Black Bean Salad

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

I found this recipe on Pinterest of course! It’s perfect for entertaining because it’s festive and you can make it ahead of time — in fact, you should because it gets better and better the longer it sits. I have made it several times, once as a garnish for our mexican food night and Stephen put the salad on his tacos and once for a friends get together. It does involve a fair amount of chopping  — nothing difficult but it does take some time to put together. Enjoy! 

Ingredients

  • 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 3 ears fresh cooked corn, kernels cut off the cob or 1 can of corn
  • 2 tomatoes, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons minced shallots, from one medium shallot
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 9 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, best quality 
  • 1 teaspoon lime zest (be sure to zest limes before juicing them)
  • 6 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish
  • 2 Hass avocados, chopped

Directions

Combine all ingredients except for avocados in a large bowl and mix well. Cover and chill for a few hours or overnight. Right before serving, add avocados and mix gently, being careful not to mash avocados. Garnish with a more chopped cilantro if desired. Serve at room temperature.