Cooking to Combat Cancer #2 with Mexican Black Bean Salad

I first want to thank Mele Cotte for hosting such a wonderful event - Cooking to Combat Cancer #2, bringing more awareness to healthy eating and cancer. There are so many wonderful recipes and foods out there that I am looking forward to seeing the final compilation from all the participants.

Being passionate about healthy eating, I am always trying to pack each recipe with the so called superfoods. For this event I wanted to find the "ultimate cancer fighting recipe" but there are just so many ideas, the more I thought about my own creations and the more I reviewed other existing recipes, I became more indecisive about what I wanted to make and/or post for this event.

Then the weather turned nice, the warm sun melted the snow and my bbq which had been covered by that white fluffy stuff for 4 months suddenly appeared. The light from the sky shone down on it in a heavenly manner. Instantly I began to crave that grilled flavor and could literally smell that mouth watering bbq aroma, triggering my hunger pangs.

To satisfy my pangs I threw a delicious veggie burger on the grill. To compliment this burger I decided that a Mexican Black Bean Salad with Chili Lime Dressing would be a healthy and colorful side dish. This salad is a wonderful contribution for the Cooking to Combat Cancer Event as the ingredients contain high amounts of fiber, phyotochemical, lycopene and anti-oxidants.

Salad
2 cups chopped green beans, raw, cut diagonally into thirds
19oz chick peas (canned ones should be drained or use dried beans, soaked)
10oz black beans (canned ones should be drained or use dried beans, soaked)
1 red pepper, diced
1 tomato, diced
1 cup corn kernels
1/2 mango, peeled ad diced (optional)
3 green onions, sliced
1 jalapeno, deseeded, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Chili Lime Dressing
1/4 cup olive oil or grapeseed oil
zest of one lime
3 T fresh lime juice (1-2 limes)
pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tsp chili powder

In a large bowl add the black beans, chick peas, corn, cut green beans, red pepper, tomato, green onions, and jalapeno. Mix the beans. Then add the fresh cilantro. Mix again.

You can add the ingredients for the dressing directly to the salad, or mix the dressing in a seperate small bowl first. I prefer the latter. Whisk together the oil, lime zest, lime juice, chili powder, salt and pepper. Pour over the salad and mix to coat. Chill in fridge prior to serving.

The mango was a secondary thought. I had made the bean salad and enjoyed it as it was, however the second day noticing 1/2 a mango in my fridge I decided to cut it up and add it to the leftover salad. The flavor the mango brought to the salad was amazing, complimenting the spice of the chili powder. I have also considered adding avocado to the mix, maybe next time.

Being inspired by the many foodies hosting cancer events and noting that April is Cancer Awareness month, the remaining recipes for April will be geared towards recipes containing cancer fighting foods.

More healthy recipes containing anti-cancer fighting foods:

Roasted Red Pepper and Basil Pesto
Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers
Spinach and Walnut Pesto
Stuffed Chicken Thighs with Red Pepper-Tomato Sauce

Other Cancer Events

Hike for a Cure
Hike for a Cure (Fort's Blog) - open's to new blog
Hike for a Cure Update (Fort's Blog) - open's to new blog

Mexican Bean Salad Mixed with Whole Wheat Penne