Corn and Black Bean Quinoa

This is a mashup of 2 recipes from eatingwell.com and the back of a bag of Trader Joe’s red quinoa. – Terry

Ingredients

• 5 cups water
• 1 cup red quinoa
• 6½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large red onion, halved and sliced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds, toasted and ground
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 3 large ears of fresh corn, grilled if desired and cut off cob
• 3 or 4 green onions, sliced
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice, plus 1 whole lime cut into 12 wedges for garnish
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• ½ cup cilantro leaves
• 1 cup crumbled cotija or feta (optional)
• 1 avocado, thinly sliced

Instructions

1. Bring 5 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add quinoa and 1/4 tsp salt. Boil until tender but still crunchy, 10-14 minutes. Drain well and spread on a plate to cool.
2. Heat 1½ tablespoons olive oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and 1/4 tsp salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until limp and speckled with charred spots, 4 to 8 minutes. Stir in cumin.
3. In a large bowl, combine the beans, corn, and both types of onions. Add the remaining ½ tsp. salt and toss.
4. In a small bowl mix together the lime juice and remaining olive oil and add to large bowl.
5. Gently stir in quinoa to vegetables in large bowl.
6. Just before serving, stir in the tomatoes and cilantro.
7. Serve the salad with avocado, lime wedges and cheese, if using.