Late Summer Black Bean Salad

This is a wonderful time of year at the farmers market: corn on the cob, all colors of peppers, vine-ripened tomatoes.

I like to combine them in this colorful black bean salad. It's a great dinner on a warm evening, and fast to make if you use canned beans. (I cook dried beans the night before so it's easy to put together at dinner time.)

Add hot peppers or some salsa if you'd like a spicier salad. (Sweating is cooling!) Serve the beans with a green salad for a meal that is filling but not too heavy.

I don't cook the corn in this recipe. I get sweet organic corn at the Hollywood Farmers Market from Finley Farms. It tastes great raw, although I do cook it for corn on the cob.

Taste your corn by removing the husk and slicking off a kernel. It should taste fresh, sweet and grassy. If it's flavorless, cook it in boiling water for a couple of minutes after removing it from the cob. I slice the raw corn off the cob by lying the ear on its side and cutting off a few rows with my big knife, then rotating the ear a little and doing a few more.

(If you can't find organic fresh corn, use the frozen kind. Cook it a couple of minutes before adding to the salad.)

This bean salad will last a few days in the fridge, so save some to take to work for lunch the next day. It's like having late summer in your lunch bag.

Summer Black Bean Salad
2 cups dry black beans, cooked (or 3 14-oz cans)
1/2 red onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 green pepper, diced
2 green onions, white and some green, sliced thinly on diagonal
2 cups corn kernels (from about 3 ears)
1/ 2 bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped
2 cups small cherry tomatoes, halved or whole
salt and pepper to taste

Dressing:
1 clove garlic, chopped fine
juice from 1 lime (2-3 tbsp)
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup canola oil
1/2 tsp ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Cook dry beans in a large pot of boiling water until they are tender but still retain their shape. Drain well.

If using canned beans, drain and rinse well.

Whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour over the beans. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well.

Serves 6-8