Black Bean & Corn Salad

1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed & drained
1 ripe avocado, cut into 1/4-1/2" cubes
1 cup corn
1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup spanish olives, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
lime juice to taste (optional)

Combine all ingredients. Serve at room temperature or cold.

Green Beans with Mushrooms

This week our CSA share from Rise and Shine Farm included a heaping portion of fresh green beans. Here's one easy and delicious way to serve them. This recipe is adapted from one the Penzey's catalog.

1 lb. fresh green beans
8 oz. container of fresh mushrooms, white or brown, sliced
1 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp granulated garlic
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt

Stem and wash the beans. Steam them for about 15 minutes until tender-crisp. Set aside. Melt butter over medium heat in a large sauté pan. Add the mushrooms and sprinkle with garlic, pepper and salt. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the mushrooms are golden and fragrant. Five minutes before serving, add the green beans, tossing well to coat. Cook until the beans are heated through.

Fresh Cherry Chutney

My friend Karen shared this recipe with me. It's meant to be used with pork, but being a vegetarian, I tried it on a fake chicken cutlet instead. Truth be told, I also ate several spoonfuls directly from the pan.

1/2 cup cherry preserves
3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
3/4 tsp allspice
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2/3 cup chopped onion
2 cups fresh cherries, pitted
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix preserves, vinegar and allspice and set aside. Heat oil in large skillet over high heat. Add onion and sauté 1 minute. Add cherries, cayenne and preserves mixture. Boil chutney until thick, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Let cool, and serve.

Pepper Bean Salad

This recipe is from the Penzey's spice catalog, one of my favorite new sources for good food ideas. The salad was a big hit at a gathering last weekend.

salad:
1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 15 oz. can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 15 oz. can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 15 oz. bag super sweet frozen corn, thawed (or 2 cups fresh corn kernels)
1 red onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped

dressing:
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 Tbsp aleppo pepper (i used ancho chili instead)
1 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
juice of 2 limes (about 1/4 to 1/3 cup)

Combine salad and dressing ingredients separately and then combine. The recipe says to combine just before serving, but I prefer to let it marinate for a few hours.