Black Bean and Grilled Corn Salad is easy yet flavorful summer treat
Mary Bilyeu, Contributor
If you've got leftover corn on the cob and don't know what to do with it, here's your answer: make a simple, inexpensive, light but flavorful salad!
It's best if the corn has been grilled and cut off the cob; but you can even approximate that with frozen corn if you place it into a skillet and toast it over medium heat for about 5 minutes until golden. Add in some beautiful produce — tomatoes and peppers — from your garden or from the farmers' market, and your dish is complete!
Whether accompanying an entree, served in a tomato as a light lunch salad, or even eaten with chips dipped into it, this is one of my favorite summer treats. It's an ideal salad to come home to after meandering through the Art Fair!
Black Bean and Grilled Corn Salad
Salad:
1-1/2 cups corn kernels, from grilled corn
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 small red pepper, finely diced
1 small orange pepper, finely diced
3 large purple scallions, chopped
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
Dressing:
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
juice of 1 large lime
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper sauce
Place the cumin seeds in a small skillet; toast over low heat for 1-2 minutes, just until fragrant. Place into a small mixing bowl and combine with the rest of the ingredients; whisk to combine, then pour over the salad.
Let the salad rest for 30 minutes or more, for the flavors to blend.
Serves 6-8 as a side dish.
Mary Bilyeu has won or placed in more than 60 cooking contests and writes about her adventures in the kitchen. She was thrilled to have her post about Scottish Oatmeal Shortbread named as one of the daily "Best of the Blogs" by the prestigious Food News Journal.
Go visit Mary's blog — Food Floozie — on which she enthuses and effuses over all things food-related. Her newest feature is Frugal Floozie Friday, seeking fun and food for $5 or less ... really! Feel free to email her with questions or comments or suggestions: yentamary@gmail.com.
The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured in this post) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15 and is a wish for all her readers as they cook along with her ... may you always be happy here.
Comments
Mary Bilyeu
Fri, Jul 22, 2011 : 3:12 a.m.
Not defensive at all, merely noting that your criticism is not shared by others ....
John B. Knot
Sat, Jul 23, 2011 : 12:54 a.m.
Well, assuming one vote was yours...
beau
Fri, Jul 22, 2011 : 2:52 p.m.
Except the two people who voted on my original comment.
Peggy Lampman
Thu, Jul 21, 2011 : 8:26 p.m.
That looks and sounds SOOOO appealing today...a great way to turn down the heat! Peggy
Mary Bilyeu
Thu, Jul 21, 2011 : 2:43 p.m.
I'm sorry that you don't like the presentation; I think it's a beautiful glass, one of my favorites, and that it sets off the peppers and the corn perfectly. Here's a comment that I received on my blog, which has this recipe cross-posted: "I've seen a similar salad, but not quite the same ingredients, and definitely not as pretty a presentation. What a beautiful photo! Looks delicious!"
beau
Thu, Jul 21, 2011 : 8:37 p.m.
A bit defensive are we? Sure, it's a pretty glass, but it probably looks better with a beverage than food. Obviously, we're all entitled to our own opinions. I would agree that the top of the salad looks appealing. The bottom half , however, does not. That sickly yellow combined with the chunky texture brings to mind other less appetizing thoughts.
beau
Thu, Jul 21, 2011 : 2:22 p.m.
That yellow glass does not make the contents look appealing. Quite the contrary.