Easy Bean Salad

Ingredients

For the Dressing

• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons of honey
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

For the Salad

• ¾ cup of sweet corn (fresh, frozen or canned)
• 3 (15-ounce) cans beans, drained and rinsed (see Variations and Tips for types of beans to use) ½ medium onion, finely chopped (about ¾ cup)
• 1 medium cucumber, seeded and finely chopped (about ¾ cup)
• 1 sweet bell pepper (orange, red or yellow), diced
• ½ cup finely chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. In the bottom of a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, olive oil, mustard, dried oregano, honey, salt and pepper. Taste the dressing and then adjust with more salt/pepper.
2. For the corn, if using:
   1. Fresh: boil 1 ear for 5 minutes, let cool, cut off of the cob
   2. Frozen: thaw in microwave or in a bag placed in a bowl of cold water
   3. Canned: rinse thoroughly
3. Add the corn, rinsed beans, onion, cucumber, bell pepper, and parsley (and any other veggies you decided to use) to the bowl of dressing. Toss well, cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 1 hour to allow the beans to marinate in the dressing.
4. The salad will keep stored in an airtight container in the fridge up to 4 days.

Variations & Tips

• Use any combination of beans that you may have in your pantry: chickpeas, black beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, northern beans, cannellini beans etc.
• Use any vegetables that you have on hand – carrots, celery, tomatoes, cucumber, zucchini, broccoli or cauliflower. This recipe is very versatile. Feel free to sub out for what you like better or have on hand!
• If you don’t have fresh parsley, you could use fresh basil or cilantro. You could also use 1 Tablespoon of dried Italian seasoning.
• If you don’t have honey, you could substitute maple syrup or sugar if you have that on hand.
• This dish works well as a side dish and could also be served over a bed of leafy greens.
• Choose other types of vinegar such as red wine vinegar, rice vinegar, white vinegar, white wine vinegar, or use lemon or lime juice.

Yield: 8 (1-cup) servings

Total Cost: $5.43

Cost per Serving: $0.68

Nutritional Info (per serving): 223 Calories; 7.6g Total Fat; 1g Saturated Fat; 0mg Cholesterol; 29.8g Carb; 10g Fiber; 264mg Sodium; 9.7g Protein

*Nutrition facts will change as variations and substitutions are included.

Source: Adapted from Inspiredtaste.net

Watch the easy bean salad cooking demo below and download the recipe to make it yourself.