The Food Doctor reveals lunchtime salads that get you out of the sandwich rut and keep your diet on track

Ian Marber, a.k.a. The Food Doctor, has written several books that promote his philosophy of preventative nutrition. The Food Doctor Everyday Diet Cookbook presents 140 tasty recipes that promote healthy eating with taste (think, stuffed pork fillet and chocolate pots).

These salads are designed to be made the previous night or the morning before you go to work so that you can just reach for a nutritious meal at lunchtime. All recipes serve two, so you should be able to save yourself time by making enough lunch for two consecutive days.

Lentil and sprouted seed salad (V)

Ready in 15 minutes

100g (3 1/2 oz) dried red lentils, or 4 tablespoons canned lentils, rinsed and drained 200ml (7fl oz) vegetable stock
1 avocado, peeled and sliced
Fresh lemon juice to taste
100g (3 1/2 oz) sprouted seeds, rinsed and drained
100g (3 1/2 oz) cucumber, cut into thick matchstick pieces
0.5 red pepper, sliced
French dressing to taste
2-3 tablespoons fresh herbs, chopped

If you have time, put the dried lentils in a saucepan, add the stock and simmer for 5-10 minutes until soft but not collapsed. Rinse and drain. Otherwise spoon the canned lentils into a bowl.

If you make this salad the night before, leave slicing the avocado and sprinkling it with lemon juice until the morning.

Add the sprouts, cucumber and red pepper to the lentils. Add French dressing to taste and toss well. Fold into the avocado and fresh herbs of your choice and pack the contents into a lunch box. For a change, add some hot smoked fish too.

Tomato, bulgar wheat and spinach salad (V)

Ready in 15 minutes

100g (3 1/2 oz) bulgar wheat, plus boiling vegetable stock to cover
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
100g (3 1/2 oz) baby spinach leaves, washed
Grated fresh nutmeg to taste
Juice 1 lemon
Freshly ground black pepper
12 baby tomatoes, halved
12 pitted black olives
100g (3 1/2 oz) feta cheese, cubed

Pour boiling stock over the bulgar wheat until it is just covered. Leave to stand for 10 minutes, then strain and squeeze it though a fine sieve.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the garlic. Soften over a low heat for 2 minutes. Add the spinach stir over a medium heat until the spinach is wilted. Grate a little nutmeg over the spinach.

Combine the bulgar wheat and spinach with it's oil in a bowl. Toss well, add the lemon juice and season with black pepper. Gently fold in the tomatoes, olives and feta cheese.

Put into a lunch box and go. The flavours improve if left for a couple of hours or more before eating.

High energy salad (V)

Ready in 10 minutes

4 eggs
2 medium tomatoes, quartered
4 closed white mushrooms
1 yellow pepper, cut into strips
2 raw baby carrots, washed
75g (2 1/5 oz) raw, bite-sized broccoli florets
75g (2 1/5 oz) raw, bite-sized cauliflower florets
4 tablespoons The Food Doctor Rosemary & Garlic Seed Mix, or use 4 tablespoons mixed pumpkin, sesame, sunflower and linseeds with 1/5 teaspoon garlic, chopped
1 flat bread or 1 corn fritter per person

Boil the eggs for 10 minutes until they are hard-boiled. Cool them in cold water, then shell them and cut them in half.

Mix the other ingredients together, pack into a lunch box and place the eggs on top. Eat with the flat bread or corn fritter. Using the spiced Food Doctor seeds means that there is no need for dressing.

You can add any raw vegetables of your choice to change this mix, but keep the quantities high to give you enough energy.

Taken from The Food Doctor Everyday Diet Cookbook by Ian Marber published by DK, priced £12.99