamariki dig up some kūmara.

Opener: Checking progress in the broccoli patch.

A seed is planted

In 2017, Ali Teo and Heidi Hughes started PiPS at Arataki and Tahatai Coast schools when it became apparent that the schools’ gardening clubs, with their reliance on volunteers and teachers, weren’t able to function smoothly when everyone got too busy.

The interschool collective introduced paid facilitators to run the gardens. They would teach kids to grow and maintain fruit and vege gardens using organic principles, to care for the environment and to prepare food. The students took their learnings, enthusiasm and kai back home to their whānau, and positive changes were seen across the board. Word soon spread to other schools about the inspiring PiPS programme.

“At the time, all the principals got together once a week, so they started coming to Arataki and Tahatai for meetings,” says Clare Rodgers, PiPS manager. “Other teachers came along too, and they all saw the changes the garden had made to the school.”

Five other schools were gradually brought on board: Omanu, Mount Intermediate, St Thomas More, Suzanne Aubert and Te Manawa ō Pāpāmoa. PiPS now has three part-time facilitators: Nina, Maeve Henihan and Leela Woodgate, and was recently recognised at the Western Bay Community Awards with the Sustainable Futures Award.

“We have kids that don’t necessarily fit the sports or arts programmes, but they find their place in the garden,” says Clare. “Many of those kids have a sense of belonging, a sense of purpose that they probably haven’t had in school before.

“It’s also their time being a real kid, getting dirty, getting mucky, just exploring,” she explains. “There are rules but it’s not always a teaching experience. We just let them go — play, touch and feel. They are learning from that.”

The PiPS team see the students gain life skills that they take beyond the school grounds. “The kids go home and teach their parents about the garden. Parents tell me the kids have started eating broccoli,

kale, kohlrabi — different stuff,” says Clare. “We had a kid at Tahatai who grew a carrot — he built a fence around it! He never ate carrots but now he loves them, and the family grows them at home.” Clare also proudly talks about their tamariki that take across skills to Mount College’s junior gardening club, with many progressing on to take the school’s horticultural course.

Kai carts sit out the front of some of the member schools, where leftover produce is on offer for anyone to help themselves. Clare says school parents and the wider community are welcome to take what they need from the school gardens, as long as there’s enough left for the students.

The Lottery Grant Board, TECT and BayTrust are major funders of PiPS, and the schools contribute 18%. “We try to keep it down,” says Clare, who also drives

What do you love about the Omanu school garden?

“I like digging holes and eating the basil.”

Elliot Neves

“I love planting. At home I planted chrysanthemums.”

Tabitha Wickham

“I like that you get to see lots of insects. And it also inspired me to help out my grandma at home.”

Harriet Fahey

“I like spending our time outside. My favourite thing to plant was red poppies.”

Marley Hignett

“I like harvesting stuff — my favourite is kūmara.”

Mac Holmes

“I like being out and about, I like harvesting, I like getting my hands dirty, but I don’t like washing them [holds up his muddy hands and smiles].”

Alex Robinson

fundraising. “We have some schools that aren’t with the programme as they can’t afford it.”

She says the biggest challenge is funding wages and sometimes equipment too. “At the moment, all of our schools are needing irrigation, ranging in cost from $1000 to $8000 and that’s including bores. We’re also looking at rain tanks.”

Clare acknowledges that many parents and community businesses have been very generous, name-checking Bunnings Mount Maunganui and Mitre 10 Pāpāmoa. “Sometimes parents drop off potting mix, compost or mulch by the shed — just something to help. If the community is on board, the programme runs a lot more efficiently.”

pipsbop.org

↑ Happy faces after digging kūmara — just being outdoors getting their hands dirty is a highlight for many kids.

“L i v in g in t h e Bay a ll o w s m y c areer as a v id eog ra ph er t o t h r i ve , as I ’ m mak in g v a l ua bl e c o nn e cti o n s a ll t h e t i me . ”

- B i l lie S c o t t , S t udi o Mus e

The Creative Directory is free and a great place to be seen! Sign up now at: creativebop.org.nz

Matariki Star

Weaving a whetū (star) from harakeke (flax) is a fun Matariki activity for the whole whānau, so here’s a step-by-step guide. Traditionally, the first star you make is given away as a gift.

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1. You’ll need 4 weaving strands (created from 2 harakeke leaves). The first and hardest part of weaving your whetū is to get the central windmill knot set up. Take 2 of the strips and place them on top of each other with both shiny sides facing upwards. Hold them in your left hand and wrap the top part down and around your hand. Adjust so that the loop is roughly in the middle. 2. Take the other 2 strips and slide them horizontally between the 2 strips in your hand (under the right hand one and over the left hand one) to form a cross. 3. Wrap the left side of both horizontal strips behind your hand, then bring them to the front above the first strip, weaving them over the right strip and under the left strip. 4. Remove your hand, tighten the square windmill knot by pulling all the ends, and adjust it to ensure the knot is in the middle and the ends are even. 5. Turn the knot over. You will see a diagonal cross pattern on the other side. 6. Starting at top left corner, fold top strip only straight down over the knot. 7–9. Repeat in an anticlockwise direction, folding each over the previous one, and tucking fourth under the first to give the same square windmill knot you have on the other side. 10. Now you start to make the points of the star, making sure you have the shiny side of each strip facing towards you as you work it. Start with top right strip. Fold backwards and out to the right at 45 degrees. Fold forwards to make another 45 degree angle. Leave a bit more of a gap at the point to make the next part easier. 11–12. Fold the strips together inwards and push tail through loop below. The point will not fold properly if you have the strips too closely folded together. 13. Turn the star around (clockwise or anticlockwise) and repeat making points on the remaining 3 right hand strips (with shiny sides facing you). 14–15. Turn star over and make points in same way on the other side. 16. Once you have completed 8 points, cut away the excess strips just below where they are tucked under. Note: When harvesting harakeke, there is tikanga (protocol) to follow. See Matariki events listings on p 96.

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Growing Up Green

Words by Clarissa van Emmenes

Photography by ilk

Kat Knight has been hard at work creating a space for plant lovers to shop, explore and be inspired.

Kat is the visionary behind Bay Botanics, a Tauranga-based business that sells affordable, locally grown indoor plants that have been adding colour and joy to Bay of Plenty homes since 2020.

Recently, Kat spread her wings by acquiring her parents’ much-loved nursery, Kereru Gardens, which is also at the headquarters for Bay Botanics, and has been operating since 2002. “Mum and Dad built Kereru Gardens with great love and passion. Taking over their business was a way for them to be able to slow down, but they will still be involved in certain aspects that they’re passionate about, while I’ll be focusing on the hands-on work that I really love,” says Kat.

Her love of plants and nature has been at the heart of Kat’s life. She spent her childhood learning first-hand from her parents, often helping them grow plants at Heritage House, their Katikati nursery. “Being around plants all my life has really cultivated a deep appreciation for the art of growing and nurturing plants,” says Kat.

After school, she went to England on her OE and ended up working at a nursery that focused on perennials and wholesale plants. Upon returning to New Zealand, Kat completed her degree in landscape architecture and gained valuable industry experience before deciding to shift

Caring for indoor plants

Light Most houseplants thrive in bright, indirect light. Place near windows or in filtered sunlight. Intense, direct sunlight can scorch the leaves of some plants. With darker areas, choose plants that are tolerant of low light, eg snake plants.

Water Each plant has specific watering requirements. Before watering, check moisture levels of the soil by inserting your finger about an inch deep. Water thoroughly when the top inch feels dry to the touch — overwatering can lead to root rot.

Humidity Some plants, such as tropical species, benefit from increased humidity levels. Create this by misting leaves with water, placing a tray of water near the plant or using a humidifier.

Fertiliser Houseplants generally benefit from regular fertilisation during the growing season. Use a water-soluble fertiliser and follow the packet instructions to avoid fertiliser burn and other damage.

Maintenance Regularly inspect your plants for any yellowing leaves, signs of pests or diseases. Remove dead or damaged foliage to maintain the plant’s health and appearance. Pruning scan also help shape the plant and promote new growth. Always check your plant instructions for specific guidance.

her focus back to propagation and growing. “I loved being able to work with and incorporate different plants into a space, but I soon found myself spending more time behind a computer screen than in nature, and definitely felt the pull back to the hands-on, outdoor work.”

Kereru Gardens offers hobbyist gardeners, plant enthusiasts and first-time plant owners alike access to a vast array of plants, especially hardy

shrubs, to enrich their gardens. But customers are also able to tap into to the family’s broad knowledge about propagation and horticulture.

As every plant is meticulously cared for, customers can be sure they’ll take them home in the healthiest, most vibrant condition. “It’s so much more than a nursery,” says Kat. “We’re a family of plant experts who have been working in the industry for five generations and

Kat Knight is creating an oasis and nurturing a legacy with her two Tauranga businesses, Bay Botanics and Kereru Gardens, where locals can access a great variety of affordable and healthy plants.

↑ Left to right: Kat at work in the nursery — her family’s broad knowledge ensures customers get the healthiest plants; in the weekends, customers are welcome to visit the idyllic setting . Opener: Kat learnt to grow and nurture plants from a young age.

we have a genuine passion for helping people bring plants into their homes and gardens and ensuring they thrive.

“The outdoor plants we grow at Kereru Gardens are all in beautiful condition and affordable at only $6 each, which makes it a great place to shop if you’re doing a home landscaping project and want to add lush greenery without the hefty price tag,” says Kat. “We propagate and grow a large variety of trees and shrubs, camellias for hedging, plants for

screens, ground covers for banks and lots of flowering shrubs.

“My goal is to encourage Kiwis, especially in the Bay, to embrace plants and be confident enough to grow different varieties.”

Visit Kereru Gardens & Bay Botanics, Friday to Sunday, 10am–2pm, 341 Ōropi Rd, Tauranga.

Explore the plant collections online: kererugardens.com baybotanics.com

4 great houseplants

• Monstera deliciosa Also known as the Swiss cheese plant, this is a popular choice due to its large, unique leaves with distinct holes and splits.

• Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) An easy to grow, low maintenance plant featuring cascading vines with heart-shaped leaves. Perfect for beginners.

• Snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata) Renowned for its air purifying properties and resilience. Has long, upright leaves in shades of green and yellow.

• Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum) Known for its arching, variegated leaves that have a cascading effect. Produces small offshoots called ‘spiderettes’ that can be propagated to grow new plants.

A Keen Eye

Words by Jessica Agoston Cleary

Want to buy original art for your whare but don’t know where to start? This beginner’s guide is all about how to find out what you like, where you can look and who can help you.

If you’re like me, it’s highly likely that you follow countless interior designers and stylish influencers on Instagram. You’ve probably also got a Pinterest board bursting with visual inspiration, from covetable furniture and quirky objects to beautiful works of art.

When looking at these perfectly styled homes, one thing I’ve noticed is that it’s the artworks deftly placed on walls or shelves that complete the picture. It’s also the art that makes one neutraltoned bouclé fabric-filled space stand out from the rest.

Choosing and buying art, especially original fine art, can be difficult. How do you start? How do you get to know what style of art resonates with you? Once you’ve figured that out, where do you find the perfect piece? How do you know if you’re buying an original? Not only are you faced with all of these valid questions, but the art world can also feel intimidating and exclusive. But it doesn’t have to be.

From paintings to sculpture, no matter your personal style, budget or knowledge, here are some tips to get you started on the art collecting path.

Train your eye

Before diving in, especially before spending money, it’s worth taking the time to learn the ins and outs — as they say, knowledge is power.

Visit galleries Yes, art galleries can come across as exclusive places, but I promise once you walk in, pick up a pamphlet and let your senses guide you, any concern about feeling like the odd one out will vanish. We learn to recognise shapes and colours before we talk, so just go with it, see what you’re drawn to. The Tauranga Art Gallery is a good place to start in the Bay.

Explore databases Public institutional galleries have amazing databases of their collections freely available online. From Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, Tauranga Art Gallery, and even London’s Tate Modern, you’ll discover and learn so much just by noodling around. If you’re keen to find pieces you can buy, not just look at, artfull.co.nz has more than 60 Aotearoa New Zealand artists to discover, and many artists also have Instagram accounts.

Check out art schools The shows, end of year exhibitions and artistrun spaces are where you’ll discover the most innovative work and future art stars. Be warned, sometimes these shows can leave you perplexed. But if you find yourself thinking, ‘Is this really art?’ that’s ok!

For young artists, art school is as much about experimentation and pushing the boundaries of expectations as it is about creating something aesthetically and visually pleasing. If you read the intro text and have a truly open mind, you’ll probably figure out what the artist is trying to communicate. If it gels with some of your own ideas, chances are you should follow and support that young artist.

Dig deeper online If you’ve found an artist whose work really resonates with you, go deeper. Find out what style their art practice might be and do a bit of Googling to learn more about that style. You’ll find other artists, both locally and internationally, who work in a similar way or are exploring the same themes.

Opposite page: Pop-Pocalypse by Dream Girls Art Collective lit up the Tauranga Art Gallery atrium earlier this year.

Opener: Dairy Kids, Avondale by Tim D, 2022 (on artfull.co.nz).

All of this will help deepen your appreciation for the style.

Start local, start small When you feel you’re ready to buy an original piece, start with an artist from your local area or from an area you’re connected to. There’s something special about having a connection with a piece that goes beyond just visual aesthetics; it also means you’ll cherish it always, even if interior style trends change.

Doing all this visual discovery will help develop your eye and figure out what you like, love or loathe. Of course you won’t love everything — figuring out what you don’t like is just as important as uncovering what you do. Don’t be put off if you don’t ‘understand’ what an artwork is supposed to mean. Art is very personal and subjective. Justin Paton’s book How to Look at a Painting is an excellent read for beginners and aficionados keen to train their eye, but remember, what you like and what an artwork communicates to you is really all that matters.

Interiors & styling

Many of us want our home to reflect who we are — from bright and bold and out the gate, to cool, calm and collected. Art is one of the best ways to achieve this. And, better yet, art is not about trends. Absolutely, it’s visual and aesthetic, but it’s also about the intention behind the work, which you’ll be all over if you’ve gone down the gallery and Google route.

Avoid Instagram trends The beauty of original art is that it’s been created by an artist who was

inspired or moved by something far greater than the latest trend (which change in the blink of an eye). That’s what makes original art so enduring and worth investing in.

Price isn’t everything The quality of a piece isn’t necessarily reflected in the price. Unlike with some furniture and fabric you might choose for your home, investing in art doesn’t have to mean spending thousands of dollars. Artfull.co.nz has original works from $100 all the way up to $50,000.

Right: Green Banana, Avondale by Tim D, 2021 (on artfull.co.nz).

Don’t buy art to match the curtains If you like it, then it will align with your existing interior. Don’t feel that you must buy artworks that fit in with your living room or bedroom colour scheme. If you love the piece, even if it’s the ‘wrong’ colour, or a little quirkier than the rest of your home, that’s ok — in fact, it’s a good thing. Original art is supposed to add texture, visual interest and moments of surprise and delight. It’s not supposed to blend in… unless you really love the minimalist aesthetic. It’s a reflection of you, after all.

Want to get serious?

If you’ve figured out where your tastes and interests lie, and you’re gaining confidence in your visual eye, you might begin to think about investment pieces.

Dealer galleries Growing your collection and investing more significant amounts of money into art is where having a relationship with dealer gallerists or an art consultant comes into its own. Gallerists are not just sellers of art, they are often mentors to their artists and work with them to grow the artists career from when they leave art school to becoming the

next Colin McCahon or Liz Maw. Go to the monthly dealer gallery show openings. You don’t have to be in the market to buy — you won’t love the work at every show in any case. Think of it more as an opportunity to grow your own sense of taste and connect with like-minded art lovers.

Art consultants Consultants are invaluable resources that often have relationships with dealers in most major cities and can share their knowledge about emerging and established artists. They’ll work with you to find pieces you like, and really good ones will also arrange hanging the piece and even advise on insurance.

Newsletters Sign up to email newsletters from local and international art platforms that you discovered when you were researching online. Great places to start are Art Forum, Artsy, and Art Basel (all international), and locally there’s Artfull, ArtNow, and Art News New Zealand. You’ll be the first to know about new shows, must-see events, artists on the rise, as well as developing an understanding of what’s going on internationally in contrast to here at home.

←The Flamingo Dismantles the Snowfield by Sam Walker, 2020 (on artfull.co.nz)

Join the gallery You can become a member of the Tauranga Art Gallery from just $30 a year. Regional institutional galleries are the beating heart of Aotearoa’s visual culture — they’re where creativity and experimentation get a chance to shine. They rely on you as much as local and national government funding to keep their doors open, lights on, and to offer an incredible programme of shows, community arts engagement and children’s activities.

Art and art collecting should be fun. Sure, some art can be serious and evoke deep reflection or communicate strong ideas or controversial issues, but even then, the experience of the artwork should leave you feeling like you’ve gained something.

Art is, for both the artist and the collector, a journey of discovery. It’s about venturing into uncharted or even uncomfortable territory. The art you decide to hang on the wall or place on a shelf at home should say something about you or mean something to you. Just remember, when it comes to art, there’s no right or wrong.

Jessica Agoston Cleary is an art historian, art consultant and co-founder of Artfull, artfull.co.nz

A Sustainability Commitment

With almost two million annual visits across 24 locations, the journey to carbon neutrality is a big one for Bay Venues, ranging from pest control and lighting advances to water-saving measures.

Words & photography by Scott Yeoman

Harvesting rainwater, installing energy efficient lights, pest control and introducing fully electric and hybrid vehicles — Bay Venues is definitely taking sustainability seriously.

The organisation, which hosts almost two million visits a year at the 24 public facilities it manages on behalf of Tauranga City Council, has embarked on a journey to carbon neutrality and made a firm commitment to sustainability.

It’s committed to using more renewable resources, promoting biodiversity, creating less waste and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It’s committed to repairing, reusing and recycling. The ultimate goal: to reach carbon zero by 2050.

Bay Venues’ area of responsibility and reach is significant — its facilities stretch right across this rapidly growing city, from Pāpāmoa in the east, to Pyes Pā in the south, across to Bethlehem and everywhere in between. The sheer scale of the

will be donated to Trees That Count, to go towards planting native trees.

Steve is the Asset & Project Manager at Bay Venues and also leads a sustainability team made up of representatives from across the organisation. “If we can improve what we do as individuals and as an organisation, and educate people on being better around their carbon footprint, then we are making progress,” he says.

Steve says a string of projects over the past several years have set the sustainability ball rolling at Bay Venues. Momentum is building.

In November last year, the team at Mount Hot Pools started working with Bay Conservation Alliance and Western Bay Wildlife Trust to protect native bird species from rats. Jessica Kearns, a lifeguard and aquatic supervisor at the hot pools, leads her team in regular pest control work at their facility at the base of Mauao, as well as along Mount Main Beach

operation gives you an idea of how important this sustainability commitment is.

“Like most large organisations and businesses, we have a lot of work to do when it comes to looking after the environment and minimising our footprint,” says Bay Venues Chief Executive Chad Hooker.

“The path ahead always looks long and winding at the outset, but we are on our way. We have set our course, we know what we want to achieve and we are already making some considerable progress that we are incredibly proud of.”

Every organisation needs a sustainability spark. An instigator. At Bay Venues, it is Steve Edgecombe.

Steve joined the organisation in 2008 and has been driving sustainability initiatives since moving to Baypark in 2016. His first project was replacing rusting steel rubbish bins at Baypark Stadium with a new waste and recycling programme. That programme (with its multi-coloured bins) was soon rolled out across the rest of Baypark and the wider venue network, with clear signage in place and a system for recording recycling progress as well as incentives for customers. For example, bring your own cup when buying a coffee at Mercury Baypark Arena and Baywave cafes, and 25 cents

and Pilot Bay. They set, monitor and refill bait stations, record how much bait is being eaten and then report back the results. They also pick up rubbish around the areas they are working.

Jessica says lifeguards naturally love contributing to their community and being part of something, and this project allows them to continue that outside of the hot pools, while also helping sustain and protect the beautiful natural environment around them. “It’s definitely cool to get out there and bump into customers and members of the public and let them know what we’re doing — sometimes even they want to volunteer and jump in,” she says. “We love looking at the native bush and listening to the bird chatter on Mauao from the Mount Hot Pools, so our team enjoy doing our bit to protect and preserve that from the menacing introduced species.”

From promoting and protecting biodiversity, to reducing energy consumption… Earlier this year, the large overhead metal halide lights in the six-court indoor sports facility at Mercury Baypark Arena were replaced with LED lights. “We are always excited to replace old assets with new and LED lighting ticks a lot of the sustainability boxes,” Steve says. “We will see a significant reduction in energy consumption, which equates to lower carbon emissions and

“We love looking at the native bush and listening to the bird chatter on Mauao from the Mount Hot Pools, so our team enjoy doing our bit to protect and preserve that...”

operating costs.” He says LED lighting is also very reliable and the new lights have an 80,000-hour life, “meaning a lot fewer replacements of the traditional bulbs and therefore maintenance costs”.

The change to LED lights is projected to save up to 70 percent of the current lighting spend for the six-court area. Over 10 years, that could equate to a saving of more than $400,000. “To top things off, we have also been able to recycle a lot of the components from the old lights,” Steve says.

LED lighting has also been installed over the past few years at Baywave, Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre, Mount Hot Pools, Memorial Hall and the Baypark car park and pit area.

Baywave has also recently introduced rainwater harvesting. A 10,000-litre rainwater catchment tank was installed in the Baywave compound during the upgrade and maintenance work that was completed earlier this year. That rainwater tank now supplies the toilets and showers. “We are well aware of the amount of water we use at our pools, so we took the opportunity to install this tank,” Steve says. “We are currently investigating ways to install tanks underground so we can install larger tanks at our other sites and further reduce the water take from the town supply.”

Bay Venues has also purchased a Nissan LEAF full-electric pool vehicle as well as three hybrid cars, and has installed EV charging stations at Mercury Baypark for staff and customers. Steve says they are also looking into the installation of solar panels at venues.

← Lifeguard Jessica Kearns leads her team in pest control work at Mount Hot Pools and surrounds.

Opener: Steve Edgecombe drives sustainability initiatives at Bay Venues, including the installation of these LED lights at Mercury Baypark Arena.

“One of the biggest challenges with accountability in the sustainability space is reporting data,” Steve says. “Two years ago, we decided we would look at becoming Toitū certified. Toitū Envirocare has a very robust recording and auditing process in place, giving us a level of confidence that the information we are providing staff and the community is as accurate as possible.” That information also provides Bay Venues with a starting point, a line in the sand. Through Toitū, Bay Venues can now measure its overall carbon emissions (which include electricity, gas, fuel for vehicles, travel and waste) and then work to reduce those emissions over time.

Bay Venues is also in the process of recording third-party emissions, adding to its database. “Once all the third-party information is gathered, we will be able to set science-based targets that feed into our emissions reduction planning.”

Steve notes it really doesn’t matter what people think about climate change, or whether they believe a small country like New Zealand can make a difference globally. “You can’t control what other individuals, organisations, cities or nations are doing, so we have chosen to focus on what we might be able to do, or help influence.”

“Can we change the world with our sustainability commitment? Possibly not, but it doesn’t mean we still shouldn’t be doing what we can to improve our backyard.”

bayvenues.co.nz

Raw Materials

Ceramics & photography by Adrienne Pitts

Adrienne Pitts, a talented local art director and photographer, has launched ALP Ceramics with her first collection, Concrete Skies.

“In the mid-2000s, I lived in the London area of Barbican. An icon of Brutalist architecture, I’d often run my hands over the rough concrete walls of the buildings on my way home. I found the symmetry and straightforward functionality of the architecture so pleasing and, when experimenting with clays back here in Aotearoa New Zealand, I was thrilled to find a clay that took me back to those rough, textured edifices. All these items are hand thrown on a pottery wheel using grey stoneware clay which, when fired, has the look and feel of concrete.” To see the full range, which also includes bowls, cups and candle holders, visit alpceramics.com @alpceramics

Power Tool

The new Public Art Community Toolkit is a free online resource that’s designed to guide artists and commissioners through the process of creating public art for Tauranga Moana.

When They Left by Jacob Yikes, 2017.

Photograph: Anne Shirley.

↑ The online Toolkit will make it a whole lot easier for people to access information about public art creation.

Chances are, everyone can recall a time when a public artwork has provoked a feeling. When we visit other places, it’s often the artworks we encounter that create some of the strongest memories. There’s no doubt that public art can be very powerful.

As art unfolds throughout a city, it tells the story of that place — the diverse community, the many cultures, the rich environment. Histories become known. It enhances our experience of a place.

Tauranga Moana is home to a vibrant and compelling wave of artists, makers and practitioners who are constantly pushing, growing and redefining their practice. Public art offers an incredible opportunity for them, and for artists across the motu, to connect with our landscape, engage with communities, start conversations and contribute to Tauranga Moana’s sense of place.

The new Public Art Community Toolkit is a practical resource designed to guide artists, and

those who commission art, through the process of realising their public art projects. The Toolkit can be used by artists at any stage of their career, or by commissioners with some, little or no experience. It will be of particular benefit to recent graduates, early-career artists and community groups.

The Toolkit will walk people through the many aspects of creating a piece of public art — from formulating an idea, finding a site and sourcing funding, to what to consider once the work is installed. It has advice and step-by-step guides, as well as practical resources, such as budget and project plan templates.

This exciting free resource will soon be available at tauranga.govt.nz/publicart For more information, email: publicart@tauranga.govt.nz.

Tauranga City Council Promotion

Telling Tales

Like many of Tauranga Moana’s historical artefacts and taonga, the artworks belonging to Tauranga City Council’s Civic Art Collection (CAC) is mostly hidden away from public view. With all the changes afoot in Tauranga CBD, that’s set to change, with a muchanticipated new museum and the pieces in the CAC being made more accessible.

TCC has acquired original works of art for decades through gifts from the community, council departments, mayors and councillors, and now the CAC consists of about 350 regionally and nationally significant works,

ranging from paintings, prints and photographs to sculptures and craft. As per the collection’s policy, all pieces have a connection to the Bay of Plenty, either through the subject or the artist.

Numerous CAC pieces are in public buildings such as the TCC offices, Baycourt and Tauranga Libraries, but other artworks are about to be regularly rotated in public spaces, as well as shown in temporary exhibitions and digitised, so the artworks can be enjoyed by all.

It’s likely that there are pieces that you regularly come across, but haven’t really noticed.

For example, one of Mr G’s earlier works, Live Your Dreams, is on a wall at Mercury Baypark. Or the bold woollen tapestries that have hung at Baycourt’s Addison Theatre since 1985. They were made by two Mount-based weavers, artist Jill Kobayashi and the now-renowned tapestry artist Marilyn Rea-Menzies. The 20 overlapping panels took 18 months to complete, and used more than 60kg of hand-spun and dyed wool. Cleverly, they do double-duty, assisting with acoustics.

Here’s a closer look at a few more CAC pieces that you might have noticed around our city…

TCC has amassed an art collection of some 350 pieces, which are about to be more accessible to the public. We look at some the artworks that help tell the story of our city’s history.

By Frank Szirmay, 1975–6

Tangaroa is a nine-foot bronze sculpture that sits in Tauranga Harbour — in Māori mythology, Tangaroa is the God of the Sea. The work was installed in the 70s but years later was moved to face visitors entering the harbour, as the crouching warrior is depicted holding a taiaha and performing the wero — a traditional challenge given to test manuhiri (visitors’) intentions. The work is now a familiar landmark for boaters and people walking around Mauao.

The artist, Frank Szirmay, was a Hungarian sculptor who emigrated to Aotearoa in the 50s. The work was presented by the then-Mayor (R A Owens) to the Tauranga District Museum.

The CAC has several miniature versions of the sculpture, also in bronze, made by D Belch. They were commissioned by the City of Tauranga to mark its 25th anniversary in April 1988. One sits in Commissioner Tolley’s office.

Tangaroa

Photograph: Anne Shirley

This stained glass window at Baycourt Community & Arts Centre was commissioned by the Tauranga Business and Professional Women’s Club (of which designer Salie Grooseman was a member). It was to recognise women’s contribution to the development and welfare of Tauranga during its first 100 years, from 1882 (when it was proclaimed a borough) to 1982.

Stained glass window

Designed by Salie Grooseman, made by John F Macready, 1987

Te Kōrero Tipua Legend of Mauao

By Fred Graham, 1982–3

This carved/mixed media work hanging at Mount Maunganui library was created by world-renowned artist Fred Graham (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura).

It depicts the legend of Mauao and the handwritten notes on what appears to be the work’s proposed design explains several elements: The tukutuku panel represents the stairway to heaven. The Sun is both the sun and a representation of a white missionary’s face. The patupaiarehe figures (fairy-like beings) on the right are pulling Mauao towards the sea; on the left they’re fleeing the sunlight, hands raised. The spiral background signifies time. The large waves on the right represent the open-sea side of Mauao; the waves on the left represent the harbour side.

The wooden diamond in the lower centre of the panel is the “nameless one”, which grows in stature as he’s dragged to his present site and given the name Mauao. The two triangles on either side of Mauao represent Ōtanewainuku (right) and Pūwhenua (left).

It was commissioned by Keith (Nobby) Clarke, who at the time was the Deputy Mayor of Mount Maunganui Borough Council, to hang in the council chambers.

In the Good Books

Photography by ilk

Our city’s libraries are places where people in the community can come to connect, engage, learn and relax. An important part of libraries, that people might not think about, are the staff who work hard to serve their community. Meet three Tauranga City Libraries staff members who are making Tauranga a brighter place.

Amie Rolleston

Mātanga Taonga Tuku Iho Māori

“Tēnā koutou katoa. Ko Amie Rolleston tōku ingoa. I am the Mātanga Taonga tuku iho Māori and, as a part of the Heritage and Research team, I aim to gather, preserve, educate and promote the stories and taonga that weave together the rich history of Tauranga Moana.”

Amie works with community members and researchers so they can find what they are looking for in the library’s extensive archive collection.

He Puna Wānanga (Heritage and Research) at He Puna Manawa (Tauranga library) is open to the public six days a week. It offers a range of resources including microfiche, microfilm, Māori land court minute books, local history reference books and digital resources such as the website Pae Korokī.

The staff often have revelations of their own when looking through the collection. “It’s especially

rewarding when I come across discoveries that help interlace the narratives of Tauranga’s Moana’s heritage within a broader context.” Amie says.

Tauranga’s archive collection is an investment for the future, because understanding the context of the past can provide us with valuable insights into the present. “Every place has a unique kōrero, including Tauranga Moana, so we greatly appreciate when manuhiri, visitors, share their time, their knowledge or their taonga with us — and we are passionate about doing the same for them.”

Amie says the connection between her team and the community is very important: “This engagement helps to build the rich collection of archival material we preserve. We’re able to continue to connect with the significant history here in Tauranga Moana and the events that have shaped its landscape and people.”

Penny Guy Children & Teens Programme Specialist

“We’ve been visiting the same schools for several years in a row, so I have kids come up to me and say, ‘I remember when you were here last time, I was the hen!’” laughs Penny Guy.

Penny has been delivering Stories at Your Place — an outreach programme where library staff go to different schools around Tauranga and host interactive story times — for more than 10 years.

Tauranga’s welcoming libraries are a cornerstone of our community. We meet some dedicated library staff to hear about how they connect with the people of Tauranga Moana.

↑ Top to bottom: Penny Guy (also on opener) delivers interactive story times at schools all over Tauranga; Hanna Peters brings books to the community via the Mobile Library. Opposite page: Amie Rolleston works to preserve and to promote our area’s stories and taonga.

She’s one of the team members that visits Tauranga schools at least once a week. Penny packs her easel and felt board, as well as a wheelie suitcase filled with costumes, pictures and books. “We pick the students who get to participate in the play,” she says, saying it’s one of her favourite parts. “I get to help children who, at the start, might feel too shy or too nervous to say their part out loud. They grow their confidence until, at the end of the session, they are delivering their lines easily!” Penny has been on stage since she was eight, so is the perfect person to help students overcome their stage fright!

Almost every single primary school in Tauranga has had a Stories at Your Place visit to their junior classes. Not all schools are able to have class visits to the library, and this absence of junior classes was noticed by the library staff who were inspired to start this outreach service.

Penny says Stories at Your Place gives every school the opportunity to connect with the library, which is what makes the programme so key.

Hanna Peters Assistant Community Library Leader

Everyone knows Hanna Peters. Well, it certainly feels that way, as every customer entering the Mobile Library greets her by name.

To her credit, Hanna seems to know all her customers by name as well. She knows what books they like to read, whether their holds are ready to be picked up, and even remembers to follow up on life moments that her patrons share with her.

The Mobile Library is exactly what it sounds like, a miniature library on wheels. “I really enjoy being out on the road. You haven’t lived until you have driven a big rig!” Hanna says laughingly. The library has all the different collections you would expect from one of the community libraries, but on a smaller scale. The collection is well curated, so you’re bound to find heaps of items that take your fancy, but Hanna says not to worry if you can’t find what you want — she’ll put a hold on it for you and you can pick it up from the Mobile Library when it’s at your stop.

Hanna has worked on the mobile bus for more than seven years, so she’s been looking after some of her customers since they were babies — she’s seen them grow, begin talking, then start school. “I also enjoy the wonderful friendships I have made with some of my more senior customers,” she says.

It’s obvious that Hanna is loved by her customers. “The Mobile Library is important to the community — we’ve created a really welcoming, fun vibe, where people can pop in just for a chat or to hang out.”

library.tauranga.govt.nz

Your Local Farm

Words by Clarissa van Emmenes

Photography by ilk

Kaimai Eggs is a family-owned business in the Kaimai Ranges where a gang of very happy chickens spend their days roaming freely around the lush rural property and laying the very best eggs.

In the heart of the Kaimai ranges, a family-owned farm is creating the real deal farm-to-table experience with their exceptional eggs.

Otto and Vicki McGirr launched Otto’s Egg Company in 2011. The business not only reflected their values but was rooted in an understanding of shifting consumer preferences. The company is now synonymous with quality and freshness.

In 2020, Otto’s daughter Karlene and her partner Jim returned to New Zealand, after a brief stint overseas, to wait for the borders to open and lend a helping hand on the farm. However, the joy Otto found in chicken farming was contagious, and the couple decided to stay on and help enrich the legacy that the McGirrs built.

Together they launched the Kaimai Eggs retail range in 2021. “We all share the same passion and dedication for providing our community with good quality, healthy food. We saw an opportunity to create the Kaimai brand to tell the story of paddock to plate — to connect these mountains where the chooks are raised to the consumer,” says Jim. “This is about giving people a local food choice. We’re your local farm.”

Otto’s Egg Company sells wholesale to a few popular local eateries, including the much-loved Elizabeth Cafe & Larder in Tauranga, co-owned by George Gibson. George reckons that Otto’s Eggs are second to none: “They are the best eggs we’ve tasted and are so consistent in their quality,” he says. “We try our best to use as many small local businesses as possible so it’s great to have an egg supplier so close. They’re also lovely, friendly people and a pleasure to deal with.”

With decades of experience, Otto knows the difference hands-on care makes when it comes to producing first-class eggs. He ensures he has the

this farm.”

happiest possible chickens, with plenty of space to roam and explore, and to enjoy the freedom to embark on daily adventures. “If you ask me, ‘what’s the secret to good eggs?’ I’d say, ‘good birds’. You can’t have good eggs without happy, healthy birds,” he says. “The highlight of my day is opening up the shed and letting the chooks run free.”

The team is involved in every step of the production and supply chain for both its ranges. The eggs are packed at the farm, then the team delivers them directly to stores, ensuring freshness and forging a strong local connection.

From managing bird health to the process of egg collection, packing and branding, the family take pride in their attention to detail. “We take ownership of each step of the process because we believe it’s important for people to know exactly where their food comes from. With Kaimai Eggs, it all comes from this farm,” says Jim.

Behind the cartons of Kaimai Eggs is a family business that celebrates its chickens, its connection to the land, and the wider community. And they know all about the power of great, locally grown food.

kaimaieggs.co.nz

“We take ownership of each step of the process because we believe it’s important for people to know exactly where their food comes from. With Kaimai Eggs, it all comes from

↑ Clockwise from top left: The happy hens at home; George Gibson meets one of the team; trays of eggs ready to be packed off to Bay of Plenty stores; Otto, Karlene and Jim on the farm.

Pepper & Me’s Cherie Metcalfe is a big fan of Kaimai Eggs and here’s a favourite way she serves them: “Tacos for breakfast? Umm yes! This is a fun alternative to bacon and eggs. Change it up to whatever you have on hand — chorizo or crispy bacon is a great addition.”

Photograph: Melanie Jenkins

Brekkie Bean & Avocado Soft Taco with Chipotle Cream

Recipe by Cherie Metcalfe

SERVES 4

2 knobs of butter

2 tsp Pepper & Me Mexellent Paste

400g can black beans, drained and rinsed

Pepper & Me Chipotle & Lime salt, to season

8 small soft tacos or tortillas (or make 4 large wraps)

8 eggs

¼ cup milk

1 avocado, sliced Coriander leaves, to serve (optional)

Chipotle cream

¼ cup sour cream

¼ cup Pepper & Me Aioli

1 tsp Pepper & Me Wing-a-Ling -a-Ding-Dong Hot Sauce

1 lemon

To make the chipotle cream, add the sour cream, aioli and hot sauce sauce to a bowl, add a good squeeze of lemon and mix well. Set aside.

Heat a non-stick pan on high, add 1 knob of butter and the Mexican paste. Stir in the black beans and as they fry, gently crush some with a potato masher. Season with the salt, and continue to cook and crush until the beans are crispy. Set aside in a bowl.

Rinse your pan and put back on low heat, ready to cook the eggs.

Heat your soft tacos/tortillas — I really recommend using a grill pan for this as it adds a beautiful char to the flavour and gets them a little crisp, while still being soft and chewy in other places, which is just the way I like them! If that all gets a bit hard, just bang them in the microwave.

Lightly whisk the eggs and milk together in a bowl. Add the other knob of butter to your pan, then add the eggs and scramble gently. Remove from the heat just before they’ve finished cooking and season. It’s time to assemble the tacos…

Smother each tortilla with the crushed black beans, add a few slices of avocado and then divide the scrambled eggs amongst each. Drizzle (with a heavy hand) the chipotle cream over top, then add a few coriander leaves (if using) to each. Fold in half and serve while warm, with extra chipotle cream and hot sauce sauce on the side.

Taha & Hossein Amin

Photography by ilk

Iranians Taha and Hossein emigrated to New Zealand with their two daughters in 2012, in search of freedom and opportunity. They had just $20 left when Hossein finally got a job with Fonterra, and they’ve lived in Hamilton, Hawera and Te Awamutu while he’s moved up the ranks there. They now live in Tauranga, where Taha, an expert baker, makes delicious bread from around the globe for their businesss Zand Kitchen.

Why did you choose to live in New Zealand?

Hossein We were looking for a better life for ourselves and our daughters — at that time they were 9 and 13 years old. We wanted to build a new life and New Zealand is a multicultural country that all people can live freely and don’t get judged based on their culture, religion or situation

We [also] chose New Zealand because of the nature. And my background was in dairy and I knew Fonterra was a huge global company so there would be more opportunity for us.

We didn’t know anyone here at all — there were not many Iranians in New Zealand.

Were there challenges in your move?

Hossein The language was one of the big challenges but I really appreciate how New Zealanders were very patient. As soon as they see it’s our second language or we are struggling to understand, they were very happy to slow down and repeat. People were very supportive.

But finding a job was a big challenge — when we moved here, I had 16 years experience but I was not getting senior roles. They didn’t recognise Iran experience. It took seven months to start in a very junior role at Fonterra in Hāwera, which for me was a huge step back; mentally it was very challenging. I started as a lab technician but after seven months, I got a role one step more senior in Hamilton. Now I’m a team manager, so I feel I got on the right track.

Taha When we came here, we moved a lot. Hossein was looking for a job so we have to move schools and pay for a lot of school uniforms. When we went to Hāwera, we had only $20! But we sold one of the uniforms and the money came to us from the school — it was $150. We were very happy!

Hossein For seven months we’d been using our savings. When I got that job, we packed our things

on a trailer and when we arrived in Hāwera, we had to wait for a week to get my first payment. We will always remember that — it was crazy.

And from there, we start building our life again. In Iran, we were in a good position — we had our own house — so we came here and went to almost zero on every point.

Taha But we were happy

How would it have been for your daughters to grow up in Iran?

Taha We didn’t like our girls to grow up over there. Hossein There were so many government rules, especially for girls and women. For my daughters, finding work in Iran [would be] very hard. Or the work environment could be restrictive. [For example] our older daughter now is a civil engineer and is working at a construction company. In Iran, working as a civil engineer would be dominated by men, and legally no one is telling you that you shouldn’t work but culturally…

Taha The culture forces you to marry and have a baby.

Do you try to keep your daughters connected with your language and culture?

Taha My daughters love it here, but they are not disconnected from their culture or language, because of the internet, YouTube, they see serials or movies, and because we communicate in Farsi at home; I text them in Farsi. I like that they know it. Language has our knowledge — it’s something very valuable. We don’t ignore our culture, but we prefer it here.

Hossein Language is important — not the culture or things that we escaped from, but definitely language.

Right (and opener): Hossein and Taha at home in Tauranga. They love the freedom their new life has afforded them.

Below: A loaf of Taha’s bread, fresh from the oven.

How did Zand Kitchen start?

Hossein Taha started Zand Kitchen, making different sauces and dressings, in Hamilton. She used to go to a different market every Saturday — the Parnell Market, Tamahere Market in Hamilton, and another in Mount Maunganui. She found out the Tauranga Farmers Market is very popular, so she started coming here once a month, then stopped going to other markets.

Taha I didn’t earn too much money — our sauce was very good, but people don’t buy too much, then I baked some flat bread to try the sauces, but I saw people come to try the bread not the sauces!

Hossein She told me, ‘People are coming back for more bread. I want to make some flatbread or lavosh for Tauranga.’ It was a little bit strange to me. But she sold out really quick. So she made more and more.

Taha And four years ago, I started only making bread.

What inspired your last move from Te Awamutu to Tauranga?

Taha I used to come from Te Awamutu for the [Tauranga Farmers] market for three years. But we don’t like to live in a small town — all our lives, we live in a big city.

Hossein Yes, we prefer to live in a busy, crowded city. And when we moved to New Zealand, I thought there’s lots of opportunities to go the beach, go swimming, do water activities. Sometimes I went to Mount Maunganui beach — I started thinking, this is a lovely city… Taha said, ‘Why don’t we go there? You love Tauranga, I love Tauranga…’

Find Zand Kitchen at the Tauranga Farmers Market on Saturdays or to order online, visit zandkitchen.co.nz

Paving the Way in Business

“As women, we all love a good story. We love to step outside of ourselves for a moment and enter someone else’s world. To be shaken, stirred and inspired by the experiences of others.

We also love connection, to be reminded we’re not alone as we build careers and families, chase dreams and balance the ever-growing mental load. It’s this connection and sharing of stories that has made the Business Women’s Network Speaker Series one of the most popular women’s events on the city’s calendar.

Run annually by Tauranga Business Chamber, the Speaker Series aims to connect Bay of Plenty women in business, with a view to building a community of women looking to make positive change. Picture hundreds of women, of different ages, backgrounds, industries and stages of their careers, gathering together to support and inspire one another.

Each year we bring in an extraordinary panel of businesswomen whose stories — full of passion, adversity and grit — challenge and inspire the way our attendees think in business and in life. And after two sell-out years, we’re bringing the event back for a third installment — raising the bar with a bigger venue, incredible speakers, and a new expo-type set up to show off local women-owned businesses and products.

Breaking new ground

Our 2023 theme, Paving the Way, will explore the journey women take when breaking new ground in their respective industries: balancing business with families and self, creating new ways of working,

and exploring the new frontier in business. From reaching great heights in entrepreneurism and journalism, to exploring the neuroscience of leadership, our speakers truly embody this theme. Their stories are guaranteed to leave you feeling empowered and inspired.

This year we’re incredibly excited to have Kerre Woodham, one of New Zealand’s best-loved media personalities and Rebekah Campbell, internationally renowned Kiwi entrepreneur, headlining the event as our keynote speakers.

Kerre is known as a national treasure in Kiwi media. She began her television career on Fair Go and has made regular appearances on TV over the 35 years that followed, including Intrepid Journeys, Heartland, Ready Steady Cook and most recently on Dancing with the Stars. She currently hosts her own radio show on Newstalk ZB.

Rebekah is the founder of three successful companies and author of 138 Dates, a book about searching for love at the same time as launching a global technology business. She first gained national attention as organiser of the Levi’s Life Festival in Wellington at just 20 years old.

The pair will be joined by fellow speakers Cooney Lees Morgan CEO Cecilia Burgess, wellknown disability advocate Amanda Lowry and leadership expert Sally Duxfield. I’m incredibly excited by this year’s line-up, and can’t wait to hear their stories while surrounded by a room full of passionate businesswomen.

Of course, this event wouldn’t happen without the support of our sponsors, in particular our Speaker Series principal sponsors Craigs Investment Partners and Cooney Lees Morgan.

When you attend the fantastic Business Women’s Network Speaker Series, you may well find inspiration, mentorship, support and more, says Anne Pankhurst from the Tauranga Business Chamber.

By women, for women

While the Speaker Series is the pinnacle of the Business Women’s Network, there’s so much more to the story.

BWN was formed by women, for women, more than 20 years ago — with the goal of better supporting and championing women in business. And it’s working. What started small has become a thriving community of women at all stages of their careers, meeting regularly to learn, support and uplift one another.

It produces not only friendships, but mentorships. It inspires new businesses, career progression, and that all-important affirmation that we’re not alone in our juggle of family, work and self.

BWN is most known for its regular networking events. If you’ve never experienced a BWN event, and you’re craving a little connection or inspiration, I encourage you to come along to the Speaker Series or another event in the near future. You don’t have to be a Tauranga Business Chamber member (but if you are, your ticket price is discounted).

To keep in the loop with our news and upcoming events, you can subscribe to our BWN newsletter at tauranga.org.nz/bwn or visit our events calendar.”

Tickets to the BWN Speaker Series 2023 are still available. Grab yours before they sell out at tauranga.org.nz/events

Tauranga Business Chamber Promotion

→ Anne Pankhurst, Tauranga Business Chamber Events & Sponsorship Manager.

Cold Comforts

Words, recipes & styling by Holly McVicar Photography by ilk

Holly has comforting dishes on her mind as we head into the wintry months: golden gnocchi, warm spiced apples cakes and nut-studded cookies.

“In these cooler months we’re enjoying an abundance of nuts and winter herbs, and using homegrown pumpkins that have been given time to cure so they’e more flavourful. There’s also the fruit we’re loving: lots of citrus, kiwifruit and our sweet ruby-red guava (pictured above).

I’ve begun to prune our fruit trees, as well as plant new ones, and I’m starting to condition the soil ready for spring planting. This year, I’m committed to beating the slugs and snails to my strawberries, and will be transplanting them to vertical pockets on the fences to get maxiumum sun. Wish me luck!

This issue’s warming recipes have some of my favourite flavours — toasty nuts, burnt butter, caramel and roasted pumpkin.”

For more recipe inspiration, follow @madebyhollys and visit ourplacemagazine.co.nz

Butternut Gnocchi with Silverbeet, Sage & Burnt Butter

SERVES 6

If you’ve not made gnocchi before, give this a go, it’s really quite simple. It has a rich buttery sauce but it’s nicely balanced by lemon.

90g salted butter

6 sage leaves

1 tsp chilli flakes (optional)

4 large silverbeet leaves, stalks removed, roughly chopped Juice and zest of 1 lemon

Gnocchi

1 medium butternut pumpkin (about 2½ cups), peeled, deseeded, cut into 2cm cubes

1 large agria potato, peeled, cut into 2cm cubes

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tbs olive oil

1 egg

2 cups plain flour

1 tsp smoked paprika

40g freshly grated parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 200°C and line a baking tray.

For the gnocchi, toss the butternut, potato and garlic with oil, spread over the tray and roast for about 20 minutes until easily pressed with a fork. Once cool, mash until smooth and add 1 tsp salt and remaining gnocchi ingredients, mixing gently until well combined and dough holds together. If dough is sticky, add extra flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until you reach the desired consistency.

Turn dough onto a floured board and roll into 2cm-thick long rolls. Cut 1.5cm pieces and refrigerate on a tray to firm up for about 30 minutes. Boil a large

pot of water and add a good pinch of salt. Poach gnocchi until it floats to the surface, then remove and place on a clean tea towel.

For the sauce, add the butter to a large pan and cook over medium heat until it just starts to brown. Toss in sage and cook until it starts to crisp — take care, as it will pop and spatter, and it crisps almost immediately, don’t the leaves start to brown. Pour butter and sage into a bowl, then return pan to heat, add gnocchi and turn gently until they start to brown. Sprinkle over the chilli (if using), and add silverbeet, lemon juice and zest. Once silverbeet is wilted, add butter and sage, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve.

Macadamia & White Chocolate Cookies

MAKES 12 LARGE COOKIES

If you’re a salted caramel lover like me, try sprinkling the cookies with flakey sea salt just as they come out of the oven.

125g salted butter, softened

¾ cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla paste

1 egg

1½ cups plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

100g white chocolate, chopped into large chunks

½ cup macadamia nuts, roughly chopped (substitute another nut, if preferred)

½ lemon or orange, zested Flakey sea salt (optional)

Preheat the oven to 170°C fan bake and line a large baking tray. In a bowl, cream the butter and sugar until pale, then add the vanilla and egg and mix well.

Fold in the sifted flour and baking powder, then add chocolate, macadamias and zest. Divide the cookie mixture into 12 balls and slightly press to flatten on the tray. Bake for around 15 minutes or until golden brown, then cool on tray.

Spiced Apple Cakes

SERVES 12

This versatile cake mixture can be used to bake 1 large cake, a loaf, or mini cakes using muffin tins or mini-cake moulds (like the mini-loaf tins pictured).

250g salted butter, softened

1¼ cups brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 tbs vanilla paste*

½ cup almond meal (or hazelnut, if available)

2 cups plain flour

1 tbs baking powder

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

¼ tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

2 cups grated Granny Smith apple, skin on

½ cup raisins or roughly chopped pitted prunes (optional)

Salted caramel drizzle

(if serving warm)

50g salted butter

¼ cup brown sugar

¼ cup thin cream

½ tsp vanilla paste*

Brown sugar frosting

(if serving cool)

½ cup brown sugar

125g salted butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla paste*

1 cup icing sugar

1–2 tbs milk (if required)

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake. Grease and line your tin(s).

For the cake, use a stand mixer or hand beater to beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating until combined. Add vanilla, then fold in the remaining ingredients. Pour into prepared tin and bake. If using a 20cm-diameter cake tin or loaf pan, it will take about 1 hour to bake; muffins or bar-sized cakes (pictured) will take about 25 minutes. It’s ready when the cake is golden brown and a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the middle.

If serving warm, serve with caramel drizzle and a scoop of

Greek yoghurt or vanilla ice cream. If serving cool, ice with brown sugar frosting and decorate with fresh edible flowers. (See recipes below.)

For caramel drizzle, heat butter and sugar in a saucepan until sugar is dissolved. Boil for 2 minutes then whisk through the cream, vanilla and ¼ tsp salt. Drizzle over cake as desired. If cooled, the sauce can be stored in the fridge for two weeks.

For the brown sugar frosting, whisk sugar and butter together until pale and creamy. I recommend using a stand mixer

The spiced apple cakes can be cooled and iced with brown sugar frosting (pictured left — Holly piped on the icing and added marigold petals), or served warm with dreamy salted caramel drizzle (above).

with a scraper attachment and letting the mixture beat for around 15 minutes. Seems long but yields the best result. Add the vanilla and icing sugar, turning to slow speed at first and, if required, add milk to achieve a smooth consistency that holds its form.

Spread or pipe over the cake and garnish with toasted nuts, coconut or edible flowers. This frosting freezes well for months — just bring to room temperature and whip to use.

*Substitute vanilla paste with an equal amount of vanilla extract.

Macadamia & white chocolate cookies. Opposite page: Butternut gnocchi with sliverbeet, sage & burnt butter. Recipes page 92.

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Our Place Events Guide

Sat Tauranga Farmers’ Market

7.45am–12pm, Tauranga Primary School, 5th Ave, Tauranga

Sun Mt Mainstreet Urban Farmers Market

8am–12pm, Te Papa o Ngā Manu Porotakataka, 137 Maunganui Rd, Mt Maunganui

June 2O23

9. Call Me Maybe: 2000s + 2010s Party 8pm, Totara St, Tauranga, totara.flicket.co.nz

Quiz Night — World's End

7–9pm, World's End Bar & Restaurant, 227 Fraser St, Tauranga

University of Waikato Tauranga Campus Open Day Two sessions. Register: openday.waikato.ac.nz

9– In The Heights

17. Various times, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre, Tauranga, ticketek.co.nz

10. Guy Montgomery 8pm, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre, Tauranga, ticketek.co.nz

Paula Knight Botanical Painting Workshop

10am–3pm, Paula Knight Artist Studio, Pāpāmoa, paulaknight.co.nz

16. From Broadway to West End 11am–12.45pm, Holy Trinity Church, 215 Devonport Rd, Tauranga, operatunity.co.nz

17. Matariki at the Village: Whānau Day

9am–2pm, The Historic Village, theincubator.co.nz

The Little Big Markets

9am–2pm, Coronation Park, Mt Maunganui

19. Haka Workshop* 10am–12pm, Te Taiope Huringanui/Turning Point, The Historic Village, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

20. Dancers of Damelahamid 7pm, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre, ticketek.co.nz

21. Kōkōwai / Painting with Whenua*

6–8pm, The Creative Community Campus, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

24 & Bone Carving Workshop*

1/7. 9.30am–12.30pm, The Creative Community Campus, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

Introduction into Maramataka with Mihi Keita Tibble* 10am–1pm, The Creative Community Campus, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

Seeka Kiwifruit Cup Day 12pm, Tauranga Racecourse. Free.

25. Persona 11am & 3pm, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre, ticketek.co.nz

28. Hop House Comedy

7.30–9.30pm, The Hop House, Tauranga

29. Drag Bingo Tauranga!

7–8.30pm, Cornerstone Bar & Eatery, 107 The Strand, Tauranga, eventfinda.co.nz

July 2O23

1. Comedy Improv with The Honest Liars 7.30pm, 16th Ave Theatre, Tauranga, eventfinda.co.nz.

The Little Big Markets 9am–2pm, Coronation Park, Mt Maunganui

2. 4th of July Cruise by Retro America 9am (leave 10.30am), Retro America, 43 Portside Dr, Mt Maunganui

3. Manāki taiao workshop — Matariki Shell Stars* 1–3pm, The Creative Community Campus, The Historic Village, theincubator.co.nz

3–13. Skatescool Public Roller Discos

Various dates/times in school hols in Greerton, Mount & Tauranga, skatescooltauranga.co.nz

5–8. 2023 NZ Gymnastics Championships

Mercury Baypark, Mt Maunganui, iticket.co.nz

8. Bazookiz Latin Dance Night

8–11pm, Elizabeth Street Community Center, Tauranga. Door sales only.

Rei — The Matariki Tour

8am, Totara St, Mt Maunganui, totara.flicket.co.nz

Tikanga of Raranga Workshop*

11am–1pm, The Creative Community Campus, The Historic Village, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

8 & 9. Women's Street Smart Self–Defence

The Gym Tauranga, 107 First Ave, eventfinda.co.nz

9. Rongoā Balms workshop*

12–2pm, The Creative Community Campus, The Historic Village, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

11. Manāki taiao workshop

— Become a Stink Bug Superhero!*

10am–12pm, The Creative Community Campus, The Historic Village, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

12. Bay of Plenty Young Grower Competition

9am, Mount Maunganui College, Mt Maunganui, bopyounggrower.co.nz

Manāki taiao workshop

— Protecting our Precious Moana*

10.30am–12.30pm, The Creative Community Campus, The Historic Village, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

Mitch James — The Long Road Home Tour

7.30pm, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre, ticketek.co.nz

14. Te Rā Aro ki a Matariki — Matariki public holiday

Light up the Waterway

— Te Ara ō Wairākei Matariki*

6–11pm, Pāpāmoa Plaza, allevents.in

15. The Little Big Markets 9am–2pm, Coronation Park, Mt Maunganui

16. Manāki taiao workshop

— Whare manu & feeder*

11am–1pm, The Creative Community Campus, The Historic Village, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

The Little Big Markets 9am–2pm, Williamson Park, Whangamatā

17. Creedence Clearwater Collective 7pm, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre, ticketek.co.nz

19. Wonderland Glow Show, 10am & 11.30am, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre, ticketek.co.nz

20. Queer Crafts 6.30–8pm, The Incubator Creative Hub, The Historic Village, theincubator.co.nz. Entry by koha.

Sonoro Quartet & Tony Chen Lin 7.30pm, Baycourt Community & Arts Centre, ticketek.co.nz

21. Tauranga Junior Tough Guy and Gal Challenge 8am–12pm, Mercury Baypark, eventdesq.sportstg.com

22. Bic Runga — Beautiful Collision Tour 7.30pm, Holy Trinity Church, Tauranga, ticketmaster.co.nz

Jon Toogood — Acoustic Solo 8pm, Totara St, Mt Maunganui, totara.flicket.co.nz

29. Social Fabric Sewing Club 10am–2pm, The Historic Village, Tauranga, theincubator.co.nz

The Little Big Markets 9am–2pm, Coronation Park, Mt Maunganui

*Find more Matariki events on incubator.co.nz and lots more will be soon announced on mytauranga.co.nz/matariki

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