Whether you eat take out or make your own lunches everyday, it is often difficult to eat nutritious meals away from home.  A simple solution is to have one dish, packed with nutrients, that can be eaten at room temperature, to accompany the rest of the lunch you bring, or to supplement take out/deli food.  Vegetable or grain salads work great for this, and you can make a dish that will last 2-3 days.  Make this dish packed with nutritious foods.  Here are some of my favorites:
Marinated Beet Salad
1 lb fresh beets
¼ c. cup walnut or other nut oil, or extra virgin olive oil and sesame
1/3 c. vinegar (sherry, umeboshi, or balsamic)1 clove garlic, finely chopped
goat cheese (optional)
fresh mint or other fresh herb (optional)

Steam beets until soft, about 30-35 minutes.  Meanwhile, combine the oil, vinegar, and garlic.  When beets are easily pierced with a fork, remove to a plate and let them cool.  When they are cool to the touch, cut off the ends and rub the skins to remove them.  Chop into bite size pieces and mix with the marinade.  Put in fridge to absorb flavors for atleast 2 hours.  Garnish with goat cheese and mint before serving.

Quinoa Tabbouleh
2 cups water
1 cup quinoa
1 pinch salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 tomatoes, diced
1 cucumber, diced
2 bunches green onions, diced
2 carrots, grated
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Rinse quinoa well.  Cook covered in water with salt for 15 min.  Meanwhile chop the vegetables and put in a large bowl.  Mix olive oil, salt, lemon juice and add to vegetables.  When quinoa is cooled, add to the mixture.

I finally experimented with a package of mochi (found in the refigerated section of health food stores), and I am very excited about it!   Mochi is made out of sweet brown rice that has been pounded until it gets gooey.  You buy a package, cut it into 1 inch squares, bake as directed, and they will puff up.  When they are cool to the touch, break them open and stuff the hollow center with whatever you want.  I used tomato and pesto, plain pesto, and sunflower seed butter.  They were all very good, and are a great wheat/pastry substitute!  (Remember to chew them well for proper digestion.)

Mix Together:
1 diced tomato
1 diced, seeded cucumber (I like to peel some of the tough skin off, about half of it)
1 diced half red onion
1/2 cup Trader Joe's Herb Crumbled Feta, or other feta cheese
Splash of unrefined extra-virgin olive oil

It's  hot outside, and more fresh, raw fruits and vegetables can be eaten.  A salad once a day is just fine.  It's often humid, or damp, outside, so it is best to avoid foods that produce and attract the dampness into the body, which causes feelings of heaviness, bloating, and even achiness or fatigue.  Avoid damp-producing foods like fried foods, high-fat dairy, excess wheat/bread, and icy/frozen foods and drinks.  Some foods promote urination and "drain dampness," as we say in Chinese medicine.  You can try to emphasize these foods, which include cucumbers, watermelon, celery, dandelion greens, barley, brown rice, mung beans, and chamomile tea.  Don't forget to drink water, but avoid ice water with your meals, which inhibits digestion and promotes dampness and fatigue.