Freshness Delivered To Your Door with Metro Ontario - Raw Shaved Asparagus Salad

Grocery Shopping is one of those polarizing tasks, either you love it or you hate it. I fall into the former category. Being someone who often works from home, I have the luxury of going to my grocery store on off-hours when it's nice and quiet, when I can stroll around the aisles, taking my time to look for new products and great sales. Not only that, it's often an excuse to take a very welcome break from my laptop screen.

"I'm that weirdo who takes a solid five-minutes to select a pineapple"

I generally enjoy the grocery shopping experience, giving myself the opportunity to get inspired for new recipes, but also to hand-select my produce so that my asparagus are not too thin and not too thick, with nice and tight flowers on the ends, my eggs are not broken, and my bananas are bright yellow with no bruising. I'm that weirdo who takes a solid five-minutes to select a pineapple, pressing the bottom of each one and aggressively sniffing to determine which one smells the sweetest (which is a great trick if you've never tried it!).

As much as I typically enjoy the grocery shopping experience, there's no doubt that some days it's a joy and some days it's a straight up chore. When life gets busy, I find myself wishing that I could teleport my produce and pantry items right to my door. My wish essentially came true this week, as Metro Ontario launched their new eCommerce platform in the GTA! Metro's new online grocery store promises to deliver freshness right to your door, with Metro's exclusive Tri-Zone delivery trucks that allow you to select the 2-hour time slot that works for you and your schedule, with the option for same-day delivery when ordered before 1:00 PM. With a lot on my metaphorical plate these days, there was no better time for me to test out the new platform!

As asparagus is just beginning to come into season in Canada, I was inspired to make one of my favourite Spring recipes, a Raw Shaved Asparagus Salad with fresh mint. This dish is beautiful and delicious on its own, but I love it all the more when topping crostini, spread with tangy goat cheese. I also figured that asparagus would be a good test for seeing how Metro's specially-trained personal shoppers would fare when selecting my produce.

"Our personal shoppers are as picky as you are"

Right on schedule, my groceries were delivered straight to my condo unit door (I didn't even have to go down to the lobby!) by a very friendly Metro employee (you always get extra points in my books for having a smile and being friendly!). With the claim that "our personal shoppers are as picky as you are," I dove into the grocery bag to scope out my asparagus. Indeed, I couldn't have asked for more beautiful asparagus! Just as I had hoped, they were not too thin, not too thick, with nice and tight florets on the end. They also passed the cracked egg test, with all dozen remaining intact.

I truly couldn't have asked for a more stress-free and smooth experience trying out the new platform. With any new launch, there's often kinks that need to be worked out, but I was pleasantly surprised at how successful my experience was. I trust Metro's personal shoppers to look, touch, smell, and press the produce just as I would, and can see myself taking advantage of their online grocery on a more regular basis.

Visit Metro.ca to test out the new platform and let me know what you think in the comments!

Note: The dressed asparagus salad keeps in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days! 

Ingredients:
2 lb thick asparagus spears, trimmed & peeled into ribbons
Salad Dressing
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp mint, cut into very fine ribbons
salt and pepper to taste
Salad
2 Tbsp. chopped pistachios, lightly toasted
shaved parmesan cheese, for garnish
Crostini
8-10 thin slices baguette, cut on a bias
olive oil
about 1/2 cup goats cheese
flakey salt for garnish

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon, and mint, and season with salt and pepper.
2. In a medium bowl, add asparagus ribbons. Add 3/4 of dressing and toss. Taste, and add remaining dressing as needed. 
3. Divide salad in half. Plate half garnished with pistachios and parmesan cheese shavings and serve as a salad.
4. Use the remaining half of the salad for topping the crostini. Lightly brush baguette slices with olive oil and lightly toast or grill. Spread evenly with about 1-Tbsp. goats cheese each, and top evenly with remaining asparagus salad. Garnish the crostini and salad with flakey salt. Serve immediately (see note above on how long dressed salad keeps).

This post was created in partnership with Metro Ontario.

Listening To:

The Stone Roses - I Wanna Be Adored

Raw Shaved Asparagus Salad Two Ways

Being such a food-focused province, the winter months have a way of taking its toll on us Ontarians, having to endure months and months of minimal options and repetition when it comes to local produce. There's no better sight than the first discovery of local asparagus at the market, as it has become a signifier for the beginning of Spring and all of the seasons big, fresh flavours for Ontarians.

With asparagus at its peak in the Spring, there's no better time to turn off the heat and play around with different raw preparations for this healthy and flavourful green. Serving asparagus raw allows its true flavours to shine through, as well as taking advantage of its fantastic  crunchy texture. This recipe lets asparagus act as the star, dressing it in a light vinaigrette that highlights asparagus's natural flavours, without overwhelming it. More than that, this recipe gives you the option of serving the salad two ways; standing along, garnished with pistachios and parmesan cheese, as a light accompaniment to lunch or dinner; or as an appetizer, using it as a topping for goat cheese crostini.

This article was originally posted in Fredi Magazine. CLICK HERE to check out the spread!

Tip: Save any remaining dressed salad to add into an omelette the next day!

Ingredients:
2 lb thick asparagus spears, trimmed & peeled into ribbons
Salad Dressing
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp mint, cut into very fine ribbons
salt and pepper to taste
Salad
2 Tbsp. chopped pistachios, lightly toasted
shaved parmesan cheese, for garnish
Crostini
8-10 thin slices baguette, cut on a bias
olive oil
about 1/2 cup goats cheese

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon, and mint, and season with salt and pepper.
2. In a medium bowl, add asparagus ribbons. Add 3/4 of dressing and toss. Taste, and add remaining dressing as needed. 
3. Divide salad in half. Plate half garnished with pistachios and parmesan cheese shavings and serve as a salad.
4. Use the remaining half of the salad for topping the crostini. Lightly brush baguette slices with olive oil and lightly toast or grill. Spread evenly with about 1-Tbsp. goats cheese each, and top evenly with remaining asparagus salad. Serve immediately. 

Listening To:

Kendrick Lamar - Loyalty 

The Kitchn's Crunchy Peanut Slaw

Oh hey, just me over here, still on the no-heat-in-my-kitchen-train! As you'll know from some of my previous posts and definitely from my Instagram account, I have been on a heat strike in my kitchen for months now. This has surely been one of Toronto's hottest summers in years, with hardly a day or even an afternoon of relief, meaning all the recent Google searches on my computer read "no-cook meal ideas" and "how to grill everything" as I begin to run out of ideas on what the hell to make for dinner each night. When you're exhausted from the heat, with little to no energy to cook much of anything, it's not the easiest task to go scouring through the internet to attempt to find a good recipe that's simple enough to throw together last minute and will allow you to keep your kitchen cool. 

With my boyfriend Chris working from home as much as possible thanks to a torn achilles (ouch!), it was so great to have another meal brainstormer on hand to help me come up with some different dishes that could help to shake up what was quickly becoming a boring dinner routine. One of my favourite recipes that Chris suggested I make a couple weeks ago was a refreshing, no-cook Crunchy Peanut Slaw from The Kitchn. Chris knew it would be a great recipe for me because...well, I was lazy as hell, hot AF, and this recipe allowed me to get food on the table fast, without any grocery shopping, and very little mess. I was in! 

The slaw was thrown together in less than 10 minutes (insane!), was the perfect accompaniment to grilled chicken and a humid day, and even though I only made a half batch, I was still left with some leftovers for both mine and Chris' lunch the following day! I love the fantastic crunch from both the peanuts and the crisp cabbage and that bright hit of cilantro that shines through each bite. Best of all, I loved the simple dressing that highlighted the nutty flavour of Asian sesame oil, giving this slaw a bit of an exotic twist. This recipe is definitely going onto my "Recipes I Love" Pinterest board! This baby is a keeper and perfect for your next BBQ with friends and family! 

Check out The Kitchn's recipe for Crunchy Peanut Slaw here!

Have another awesome no-cook or grilled weeknight dinner idea that you think I'll love? Tell me about it in the comments, or Tweet me: @thisgingerrose. 

Listening To:

Frank Ocean build something...waiting on that album, Frankie!!