Nadia's new world ‘I'M LIVING THE DREAM!'

But the MasterChef winner still has moments that drive her mad...

- NICKY PELLEGRINO

Nadia Lim is multi-tasking. She’s cooking pasta with tomato sauce for lunch as two noisy little boys rough and tumble round the kitchen, all the while chatting to Woman’s Day about her amazing new life.

It’s exactly a year since the celebrity chef made the move from Auckland to an idyllic property near Arrowtown in Central Otago, where she’s now farming with her husband Carlos Bagrie. It’s a dream come true for both of them, but in all honesty, it’s not all roses.

“I’m having one of those days,” Nadia, 35, admits ruefully as her sons shriek together.

With her foodie career as successful as ever, the challenge of learning how to farm, and high-energy sons Bodhi, four, and River, two, Nadia’s rural lifestyle is more busy than serene. She has chickens to feed, sheep to muster, a huge vegetable garden to tend to and recipes to create – there is a never-ending to-do list.

PEAS & PEACE!

“Lots of things go wrong and the kids can drive you mad,” she confesses, laughing. “I’d say that my garden is probably what keeps me sane. It gets me outside where there are no people, no noises, nothing. I can just plant out my pea seedlings and take the laterals off the tomatoes, and that’s my me-time.”

With eggs from their chickens, honey from their own hives, veges from the garden and meat from Carlos’ hunting trips, the family is now almost self-sufficient.