Very much against my better judgement I placed an online order with Tesco, I did this as I am at the moment not well enough to go fossicking about the store in person. This morning the delivery arrived and the number of massive cock ups far exceeded my worst fears.
Their was, the claimed one substitution, actually there were seven and some of them very odd.
I had ordered a bottle of Pa's favourite Port, what they delivered was a bottle of Cockburn’s,a brand which we would not normally have in the house as it is more like cough mixture than decent port wine. Having ordered large cartons of double cream I was at loss to make sense of the one small carton of single cream which actually arrived.
The large box of Toffifee ordered as a gift was replaced by two very small boxes, ans a number of Light versions of the full fat products which I had ordered were sent . These however were mild annoyances compared to the fact that a good many of the bags in which the groceries arrived were awash with some kind of cleaning material, anti bacterial spray I think.
Unfortunately I was out when the delivery arrived ,early and Pa was in the garden, so my son,who answered the door stark naked was obliged to received the goods. Having in mind his state of undress I can quite understand why he did not check the order for errors as is very necessary when dealing with Tesco, who's strange substitutions can be mind boggling . I once ordered chocolate digestives and was sent a packet of plain ones with a bar of milk chocolate...I kid you not!
My son, not best pleased at being dragged out of bed was in no mood the be trifled with so I refrained from comment and sent him back to bed. Since he had unpacked quite a lot of the shopping before returned then had to check all the cupboards for further mistakes or soggy products, after all no one wants pancakes made with antibacterial flour, this took ages and soured my temper ever so slightly.
I then telephoned Tesco customer services to give them a broadside, non of what I have to say about this conversation is fit to print, suffice it to say that the person on the other end of the line was every bit as dim as the twerp who sent me a Victoria sandwich when I had actually ordered a bath sponge! After letting rip with some rather old fashioned cursing I felt a little better and returned to the days chores.
The bread I had made early this morning was cool and ready to be out in the crock and then I set about making a hearty winter soup for dinner, rich with many different vegetables and cream, a real winter warmer. A large fruit cake was next of the list , a special recipe which is lighter than a normal fruit cake yet very moist and rich.
I next baked a batch of very special cookies,the recipe seems to almost yell Merry Christmas, here it is.
Blueberry and cranberry cookies
8oz butter
4oz caster sugar
8oz plain flour
1teaspoon vanilla essence
2oz blueberries
2oz cranberries
3oz pine nuts
Pinch of salt
Cream the butter,sugar,salt and vanilla essence together until pale and creamy then add the sieved flour, pine nuts and cranberries and mix together until well blended. Roll the mixture in to walnut sized balls, dip one side in the pine nuts then place on a greased baking tray with the nuts facing upwards. Press down lightly with your fingers. Bake at 185oC for fifteen-twenty minutes. When the cookies are just turning brown remove from the oven and leave to cool on the tray for a few minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack , and that's it.
All through the afternoon the sun shone casting a golden light on everything, small birds flitted busily around the feeding stations and even my little cat found a warm sunny sheltered spot in the orchard and sat sniffing the air for an hour or so.
My mother telephoned for a chat and after that the calls came thick and fast,something I could have done without to be sure.
I have come to the conclusion that I need to be much less accessible if I am the finish all the jobs I have in hand this week and to that end I mean to switch off my mobile telephone, bolt all the doors and be incommunicado until Christmas eve, some hope!
Our tame fox appeared outside the kitchen door this afternoon, I suppose he had smelled the baking and came to see if there was a treat for him. He has such a sweet tooth and prefers strawberry jam sandwiches to chicken, he happily munched a couple of warm cookies until chased away by the cat which was a funny sight to see.
My son returns to work tonight so it is back on the treadmill for all of us but with all the lovely things to bake and make and all the fun of preparing for the Holiday the week will soon pass,and then Christmas, hooray!
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