EDITOR’S LETTER
Ihave to admit that heading into our very first vegetable-themed issue had me feeling a little nervous. I feel very strongly that we will never wade into the dangerous waters of promoting eating regimes that eliminate any particular food group and I stand by that. However, the buzz and excitement around our recent seafood-themed issue has shown us how powerful a magazine can be when given the space to delve a little deeper into all aspects of a subject, rather than delivering a one-size-fits-all menu to you all of the time. And so we bring you our tribute to the magnificent produce of Aotearoa, designed with all of us in mind; and first and foremost, as always, it’s about flavour. Bold and generous, fresh and vital, perhaps this focus on the very best of what we have in season might even make us better cooks.
We thought about all sorts of exotic vegetables for the magazine’s cover, but in the end we wanted to pay homage to a humble vegetable that has become a bit of a legend of late and boy, doesn’t our cauliflower look spectacular? The Sugar Club executive chef Abhijit Dey is serving up spicy sriracha-glazed crispy fried cauli with an almond mayo, while Floriditas’ chef Hayden Mcmillan is slow roasting his in seaweed butter, turmeric and curry leaves. Emma Galloway shines with an excerpt from her perfectly timed new book My Darling Lemon Thyme: Every Day.
Plabita Florence from Forest is a chef who has made it her business to elevate vegetables and her clever menu will leave you thinking about how you can love each and every bit of a vegetable, and David Burton helps you discover the incredible work behind some of our innovative Kiwi produce.
Our usual cast of magnificent Cuisine cooks are all here and have got stuck into everything from fritters, kibbeh and croquettes to curry and dumplings, and we’ve even provided some very cool vegetable-based versions of your fast-food favourites.
At Cuisine Wine our team has been tasting hundreds of voluptuous reds to bring you our very best pinot noir and other reds. As I sit here now looking at the extraordinary food and drink on these pages with their stunning photographs and thought-provoking stories, I’m raring to get into the kitchen and have a go. Take this issue ‘Fresh From the Earth’ as an opportunity to ramp up the flavour in your veges and explore their full potential. You might even be helping the planet… one bite at a time.
Read on and cook and eat well,