ONLINE FOOD SHOPPING, DELIVERY A CONVENIENT FIND
Turns out we baby boomers still have a few surprises left in us. Recently, we astonished industry watchers by the keenness with which we jumped into online shopping, doubling our internet purchases in the course of a year.
That's certainly been the experience of this boomer, who's learned a lot about online options during the pandemic. Recent finds include Speducci, already known and loved as an Italian restaurant and grocery market in Toronto's Castlefield design district. Now, through Bottega, they deliver authentic Italian fare, including prepared meals, produce, meats, cheeses, and pasta across the GTA.
I sampled their pasta, cured meat and bread. All were superb. Pre-made meals are very affordable: a four-portion Italian sweet sausage Shepherd's pie sells for $25. Tip: Bottega's Salamoia Bolognese, a wonderfully salty herb mix, has become my new, if somewhat sassy, BFF in the kitchen. Most recently, I added it to a savoury scone recipe.
Voilà by Sobeys is a home-delivery service that uses robots to pack orders in warehouses, rather than a store. They have over 15,000 fresh produce and grocery items, including Farm Boy favourites, Sobeys own Compliments brand, and health, wellness, beauty, baby, and pet items from Well.ca. Delivery fees are competitive; minimum orders of $50 will cost $7.99. Currently available in parts of Ontario and Nova Scotia.
La Presserie is a Toronto-based premium juice brand that flash freezes juice rather than pasteurizing or processing it with high pressure to retain healthful enzymes and antioxidants.
Juices are 100-per-cent raw fruits and vegetables, with no added water, sugar, or preservatives. They are sold frozen. After delivery, they can stay in the freezer for about a year. They can be thawed for about 24 hours in the refrigerator as needed and consumed within five days. Grown-ups can use them for cocktails and there's a collection of kids' juices to help parents get those pesky fruits and veg into a child. Every one I tested was wonderfully fresh and deeply flavourful. Currently they ship throughout Ontario.
From the country's largest food service company comes Sysco@Home, which sells restaurant-quality grocery items in bulk sizes to home consumers. It has everything: custom cut meats, poultry, fresh produce, frozen foods, pantry staples, prepared meals and household supplies. Available in major cities across Canada.
I tested the service with a supplied gift card and was impressed. Online ordering was easy. Delivery was fast, on time, and right to the front door. Quality was good, and I like that everything comes all at once, which is my only beef with Costco delivery.
I use a fair amount of frozen ingredients, so for me this is a convenient and affordable way to shop for reliable-quality food. When ordering, though, keep an eye on portion sizes. I probably didn't need, for example, the
20K bag of flour I ordered. On the upside, I've got lots of flour for scones.
With this type of delivery it helps to be prepared for the arrival of large quantities. Clear out and clean the fridge and get clean containers in order ahead of time. Run a load of glass storage pieces through the dishwasher if you need to.
Two quick tips: Pack frozen foods flat into freezer bags, so they can be stacked in freezer, and separate frozen unbaked cookies into bags of 12 or six, so you can quickly bake enough for a family treat without having cookies for days.
Online grocery shopping also includes boutique-y healthy snacks, such as the just-launched Müska cereal range from La Fourmi Bionique.
This Canadian manufacturer makes delicious mixes of organic whole grains from Canada with an Egyptian-inspired blend of roasted seeds, nuts, and spices. Eat it with milk or yogurt as muesli, as an overnight oatmeal, or as topping for desserts or fruit. I added some to a nut ball recipe, a little extravagance that paid off in taste and texture.