Southwestern Chopped Salad with Black Beans
Salads are one of those things I know is good for me, and that I actually enjoy eating – if I’m out or someone else makes it. I so hate to make them at home because all that chopping and dicing and washing and rinsing gets on my nerves. So I don’t eat enough salads, and I know it. I also know I could NEVER be a “raw vegan.” No way. I would starve to death.
Determined to overcome my salad challenged attitude, I began looking at various recipes on the web for chopped salads, and using several as a guide I added my own twist of course to come out with this!
Even though it took a longgggggggggggg time (in Deb minutes) to get all the ingredients ready (chopping tomatoes, green onions, lettuce, cut corn off cobs, dice an orange pepper, chop the olives and an avocado), I bravely tried making it anyway.
I have to admit, the salad was very pretty to look at before tossing – so bright and colorful.
It was also very tasty with the cilantro-avocado-lime dressing.
Though this was really good, and I can imagine making it over again and adding different ingredients, like tortilla chips or salsa, I’ll never become one of those people who smiles and eats salad like you see all over the web. You know, those pics of women eating lettuce laughing and grinning like they struck gold or something in the bottom of the bowl. Jeez, really? 
If you don’t believe me, just do a quick Google images search for “woman eating salad” and see what you find. I don’t get why eating salad is so funny. Who has a good time eating salad? I can’t imagine being on my deathbed reminiscing about the fabulous salads I ate throughout my life. Where they do that at?
As a matter of fact, the baby there is doing a live demo of how I look when I’m eating a salad!
Anyway, give this a try and let me know what you think.
- 1 large head of Romaine lettuce (organic is best)
- 1 can of organic black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 large red or orange bell pepper
- 1 pint organic cherry tomatoes
- 2 ears organic corn (fresh cut from cob, or thawed frozen 2 cups)
- 4 green onions
- ½ cup chopped olives
- 1 avocado
- ⅓ bunch cilantro leaves, long stems removed and roughly chopped
- ½ large avocado (or 1 whole small avocado or ½ cup vegan yogurt)
- Juice of 1 lime (about 2 Tablespoons)
- 2 small garlic cloves
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil or vegan mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons white Balsamic vinegar
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- Make the dressing by pureeing all ingredients in a food processor/blender until smooth.
- Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. Set aside and make salad.
- For the salad, finely chop romaine, bell pepper, tomatoes, and green onions.
- Place all ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine..
- Pour dressing over and toss to mix well. Serve with fresh ground black pepper.
Get exciting new soul food, Cajun/Creole and classic American recipes done vegan! Check out WHY VEGAN IS THE NEW BLACK: More than 100 Meat and Dairy Free Meal Ideas Your Whole Family Will Love.
Category: Light Meals
Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
