Tastes Like Summer: Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salad

I seriously can't believe I haven't written about this one before- it was one of the first recipes I had published over at Allrecipes.com!

Forgive the pic- it's an old one!

It's delicious, and- like several of the reviewers have mentioned- it's super easy to adapt to what you have on hand, as the vinaigrette does a lot of the work flavor-wise in this light recipe.

People who have posted reviews of my salad have done all kinds of things- boiled the corn instead of grilling, added all kinds of extra produce from avocado to zucchini, used cannelilni beans instead of black...it's SO easy to adapt!  And delicious- did I mention delicious?

Personally, I love to serve this with freshly grilled foods, it's a great potluck dish or quick and light side for BBQ.  It's also great with Mexican!

The vinaigrette has a great mix of olive oil and red win vinegar, with cilantro, lime, garlic, chili powder...it's soooo yummy!  I took it to a potluck at church last Summer and it was gone in minutes!

With warm weather upon us and grills being fired up for dinner, keep this one in mind- it's definitely a keeper!

Summery Corn Salad

3 teaspoons butter

3 ears fresh corn, husks and silks removed

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon white sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1. Preheat grill for medium heat and lightly oil the grate.

2. Spread 1 teaspoon butter on each ear of corn and sprinkle ears with garlic powder. Wrap corn in aluminum foil.

3. Grill wrapped ears until corn kernels are hot and steaming, about 15 minutes. Unwrap ears and grill until kernels are lightly browned, about 5 more minutes, turning once. Let corn cool and cut kernels from the cobs.

4. Gently stir corn, black beans, and cilantro together in a salad bowl. Whisk olive oil, red wine vinegar, lime juice, garlic, sugar, cumin, chili powder, salt, and black pepper in a separate bowl; pour dressing over corn mixture and toss gently to coat.