140g icing sugar, sieved
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
250g butter, cut into small cubes
375g plain flour, sieved
To decorate
200g icing sugar, sieved
edible food colouring, optional
edible gold and silver balls
approx 2m thin ribbon cut into 10cm lengths … Continue Reading
By Debbie Yates
Wow! Another year of produce and now we are in what is probably our most productive phase of the year. Heaps of lettuces of all varieties; beans of all varieties; tomatoes of many varieties including both Greek and Italian. Keep a watch on the Larder at the Medical Centre.
Thanks to those who have dropped off seedlings. Thanks too, to those who have dropped of produce. Could we please ask that if you have excess produce that you take it directly to the Larder at the Medical Centre. It is heart breaking to arrive at the garden to find boxes of produce that has deteriorated in the wet weather that we have been having and is only fit for our compost…on the upside the compost loves it!
We have once again planted kumara: this year a slightly bigger patch has been lovely prepared by our “Kumara Queen”. We also have pre-emptive ‘rat catching’ plans for this year, so hopefully many more Kumara will find their way to the Larder. … Continue Reading
By Charlotte Harding
“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas” as Mr Bublé would say.
The Christmas garlands are up and this year with the addition of a Christmas Tree in the Village Courtyard. Thanks again to the outgoing Martinborough Community Board and the businesses who have supported this annual project over the past 3 years.
November has seen two of our bigger annual events return to almost pre Covid conditions. The festival look and feeling are in full swing as people look forward to Christmas.
This time of the year isn’t without its challenges. Being a visitor destination, there is high expectation from visitors of a fabulous experience when they come to Martinborough and the Wairarapa. To meet this expectation juggling our staffing challenges with our own needs means sometimes our business owners and operators have to make concessions about when they get to enjoy a break in our paradise.
With this in mind, the upcoming “Magic in Martinbrough” Christmas celebration on the 10th & 11th of December is hopefully a blend of ticking off the Christmas shopping and some family fun for our community too.
Business owners and operators in retail and hospo who are MBA members will be running a fun shop hop competition. Ask for a shop hop card and a purchase made gets you a stamp which is one entry into the competition to win a fabulous Martinborough hamper of goodies. … Continue Reading
Mike Beckett
It is not easy to write genuinely funny stories, Marina Lewycka is one of the few who have this skill. Her first book, A short history of tractors in Ukrainian, became a deserved best seller. The good, the bad and a little bit stupid, the sixth she has written, keeps up her standard of excellent writing, an ingenious plot and being very funny.
The story is set in Sheffield, the main characters are George a retired school teacher with a wandering eye and a serious lack of common sense. His wife Rosie also a teacher but still working. His thirty something year old, self centred daughter Cassie and son Sid (serious Sid) who teaches mathematics at the local college. The neighbour Brenda, a hairdresser, who has lured George away from his wife, and a dog Heidi.
When George discovers several million pounds has appeared in his semi dormant secondary bank account he is convinced that he has won a overseas lottery – although he can’t remember ever taking a ticket. Sid cannot convince him that it’s probably a scam but at least talks him into changing his password as a security.
The reality is that an overseas gang had used the account to hide the money overnight as part of a money laundering exercise. When they went to move it on and found the password had been changed they were not well pleased.
Things quickly get out of hand with the gang using an attractive gang moll to entice George to give the new password but he can’t remember what he had changed it to it. He is subsequently ends up in the gang’s headquarters on an Adriatic Island.
George now needs a rescue. Will his by now completely fed up family put aside their differences and come to the rescue?
As with Marina’s other books, along with being funny romp, in the background runs a serious comment on modern life. In this case it is the way that Brexit had caused unsettled arguments, often within families. This certainly doesn’t intrude on the story line and could well be missed in the fast moving story line.
Just the thing for some light holiday reading, as are Marina’s other quirkily titled books which are available through the Wairarapa Library Service: A short history of Tractors in Ukraine (which has nothing to do with tractors) The Lubetkin Legacy, Various pets alive and dead, We are all made of glue and Two caravans
Martinborough golfers say it’s hard to believe that just over 12 months ago they were still in the old clubhouse _ “and now we have a spectacular new building.” “To get where we are today has meant a huge fundraising effort and amazing support from members: we couldn’t have done …
We start at the end of the month, when the annual Baabraa Trophy between Martinborough and Eketahuna was fought out on a glorious Sunday in Martinborough. A field of 70 played a stableford round and the average stableford points for the two clubs were calculated. Eketahuna scored an average …
September has been an up and down month weatherwise for golfers, some beautiful early spring days followed by cold and rain. Thankfully for the important days the weather has mostly come to the party. Early in the month the Cotter Rosebowl was successfully defended at Carterton by Martinborough’s team of …
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