Hello. I have been passed the pen of Payhembury Provisions by Mary our long standing ‘field correspondent’ and firstly I must thank her for all her words over the last few years and hope that myself and the other new journos (we are taking it in turns) live up to her Pulitzer Prize winning standards to tell you what is happening here in the shop. Talking of Pullets (see what I did there?) as this goes to press we are a mere five and a bit weeks to Christmas and that means we are only four weeks away from the fresh free range bronze and barn …
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This month it’s time to start talking turkey! You’ve probably read in the press that turkeys are likely to be in short supply in supermarkets this year due to the lack of skilled workers arriving from Europe to process them. Well we are delighted to say that when our previous source told us he wasn’t able to supply us any longer our resourceful Turkey Team went to visit Rosamondford Farm in Perkins Village near Aylesbeare. They rear their day old chicks on the farm feeding them local wheat and vegetables with no additives and the bronze turkeys …
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We know you're always up for a new product in the shop and so we've added to our repertoire of weekend baking with Portuguese Pasteis de Nata. These are crisp flaky pastry tarts filled with creamy egg custard and a slightly caramelised finish and are absolutely delicious. They are baked at a very high temperature so the only problem is resisting taking the first bite until they have really cooled down! We are still baking our old favourites of buttery croissants, pains au chocolat and pains aux raisins to make your weekend breakfasts rather …
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During the Covid restrictions we really missed our annual volunteers’ suppers which are always fun and a great way to thank all the wonderful people who keep the shop going in many different ways over the year. Last month we held our 10th anniversary tea party and it was lovely to see so many old friends, volunteers and customers who were able to get together for a good chat over a cup of tea and delicious scones and cakes made by Ed and Janet. David, the Chairman of the shop committee, made a short speech including the fact that over the last …
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The party to celebrate the 10th year of our shop was held on 31st July, where a good time was had by all! …
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We heard last month that we had been awarded Highly Commended in the Countryside Alliance competition, not bad considering there were over 18,000 entrants in the whole competition and we were up against very strong opposition. Thank you to all of you who supported our nomination. And anyway, we have definitely won the best village shop in Payhembury award! As well as our fresh fruit and veg we are gradually stocking more items for vegetarians and vegans as they are popular with our customers. We have vegan alternatives for cheese, sausages, …
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In July the shop will have been open for 10 years and in that time we have had many successes and a few worrying times but throughout we have relied on our fantastic volunteers and customers to support and sustain us. Now we hope, COVID permitting, to celebrate our 10th birthday with you all. Watch this space for details next month. It’s never too late to join our band of volunteers, all you have to do is give Anne Baxter a ring on 01404 841345 and you can arrange to come in and have a look at the shop and how it works from behind the till …
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You won't have seen her behind the till over the last year but we know many of you would like to join us in wishing Pam Kearley happiness in her new home when she and Barry move house this month after 23 years in Luton. Pam has been a stalwart supporter of the shop from the start and volunteered week in week out on a Saturday morning for years often working with teenagers doing their D of E awards. Her warm and friendly nature was a huge support to them and a joy for all our customers. Thank you Pam from us all! We have recently had some more …
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Did you give something up for Lent this year? Or perhaps you feel that we've all already had to give up too many good things over the last year? Either way, what's certain is that we could all do with a few small treats to look forward to over Easter, and even if it's not going to be the 'family Christmas at Easter' that we were all hoping for (has anyone else got Christmas turkey legs lurking in the freezer and a Christmas pud loitering in the cupboard?) we have all sorts of delicious things in the shop to help you celebrate. Our wine …
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