Cherry Tomatoes=Black Bean Salad

Black Bean Salad

We have a kind of contest here on the upper Eastern Shore to see who can bring the first tomato to the table each year. The goal is to get it there not only first, but also before the 4^th of July. Not surprisingly, this year, there were lots of us before the 4th, so it was almost a moot point (though I think Farmer Earl’s daughter, Amy and her husband Sean may have won the first-to-the-table contest this time around).  At any rate, due to an early season, which has brought its own set of problems (does anyone else have a recipe for the millions of slugs I’m combating this year?) I’ve been picking cherry tomatoes for a couple of weeks now. I used them and some of the cubanelle and fish peppers I’m getting in the black bean and roasted corn salad I made last weekend. Also some of the cilantro and lime basil that’s growing in the pot beside the kitchen door for easy picking. The salad is so easy, particularly since my husband grilled the corn for me.

Black Bean Salad

5 ears of fresh sweet corn, grilled, roasted or boiled for a bare 4 minutes and cooled

2 cans of organic black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cubanelle pepper (or a sweet red or green pepper), chopped

1 fish pepper (or whatever kind of hot pepper your heart desires)

10 or so cherry tomatoes, halved, or a couple of small slicers, cubed

handful of fresh cilantro

some lime basil

some chopped red onion or sweet onion

¼ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup olive oil

Fish pepper sticking out of black bean salad

lime juice

1 tsp chili powder

½ tsp cumin

1 tsp adobo

salt and pepper to taste

Cut the corn off the cob into a large bowl. Add beans, chopped peppers, tomatoes, onions, herbs, spices and mix gently. Add the vinegar and oil and mix again. Stays good in the frig for several days, though it’s best the first two days, because the tomatoes tend to lose their appeal over time. The cherry tomatoes usually hold up longer than the softer slicers, which is one reason I love using them in this salad. It’s especially nice to have in the frig for the kind of searing days we had last weekend.