Anyone planning to get pregnant or already enceinte may find The Perfect Pregnancy Cookbook: Boost fertility and promote a healthy pregnancy with optimum nutrition (Piatkus, pbk, $48) useful.
A food processor, a blender or small mixer - what do you really need in your kitchen? Charmian Smith takes a look at the huge variety of mixers, processors and blenders on the market.
After a nationwide competition looking for a blend of tea that would suggest New Zealand, Twinings released a New Zealand breakfast blend this week.
Some very drinkable, affordable reds from Chile turned up for this tasting of merlot, cabernet and other blends from New Zealand and Australia.
Fresh, new season Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc often reminds me of hot, sun-baked river stones splashed with drops of water, and sometimes of the pungent aroma of wild flowering currant bushes (in flower now) as you brush past them.
Central Otago winemakers held a pre-release pinot noir tasting for media last week.
The popularity and sweet, rich fruitiness, of pinot gris has put some wine lovers off the style. However, more stylish, textural, versions are appearing that are well worth considering.
With mountain valleys, hills, river terraces and a variety of soils, Central Otago is such a diverse wine region that it's no wonder wines from different areas have their own character.
Every generation seems to believe that vegetarianism is a new fad, but that's not so.
For more than 30 years vegetarians have celebrated World Vegetarian Day on October 1 and now it has grown to a full month of celebration of vegetarian lifestyles. Why, you might wonder, would someone give up eating something as tasty as meat? Charmian Smith finds plenty of answers.
Vegetarian Beryl Lee shares the recipe for her roast vegetable salad.
The best under-$20 picks this week are different styles - a typically fresh zingy sauvignon blanc from Wairarapa, and a funky, mouthfilling, year-old wine from Main Divide.
Central Otago winemakers held their annual roadshow in Dunedin last week, with Carol Bunn hosting a masterclass and some 20 producers showing their latest releases to trade in the afternoon and to the public in the evening.
The winemakers of Alexandra wine basin held their annual new-release tasting in Oliver's garden, Clyde, at Labour Day weekend.
The Central Otago wine region has emerged from nothing to become an internationally significant producer of pinot noir in only three decades, a phenomenal achievement. Alan Brady, in the early days, was the public face and voice of the region. Charmian Smith talks to him about his memoir, Pinot Central: A winemaker's story.
Sparkling sauvignon blanc has burst on to the market for summer drinking - fresh, crisp, lively and enhanced by the addition of bubbles.
Vertical tastings - where you taste the same wine from consecutive vintages - are always fascinating.
Charmian Smith reviews Dining Out: A History of the Restaurant in New Zealand.
Riesling is sometimes overlooked as a sweet, simple wine, but there are some delicious, mouthfilling examples, sometimes with a little sweetness but also with steely dry finishes.
Flavours of home is a series of recipes from around the world cooked by people at home in Otago. This week Liisa Tate-Manning, from Finland, shows us how to make Jansson's temptation and Rosolli, a beetroot relish.