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"Eat salad much? I do! Or at least I try to--but my usual lettuce, tomato, cucumber, carrot combo can get old fast. Lately though, I&amp;amp;#8217;ve been inspired--maybe it has to do with that seven-day challenge I&amp;amp;#8217;m on? Whatever it is, I&amp;amp;#8217;ve been looking forward to salad every day this week, and that&amp;amp;#8217;s rare! Here are a few ideas that could help you add that needed oomph to your daily plate of greens: 1. Make your own salad dressing. Three parts oil to one part vinegar, maybe mustard, and a little salt and pepper is all that is required for a basic dressing. You can get creative with the kind of oil you use; (for tips on which oil to choose, read this) and add herbs or lemon zest. It really makes a difference! Or, like Body by Glamour nutritionist, Rachel Beller, R.D., suggests, try salsa or two tablespoons of guacamole instead. 2. Go to your local Farmers&amp;amp;#8217; Market. Seriously. We&amp;amp;#8217;ve talked before about how much money you can save by buying seasonal produce that is grown locally, but do you know how many cool salad ideas you can get after spending just a few minutes perusing the stalls? Last week, I went to the Union Square Farmers&amp;amp;#8217; Market here in New York City and bought some vegetables I had never heard of, like something called purslane. It&amp;amp;#8217;s a weed, but apparently it&amp;amp;#8217;s high in vitamin C and contains more Omega-3 fatty acids than any other leafy vegetable. I also bought some sunflower sprouts, which are rich in protein and a bunch of vitamins, some fresh shallots, and a mix of lettuces. 3. Sprinkle some parmesan on it. One tablespoon has only 22 calories, and almost no fat. It goes a long way, trust me! 4. Grill some veggies to top off your salad. Sometimes the difference in textures is all the variety you need. Try it with grilled peppers or asparagus, or Brussels sprouts! I put these tips to work this week and had two fabulous salads. The first was a mix of purple romaine, sunflower sprouts, purslane, shallots, parmesan and a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. For the second, I used mesclun as the base, and then threw in cubes of tomato, fresh cilantro, and green onion. I grilled some mushrooms and orange and yellow peppers and threw those on top too. And I swapped regular dressing for salsa. This was fabulous with a black bean burger. Yum! I&amp;amp;#8217;ve been toying with the idea of diced peach in my salad lately--I think it would pair nicely with a honey mustard-based dressing&amp;amp;#133;but I haven&amp;amp;#8217;t ventured there yet. How about you? Do you get bored with your salad too? What do you do to switch it up? Do you add Fiber One cereal for extra crunch? Olives for a little zing? Let us know your tricks! PS: See what Sarah caught one woman eating recently! Plus: Get a new healthy afternoon snack idea every day on Vitamin G. Beware the evil salad! And 20 ways to eat healthier right now. Photo: iStock "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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