I discovered a recipe for black bean salad  this weekend and it is seriously one of my new favorites!  It is so easy and so fresh tasting.    You just combine all the ingredients except the avocado and put in the refrigerator for a couple of hours so the flavors can combine.  You just want to wait and add the avocado right before serving so that it doesn’t brown.

This salad would be a fantastic and easy take-along dish for a cook out or other get-together.  You could eat it as a side dish or as an appetizer if you serve it with tortilla chips.  I actually made it as an easy brown bag lunch for this week.  The only problem is I liked it so much I ate all over the weekend and now need to make a new batch for my lunches this week.  Lucky for me it is so easy to whip it together!

I found the original recipe on Once Upon a Chef.  I tweaked it a tiny bit.  I cut the recipe in half since I wasn’t taking it to a party.  I also kicked up the heat a smidge.  (It is still a very mild dish.)  If you wanted you could leave out the cayenne pepper completely and just double the smoked paprika.

I hope you give this great black bean salad a try!  Happy Monday everyone!

Black Bean Corn, Red Peppers, Avocado Salad with Cilantro-Lime Vinaigrette

Prep Time:  10 minutes  -  Refrigeration time: 2 hours or more – Makes: four 1-cup servings

•  1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 ears fresh corn – cooked, cooled and kernels cut off the cob
• 1 red bell peppers, diced
• 1 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press
• ½  medium shallot, diced
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro, plus more to garnish
• 1 teaspoons salt
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon smoked parika
• 1 tablespoons sugar
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice  (juice of about 1 1/2 limes)
• 1 teaspoon lime zest (zest a lime before juicing it)
• 1 Hass avocados, diced

Combine black beans, corn, bell peppers, garlic, shallots and cilantro (but not the avocado) in a large bowl.  In a small bowl whisk together salt, cayenne pepper, sugar, olive oil, lime juice, lime zest. Pour dressing over black bean mixture and stir to combine.  Cover and chill for  at least 2 hours (or overnight) before serving.

Right before serving, add diced avocados and mix gently, being careful not to mash avocados. Garnish with a few springs of freshly chopped cilantro if desired.  Serve at room temperature.

(For those of you trying to keep track of your calories, this recipe has approximately 370 calories per 1 cup serving.)

Other Recipes You Might Enjoy!

Sweet and Spicy Twice Baked Sweet Potato

Black Bean Tacos

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