salads - how do you make them interesting?

First, I don't use lettuce. It's boring. I uses cucumbers, onions, chic peas, peppers, tomatoes, tuna and then give them a twist. Asian with mandarin oranges, smoked almonds and Ginger Soy, or Mediterranean with olives goat cheese (less sodium than Feta) and sun-dried tomatoes. I also like avocados and tomato with cottage cheese.

My fav right now is spring mix with dried cranberries, feta cheese, walnuts, avocado and raspberry vinaigrette.

Chicken, hummus, tuna, alfalfa sprouts, and avocado are all good additions (not all together of course)

Can't claim these as my own but two of my favourite Brit chefs have come up with great ideas...

Jamie Oliver: Rainbow Salad

Simply grate several different root vegetables, pile of a plate and drizzle with a dressing made from olive oil, pesto and Greek yoghurt. I use my food processor for this and love varying mixtures of raw beetroot, carrot, red cabbage, white cabbage, courgette, sweet potato etc. So easy, just scrub, chop (leave skin on for extra fibre and nutrients) and bung in the processor with the grate setting on. Tip in a large dish for all the family to tuck into (comes out in stripes of rainbow colour). Put the leftovers in a sandwich box ready for lunch at work the next day - just chuck in a tin of tuna. Any leftovers the next day can be used as the basis for a vegetable soup.

Allegra McEvedy: Superfood Salad (Serves two)

200g broccoli, cut into bite-sized florets
120g peas, fresh or frozen
100g cucumber, cut into slim batons
100g good-quality feta cheese, crumbled
20g alfalfa
20g toasted seeds (we use sesame, sunflower, flax and pumpkin)
50g avocado, cut into pieces
30g quinoa, Fairtrade if possible
Small handful flat-leaf parsley, rough chopped
Small handful mint, rough chopped
2 dessert spoons lemon juice
4 dessert spoons extra virgin olive oil

1. Put the quinoa in a small pan. Cover with cold water plus about an inch then let it gently simmer until the water's gone - about 15 minutes. Spread it on a tray to cool to room temperature.

2. Put an inch of hot water into a saucepan with a pinch of salt and cover it. Once boiling, drop in the broccoli and peas and put the lid back on. Drain after three minutes and run the veg under cold water to take all the heat out and keep them good and green.

3. Now build your salad in layers, starting with the first ingredient on the list and ending up with the dressing (but only dress it just before you eat it).

Yum yum yum!

I usually put cheese, carrots, or tuna in my salads. Tuna in water is soooo flavorful! If you leave just a bit (about 1/4) of the "juice" in the can or packet then it kinda replaces some of the dressing with tons of flavor. It helps me to use less dressing.

Other times I put in some Lemon Pepper Chicken. It is so easy to make. I just dice up chicken breast about the size of dice. With a tbsp of olive oil and a few big squirts of lemon juice in frying pan, I cook the chicken long enough to cook through, but not fry it. While you're cooking or afterwards dust the chicken with lemon pepper. Its a quick fix and a nice change for salads.

I've also used spiced ground turkey. I cook ground turkey with a bunch of spices (whatever you like) and some crushed red pepper. It gives the salad a lot of flavor with some kick because of the red pepper. Super yummy!

Then there is always all the veggies you can stand. I usually like to add corn, tomatoes, or onions in my salad. You could try putting in red or kidney beans...or any other bean you like. Just don't go overboard with the beans, they're packed with carbs, but still good for you.

Today I realized the Planters Nut-rician digestive health mix is really good on a salad! it has almonds, pistachios, craisins, dried cherries and granola.
I do make a dressing, a olive oil and rice rine vinegar with orange juice and dijon mustard.
Other salads that I love-pear with gorganzola, shrimp with coconut, i also like avocado and pecan with a poppyseed dressing but you have to be careful, it can have a lot of fat calories, if that is something you are trying to watch, mandarin and almond is good too.

Usually veggies like avocado, red and green peppers and on a good day pickles or just a little pickle juice as dressing. by good day I mean if I have had little sodium that day lol. Be careful becasue if you add too much a salad could easily start getting up their in cals.

I def like doing a southwest/taco type salad (I haven't tried crushing chips or crackers yet)...I put ground turkey w/Mrs Dash extra spicy seasoning (tastes like taco seasoning, but with no sodium), reduced fat mozz, salsa, romaine lettuce, I also sometimes cook the ground turkey w/kidney or black beans & mushrooms (I know, the mushrooms technically don't go in a taco/southwest salad, but I enjoy them )

I also have bought this salad topper mix (I think it is Aurura brand-found in produce section) that has sesame sticks, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, & sliced almonds (in moderation it isn't too bad for you, like everything else)...

Or I have just bought Craisins, bacon bits, sunflower seeds, and threw those on my salad...

I also throw chicken, tuna, or hard boiled eggs on salads as protien...

I use mixed salad leaves, including spinach, rocket, watercress as they are better nutritionally with red peppers, spring onions, cucumber, grapes, boiled salad potatos, boiled egg, baby capers, blanched asparagus and blanched fine green beans.

The dressing is what makes a salad delicious. I generally mix 1 tbsp of olive oil with 2 tbsp of good vinegar, a pinch of salt & pepper, half a teaspoon of english mustard and a clove of crushed garlic.