Black Bean Corn Quinoa Salad

A combination of a Cooking Light recipe and a quinoa salad recipe my mom clipped from the paper. If you've never tried quinoa (a wonderful and healthful South American grain), this is a great place to start. I initially tried the recipe because of its low-calorie nature, but have stuck with it for the taste. When I brought it to a church supper, several non-dieters asked for the recipe. With or without the quinoa, it's a high protein and great for a vegetarian meal. It's a flexible recipe; good with shredded chicken and tomatoes added.

• 1 pound dried black beans.
• 2 cans corn, drained
• 2 sweet peppers (red, yellow or green)
• 1 large vidalia onion
• 1-2 cups cooked quinoa, optional

Dressing:

• 1/2 cup lime juice
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 2 tbsp green salsa
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 1.5 tsp ground cumin
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro

Soak black beans overnight, then cook according to package directions. Drain and cool.
Chop onion and peppers, add to beans along with canned corn and quinoa.
Mix lime juice, olive oil and salsa with spices in jar, cover and shake until blended. Pour over salad and chill in refrigerator several hours or overnight.
Serve as a salad, stuffed into tomatoes or peppers, wrapped in tortillas or as a dip with chips.