Bible Belt meets The Border with this crazy concoction!
And I really have no idea what to call this thing. Other than Good.
Or so I think since I really didn’t get to eat much of it.
What I do know is I started throwing things together, took a few bites as a taste test, took some pictures and put it in the fridge to chill. Next thing I know Mr. Foodie is devouring the entire bowl.
Like I said in the Tuna Macaroni Salad post, there are some things we gravitate to on the weekends. Bean Salads are one of those things. I don’t have any pictures of the assembly or specific amounts because I was using things I already had on hand, including the cornbread which has been taking up space in the freezer since New Year’s. But I did take my inspiration from Ezra Pound Cake and her Cornbread Salad with Black Beans, Red Bell Peppers and Cherry Tomatoes.
Here’s what I tossed in:
- cornbread from the freezer
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 handfuls frozen white corn (we don’t like yellow corn with black beans but can totally do white corn…isn’t that weird?!)
- Some tomato slices that were in the fridge
- a small hunk of onion from the fridge
- Some cilantro, chopped
- juice from 1 lime, from the freezer (yes, you can freeze citrus whole!)
- a drizzle of olive oil
- a sprinkling of Coriander
After thawing the cornbread I sliced in to croutons, heated the oven to 350°, sprayed a baking sheet and baked the croutons until they were deep golden and crunchy, about 25 minutes. Next time I’ll bake them at a higher temp so they cook faster.
**Instead of going the traditional route and using earthy Cumin I decided to go with the bright, citrusy Coriander. We agreed that it was an excellent choice and totally brightened up the salad so that may be my new spice of choice for these types of salads. If you haven’t tried Coriander yet, please do. It’s very fragrant like a cross between an orange and a lime and goes beautifully with just about anything that has citrus in it.
Combine all ingredients in a bowl (reserving a few croutons so they’ll remain nice and crunchy) and toss together.
Hide in the back of the refrigerator, away from hungry husband, for about 30 minutes for flavors to blend.
Between the Coriander and lime juice and the corn and cornbread playing off each other, it was a hit!
A new twist on a very traditional favorite!
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Hi Justa,
I absolutely love this recipe– anything with cornbread and you’ve got me hooked
Because of your wonderful recipes (and hard work!), I’ve nominated you for the Pink Tree Award! Read more here to find out what it’s about: http://wp.me/p2gmDL-7h
Thanks for explaining the panzanella thing for me so I don’t have to google it. I don’t usually do stuff with beans (John, sigh….) but this could change me mind for sure. Really? white corn’s different than yellow? Come on now Justa – you just playin’ with me?
Love bean salads. I agree that they are really about “anything goes” when you can toss in the fresh seasonal items like corn, etc. Good one!
That does look GOOD!
I think we may have a twin brain. Just last week I made a similar black bean and corn salsa. The cornbread addition is brilliant!