Black Bean Salad with Fresh Corn

Tried this recipe at a neighbor's house and had to make it myself.  I love this!!  We had it as a side dish for dinner tonight.  Couldn't get enough of it.  Strong lime flavor.  


Black Bean Salad with Fresh Corn


2 cups black beans, cooked, rinsed 
1 ear corn, boiled, kernels removed from the cob   (I cheated on this one.  I used 1 cup frozen white corn defrosted by running warm water over it.)  
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1/2 medium red bell pepper, diced
1/2 medium poblano pepper, diced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (leaves and stems)
1/2 cup lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 Tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 Tablespoon black pepper
1 Tablespoon salt


Optional:  I added 2 diced tomatoes because anything tastes better with tomatoes to me!


Directions
Combine the beans, corn, onion, peppers and cilantro in a large bowl.  Whisk together the remaining ingredients in a small bowl and pour over the bean mixture.  Mix well.  Chill the salad for 2 hours before serving.  

Summer Salad

Summer Salad              

(Made by Trudy Bishop’s family Very good)

This recipe can be modified a number of ways and still be great. Substitute whatever fruit or lettuce you may have on hand. Choose at least three of them. I also like to throw in raspberries or Strawberries.

I also like to use grilled or marinated chicken.

1 head red leaf lettuce,  1 bag baby spinach, 1 bag European blend, 1 head iceberg

Add to lettuce just before serving.

                2 chopped small apples

                1 large can mandarin oranges (or can use fresh orange slices)

                1 cup. Cran-raisins

                ½ red onion thinly sliced

                6-8 slices bacon, chopped up

                2-4 cups cooked chicken

                1 cup grated Mozzarella Cheese

                1 cut caramelized slivered almonds

                    (In a heavy saucepan put 1 cup sugar: liquefy on medium heat. Add 1 cup slivered almonds and remove quickly from heat. Pour out to cool.)

Dressing—Mix in Blender

1 cup red wine vinegar

2/4 cup virgin oil

1 cup sugar

1/3 red onion (you may want to start with less and add more if needed)

½ tsp. ground pepper

Mix all ingredients together for dressing pour over salad just before serving.

Summer Salad Revisited

Here is a recipe derived from reading multiple recipes for cucumber and tomato salad.

Growing up we called a similar concoction "summer salad" which I loved and ate often during the summer when the garden flourished. Based on the recipes I reviewed, I called this cucumber and tomato salad "summer salad revisited" because it embellishes the vegetable dish I loved to eat as a child and youth.

Dale loved this one better than the original!

Summer Salad Revisited

5 pickling cucumbers, peeled and sliced

2-3 tomatoes, diced

1 tsp minced garlic

1/2 tsp. salt (I would reduce even more. It was a little on the salty side.)

2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 Tbsp. olive oil

Combine the cucumbers, tomatoes and garlic in a bowl. In a separate dish, combine the salt, balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Stir the salt, vinegar and oil dressing into the vegetables and garlic. Chill (if desired) and serve.

Dale loved this one! It's spicy so that is no surprise. Actually a little too spicy for me. I'll reduce the red pepper next time as another reviewer did. I did not salt the cucumbers because I don't like my cucumbers wilted.

Here is the original link.

Korean Cucumber Salad

Use a mandoline or food processor to slice the cucumber uniformly thin. Salting the cucumber causes it to wilt and draws out excess moisture. It also gives the dish a pickled quality similar to kimchi, Korea's spicy and pungent fermented cabbage condiment.

• 
  YIELD: 8 servings (serving size: about 1/4 cup)

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups (1/16-inch-thick) slices English cucumber (about 1 large)
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons minced green onions
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dark sesame oil

Preparation

• Combine cucumber and salt, tossing well. Let stand at room temperature 20 minutes. Drain and squeeze dry.
• Combine cucumber, onions, rice vinegar, sugar, crushed red pepper, and sesame oil. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Cooking Light
JUNE 2007

This recipe is adapted from this recipe at Cooking Light. After reading the reviews, we added tomato, feta cheese and kalamata olives to the original recipe in the January 2011 Cooking Light magazine.

Spinach Salad with Garlic Vinaigrette

Side Dish of the Month

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 3/4 cups)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 cups baby spinach leaves (about 6 ounces)
• 1/4 cup vertically sliced red onion
• 1 tomato cut in chunks
• 1/4 cup feta cheese
• 6 kalamata olives, sliced

Preparation

1. Combine the first 6 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Add 6 cups spinach, tomato, feta cheese, olives, and red onion; toss to coat.

Spinach-Pasta Salad Variation: Cook 1/2 cup mini farfalle according to package directions. Drain. Rinse with cold water; drain. Add garlic vinaigrette, 3 cups baby spinach, and 1/4 cup chopped red onion. Yield: 4 servings. CALORIES 106; FAT 5.4g (sat 0.8g); SODIUM 108mg

Wilted Spinach Variation: Increase garlic to 3 thinly sliced cloves. Heat vinaigrette in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 2 minutes. Gradually add 1 (9-ounce) package fresh spinach; toss until wilted. Yield: 4 servings. CALORIES 78; FAT 5.1g (sat 0.7g); SODIUM 191mg

Spinach Baked Potato Variation: Microwave 4 (6-ounce) Yukon gold potatoes 13 minutes or until tender. Prepare wilted spinach; divide spinach among potatoes. Top each with 1 1/2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese. Yield: 4 servings. CALORIES 255; FAT 8.1g (sat 2.8g); SODIUM 358mg

Cranberry Apple Salad

Cranberry apple salad

1 20 oz Can Pineapple-drain really good-reserve liquid for making jell o

2 small packs Raspberry Jell-O

1 can whole cranberry sauce

1 chopped apple-used granny smith

2/3 cup pecans chopped.

2 8 oz Cream cheese

Make jell-o using juice from pineapple and water up to 3 cups

Mix in cranberry sauce and set until lightly set about 1 ½ hours.

Stir in apples pineapple and nuts let set up firm

Then top with cream cheese let set until firm again

You can save ½ jell o mix for top and then pour on rest of jell o

Or you can set another jell o for top.

Options

Made bottom layer like recipe calls for.

Then topped with Cream cheese mixed with cool whip just enough to spread

Two 8 oz size cream cheese and about a cup of cool whip.

Then made another jell o and let it set and blended cool whip in and used as the top layer.

Was very good and stored really well.

Greek Pasta Salad 1

Made this recipe for a party and received rave reviews.

Recipe adapted from this recipe on allrecipes.com

Greek Pasta Salad I

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 teaspoon white sugar
• 2 1/2 cups cooked mini wheel pasta
• 3 cups fresh broccoli cut into small florets
• 15 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup sliced red bell peppers
• 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1 (4 ounce) can whole black olives
• 3/4 cup sliced canadian bacon, cut into strips
• 1/2 cup sliced artichoke hearts

Directions

1. In a blender, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, garlic powder, basil, oregano, black pepper, and sugar.
2. Cook pasta according to instructions on package. Add in broccoli at the end for about 30 seconds. Drain and rinse.
3. Add cooked pasta, broccoli, tomatoes, red peppers, feta cheese, green onions, olives, canadian bacon and artichoke hearts. Toss until evenly coated. Cover, and chill 2 hours or overnight.

This is the recipe for the salad in the following post.

Sugar Snap and Feta Salad

Photo: Becky Luigart-Stayner; Styling: Leigh Ann Ross

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
  
• 12 ounces sugar snap peas
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Preparation

1. Place the red onion in a bowl of ice water for 10 minutes. Drain and pat dry.

2. Cook trimmed sugar snap peas in boiling water 2 minutes. Drain and plunge peas in ice water; drain and pat dry.

3. Whisk fresh lemon juice, olive oil, ww vinegar, honey, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.

4. Add peas, onion and feta cheese. Toss well.

Cooking Light, MAY 2010

Spinach Salad w/Sesame Dressing

This dressing was adapted from this recipe on Food Network. I wanted a dressing to go with a Spinach Salad as a side to Ham Fried Rice and this was the winner. This dressing has a kick (note the chili-garlic sauce amount) but Dale could not get enough of this salad. We will definitely be making this salad again.

Sesame Dressing

• 3 Tbsp Soy Sauce
  
• 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil
  
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chili-garlic sauce or chili sauce

In a bowl, whisk together soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, ginger, canola oil, sesame oil, brown sugar and chili sauce. (I actually blended all of these ingredients together.)

I tossed a little of this dressing with spinach, mandarin oranges, thinly sliced purple onions and toasted almonds. If I had them, I would have tossed in some thinly sliced red peppers too. The dressing is very thin when blended so a little went a long way unless you like your salad swimming in dressing.

Hoisin Vinaigrette

We were looking for a good dressing for an Asian-inspired side salad and I stumbled across this one. So, I want to point out that I only tried the HOISIN VINAIGRETTE but the other parts of this recipe are very simple so it really should be the dressing that makes the salad here. I would venture to guess that the entire recipe is great.

Dale has a favorite salad dressing. It is the Kraft Light Asian Toasted Sesame. His comment when he tried this dressing was, "You could have saved yourself some time. This tastes exactly like the Asian dressing I like."

He had no idea what a relief that was to me. I looked at the ingredients of that dressing and it was hard to miss the high fructose corn syrup. I am happy to find a dressing I can make that will be healthier for him while maintaining the taste of his favorite dressing.

Mixed Salad with Hoisin Vinaigrette and Crisp Panko Chicken

Outstanding

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Omit the chili powder to prepare kid-friendly chicken fingers.

Yield

4 servings

Ingredients

• Chicken:
• 1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound chicken breast tenders, cut into 1-inch pieces
• Cooking spray
• 
  Salad:
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1 (8-ounce) package field greens salad mix

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°.

To prepare chicken, combine first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl. Add chicken, tossing to coat. Arrange chicken in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until chicken is done and lightly browned, stirring once.

To prepare salad, combine vinegar and next 7 ingredients (through minced garlic) in a food processor; process until well combined.

Combine tomatoes, green onions, and salad mix in a large bowl; add vinegar mixture, tossing to coat. Place about 1 cup salad mixture on each of 4 plates; top each serving with about 1 cup chicken.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 242 (27% from fat)

Fat: 7.2g (sat 1.3g,mono 3g,poly 2g)

Protein: 28.8g

Carbohydrate: 14.4g

Fiber: 2.8g

Cholesterol: 73mg

Iron: 1.7mg

Sodium: 622mg

Calcium: 29mg

Joanna Pruess, Cooking Light, APRIL 2006

Wild Rice and Barley Salad

This is a recipe I tried more than a week ago. I was looking for a good barley recipe and this appealed to me. Our family liked it and I will make it again because it is a tasty way to prepare this grain. I especially liked it for lunch the next day and Dale said he liked it better the next day as well. I made some substitutions based on personal taste and they are shown below.

I believe we both agreed it could use a little salt and I liked it with a little more red wine vinegar on it. Here is what my salad looked like.


















Here is what the original recipe looks like.

Wild Rice and Barley Salad

Worthy of a Special Occasion

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In addition to fiber, whole grains like wild and brown rice offer plenty of vitamins B6, E, and folate to maintain heart health. Serve with pork tenderloin.

Yield

8 servings (serving size: about 2/3 cup)

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup uncooked brown and wild rice mix
• 1/2 cup uncooked pearl barley
• 3/4 cup rinsed and drained canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans) (I used small white beans instead.)
  
• 1/3 cup golden raisins (I omitted.)
  
• 1/4 cup sliced green onions
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons extravirgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted

Preparation

Combine first 3 ingredients in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 40 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat, and let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Spoon rice mixture into a medium bowl. Add chickpeas, raisins, and green onions.

Combine vinegar and next 4 ingredients (through pepper) in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Pour over barley mixture; toss well. Cover; chill 2 hours. Stir in basil and almonds.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 146 (14% from fat)

Fat: 2.3g (sat 0.3g,mono 1.3g,poly 0.6g)

Protein: 5g

Carbohydrate: 27.6g

Fiber: 4.3g

Cholesterol: 0.0mg

Iron: 1.2mg

Sodium: 235mg

Calcium: 29mg

Jaime Harder, MA, RD, Cooking Light, JANUARY 2008

Asian Green Bean Salad

We had guests over tonight and made this salad to go along with the Asian Grilled Chicken. It packed a little punch and was delicious. We will definitely make this again.

My plan was to substitute sugar snap peas (stated below as an option for the green beans) because I had them on hand. However, when I went to assemble the salad, I noticed that my stock of peas (a favorite snack) did not make up the 1 lb. I needed. Fortunately, the reviews had suggested that broccoli might be a good substitute. In the end, I made quite a few substitutions to this salad but I guarantee the original recipe would be just as good and the added bonus is that it can be altered to taste without losing the "yum" factor.

In my opinion, this salad could also be used on its own as a light dinner.

Here is the link to the recipe online.

I've noted my substitutions tonight in the recipe below.

Asian Green Bean Salad

Category Winner: Sides and Salads, Cooking Light Ultimate Reader Recipes Contest

"I created this make-ahead dish to have after a long day at work. Snow peas can be substituted for the beans. Garnish with a cilantro sprig." —Linda Dalton, Stoughton, MA

Yield

8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Ingredients

• Salad:
• 3 ounces uncooked linguine (We agreed that we would use more noodles next time. I used whole wheat linguine.)
  
• 1 pound green beans, trimmed (I used 1/2 lb. sugar snap peas & 1/2 lb. broccoli florets.)
  
• 2 cups diagonally sliced celery
• 1 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup (1/2-inch) slices green onions
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 
  Dressing:
• 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar (I used rice vinegar.)
  
• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
  
• 2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 red jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped (about 1 tablespoon) (I used a red chili pepper.)
  

Preparation

1. To prepare salad, break linguine in half. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; add beans during last 3 minutes of cooking. Drain and rinse with cold water; drain. Place mixture in a large bowl. Stir in celery, bell pepper, onions, and cilantro.

2. To prepare dressing, combine vinegar and remaining ingredients in a small bowl; stir with a whisk until blended. Add to salad; toss well. Cover and chill.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 101 (34% from fat)

Fat: 3.8g (sat 0.5g,mono 1.5g,poly 1.6g)

Protein: 3g

Carbohydrate: 14.9g

Fiber: 3.1g

Cholesterol: 0.0mg

Iron: 0.8mg

Sodium: 282mg

Calcium: 42mg

Linda Dalton, Stoughton, MA, Cooking Light, MARCH 2008