Book of the day: The Good Father by Liam McIlvanney
Family pets are so often objects of joy and love, but the appearance of Bonnie, the Rutherford family's beloved retriever, was a malignant omen on a chilly Sunday in August as the Scottish summer waned. The first note of a discordant song that fractures the lives of Gordon and Sarah.
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3 days ago
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The Wearing Of The Tartan: A Bold Blend Of Tradition And Modernity
The Whanganui Regional Museum is preparing to showcase a 1950s woollen day dress made from Wallace tartan. The dress was donated to the museum by Jean Frank, a dedicated Wanganui Museum staff member from 1970 to 1988. Pou Ārahi/Director, Dr Bronwyn Labrum, will host a fashion talk in the Museum at 12.15pm on Friday 4th July to present the outfit to the public. Whanganui Regional Museum's popular Outfit of the Month series continues with the next fashion talk on Friday 4 July at 12:15pm, which takes a special look at a classic woollen dress with a stylish twist. The featured outfit for July is a day dress made from Wallace tartan. An example of post-war fashion, the dress reflects the 1950s enthusiasm for structured silhouettes and statement patterns. The Wallace tartan is arguably one of the most recognisable and striking of all Scottish tartans, associated with the famous Scottish patriot Sir William Wallace. Tartan styles experienced a revival during the 1950s. Designers embraced tartan's strong visual appeal, pairing it with the era's fitted bodices and flared skirts to create garments that felt both traditional and modern. The crisp plaid and strong pattern would have made it a fashion-forward choice at that time. It reflected the post-war desire for elegant practicality with a splash of individuality, making it popular not just in the UK but in countries like New Zealand, where many families maintained strong ties to British and Scottish heritage. Originally worn by Mrs. L.A. Sergeant (born Annie May Lowe in 1899), who later emigrated with her family from England to New Zealand, the dress was gifted to the Museum by her daughter, Jean Frank. Jean was a dedicated Wanganui Museum staff member from 1970 to 1988, holding roles that included Artist, Display Artist, and Senior Assistant. The fashion talk will be presented by Pou Ārahi/Director, Dr Bronwyn Labrum. 'This dress is a stylish piece from the 1950s and a connection to the journeys of migration, memory, and family heritage,' says Labrum. 'Clothing like this speaks volumes about the era's fashion, but also the everyday lives of women who wore them.' The dress will remain on display throughout August, following the free lunchtime talk. All are welcome to attend. Koha or donations are appreciated to support the Museum's ongoing work in preserving Whanganui's rich cultural history. Founded in 1892, the Whanganui Regional Museum is internationally renowned for its Taonga Māori Collection. Located in Pukenamu Queen's Park, visitors can view the exceptional creations of tupuna (ancestors) of Whanganui tangata whenua (indigenous people) alongside a changing exhibition programme encompassing a world-class collection of natural and human history, with a regional emphasis. The ground level boutique museum store sells a range of local and Māori jewellery, books, cards, art, and other New Zealand-made gift items. The Whanganui Regional Museum Trust is an independent legal entity that owns the collection and governs the development of the Museum on behalf of the Whanganui community. Open to visitors daily from 10.00am to 4.30pm (except Christmas Day and Good Friday), entry to Whanganui Regional Museum is free. Connect with Whanganui Regional Museum at or on Facebook, and Instagram.
NZ Herald
14-06-2025
- NZ Herald
Book of the day: The Good Father by Liam McIlvanney
Family pets are so often objects of joy and love, but the appearance of Bonnie, the Rutherford family's beloved retriever, was a malignant omen on a chilly Sunday in August as the Scottish summer waned. The first note of a discordant song that fractures the lives of Gordon and Sarah.
Otago Daily Times
30-05-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Combining cultures
Julie Lin is an author, recipe developer and broadcaster. She has just published her first book Sama Sama which fuses Malaysian, Chinese and Scottish influences from her heritage. In 2011, Julie Lin made a note to self on Facebook: "New mission in life," she wrote in a status update: "be Nigella Lawson." At the time, she was working in retail in Glasgow and teaching piano and violin while channelling most of her creative energies into cooking dinner parties for friends. Flash forward 13 years and while Lin may not have fulfilled her mission exactly as stated, she's been making all the right moves in that direction. First she went on MasterChef in 2014 and made it to the quarter finals. Then she quit her job and became a chef, before setting up her own street-food stall in Glasgow. She graduated to a "proper"restaurant on the city's south side in 2017, then a larger one called GaGa which is still going strong today. Now she's written a cookbook, which unites the two parts of her heritage — Malaysian and Scottish — in unexpected and delicious ways. "My mum's from Malaysia, and I go there every year," she says. Her father is Scottish and she grew up in Glasgow "with an abundance of amazing Scottish produce. So it feels like I'm from both places." Chinese sausage bucatini carbonara Carbonara will forever be one of my favourite dishes. The Chinese sausage (lap cheong) I use is an ambient food, so I always tend to have it in the cupboard. It's truly one of the finest ingredients — its smoky sweetness makes it taste like maple-cured bacon and it works perfectly with the rich egg yolks. Allowing the fat to render a little releases the oils into the dish and creates the most moreish flavour. Serves 2 200g dried bucatini (or another long pasta) 40g Chinese sausage (lap cheong), thinly sliced at an angle 1 Tbsp olive oil 4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped 3 egg yolks 50g parmesan, grated, plus extra to serve 1 tsp light soy sauce ½ tsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) salt and black pepper Method Bring a large saucepan of well-salted water to the boil. Add the bucatini to the pan and cook for 8 minutes (or according to the packet instructions). Meanwhile, in a dry frying pan, gently fry the sausage over a low heat until the oils are released, allowing it to get a bit crisp. Remove the sausage from the pan and set aside. Add the olive oil to the pan and fry the chopped garlic until fragrant but not browned. Using a fork, whisk together the egg yolks, grated parmesan, soy sauce, kecap manis and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Once cooked, drain the bucatini, reserving some of the pasta cooking water. Add the sausage back into the pan along with the drained bucatini and toss in the garlic oil. Slowly add a little of the pasta cooking water to the egg yolk mixture until glossy and combined. Pour this over the hot pasta and sausage and mix together. Serve immediately with black pepper and the extra parmesan grated on top. Chinese-style spicy garlic celery Celery divides people. I think that's because most of us are introduced to it in the form of batons dipped into hummus. But I adore celery in its cooked form, especially with soy and garlic. This is a version of a common wok-fried celery dish we eat at large banquets in Malaysia. Serves 1 2 Tbsp Shaoxing rice wine 3 Tbsp light soy sauce 1 tsp white sugar 2 Tbsp vegetable oil 1 bunch, celery sliced on an angle 5 cloves garlic, peeled and finely diced 1 tsp cornflour, plus 3 Tbsp water to make a paste 1 tsp Malaysian crispy prawn chilli or crispy chilli oil salt and ground white pepper Method In a small bowl, mix together the Shaoxing rice wine, soy sauce and sugar. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok over a high heat. Add the celery to the hot oil and stir-fry for 1 minute, or until a little translucent. Next, add the garlic and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the rice wine, soy and sugar mixture, then add the cornflour paste and stir-fry until everything thickens slightly. Allow all of the flavours to come together, then taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and white pepper. Finally, add the crispy prawn chilli or crispy chilli oil and make a few last tosses. Serve immediately while piping hot. Nasi goreng with smoked mackerel Nasi goreng is probably one of the most recognisable dishes in Indonesian and Malaysian cuisines. Nasi means rice and goreng means fried, so it translates simply as fried rice. Full of flavour, this dish can be adapted to use up any ingredients you have in the fridge. I adore adding mackerel to this; the smokiness makes it extra punchy. It's important to cook out the paste (rempah) here so that all of the roundness of the flavours can coat the rice. All of the day-old rice grains should absorb maximum flavour. Remember, nasi goreng is a simple dish to cook, but it's all about making sure it's not still wet at the end of the frying process. Serves 2 vegetable oil for frying 2 spring onions, chopped into 4cm chunks 150g fine green beans, trimmed 50g smoked mackerel, flaked 300g cooked and cooled jasmine rice (preferably a day old) 1 ½ tsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) 1 ½ Tbsp fish sauce, or to taste 4 eggs 150g beansprouts For the rempah 1 long shallot, peeled and roughly chopped 5 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped 2 fresh long red chillies, deseeded and roughly chopped 4 dried red chillies, soaked in warm water for 20 minutes, drained, deseeded 2 Tbsp dried anchovies (ikan billis) Seasoning station (optional) sambal belacan, chilli crisp oil, fish sauce, light soy sauce, lime juice, salt Method First, make the rempah. Place all the ingredients in a food processor or blender and blitz to a paste. Heat plenty of oil in a wok over a medium-high heat. (You need lots of oil to make the paste oily enough that it coats the rice.) Once the wok is hot, add the rempah, spring onion chunks, trimmed green beans and flaked mackerel. Fry everything for 1-2 minutes, stirring continuously so that the paste doesn't catch and burn. Turn the heat down, then add the cooled rice to the wok with a few tablespoons of water. Add the kecap manis and fish sauce, stirring furiously until everything is mixed together. Create a well in the centre of the rice. Keeping the heat on medium-low, crack two of the eggs into the centre of the well and allow them to scramble. Once fully cooked through, mix the scrambled egg through the rice with the beansprouts. Heat enough oil to cover the base in a separate pan over a very high heat. Once the oil is very hot, crack the remaining two eggs into the pan. Fry until the skirts of the eggs are golden and crispy. When ready to serve, spoon the rice into two bowls and top with the crispy fried eggs. Add whichever of the ingredients you fancy from the seasoning station. — The Observer
