I do enjoy a good salad, but it’s easy to fall into a rut especially when you’re using salad as a quick fix. Throwing some spinach or kale in a bowl, topping it with some nuts and store-bought dressing, might make for an easy lunch, but it’s a formula that does grow stale with time. How do you get out of this salad redundancy? Sometimes a leisurely stroll down your grocery store’s produce aisle can provide some inspiration. I’ve been having my groceries delivered since March 2020, and so I haven’t the opportunity to do this simple, sensory exploration and I’ve been sorely missing it.

Now that I’m fully vaccinated, I decided to venture out to a grocery store for the first time in a year and half and one of my first stops was my local Farm Boy, a new addition to the Toronto grocery scene that has been called the Trader Joe’s of Canada. Farm Boy began as a produce only store and as they’ve expanded they’ve continued to emphasise the quality of their produce.  As I’d hoped, my trip to the store, and the immersive tour of their well-stocked aisles, and expansive selection of fresh fruits and vegetables, provided the culinary stimulation that I’d been missing. This recipe was the result of that excursion, and uses produce that perhaps isn’t as popular as your kales, romaines and spinach blends but are fully deserving of your attention. If you’re tired of the same leafy green salads, give this a try!

Ingredients
For the salad:
3 apples, diced (A crispy variety works best.  I used Gala apples)
1 bulb of fennel, sliced into strips.
4 or 5 heads of endive, slice into strips
1/2 cup of Goji berries.  Farm Boy actually had fresh goji berries, which I’ve never seen or tried before.  They’re are delicious, but they may be hard to find depending on where you are.  You can used dried goji berries – also delicious – or some other similar sweet dried berry like raisons.
Sunflower seeds for a topper

For the dressing:
1/2 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of lemon juice
1 tbsp of dill
1 tbsp of garlic nodules
1-2 tsp of lemon zest
1 tsp of salt

Directions.
1.  In a small bowl mix together 1/2 cup of olive oil, 1/4 cup of lemon juice, 1 tbsp of dill, 1 tbsp of garlic nodules, 1-2 tsp of lemon zest, and 1 tsp of salt.  I would recommend preparing the dressing beforehand, and store in the fridge for a bit to give time for the flavours to meld.
2.  In a large bowl, mix together the chopped apples, as well as the sliced fennel and endive/
3.  Slowly fold in the goji berries.
4.  Top generously with sunflower seeds and serve.