Saturday, May 12, 2012

Lima Bean & Cantaloupe Salad

 This recipe brought to you by: the colors green and orange!


It started with a bag of lima beans, a can of mandarin oranges in my cupboard, a bottle of orange champagne vinegar from Trader Joe's, and some hot weather.

Usually the only recipe I use lima beans in is succotash. So I thought I'd make use of that bag of lima beans in my freezer in a new way...

This new recipe makes for a light and refreshing dinner or side that is easy, quick, healthy, and vegan too.

Ingredients: 
  • 1 bag frozen lima beans
  • 1 can mandarin oranges
  • 1 small avocado 
  • 1/2 cantaloupe, cut into cubes
  • Juice of 1 lime
  • Lime zest
  • 3 Tablespoons chopped cilantro
  • 1/8 cup orange muscat champagne vinegar (Trader Joe's- you could probably sub regular champagne vinegar and some juice squeezed from an orange, plus a tad of agave syrup for sweetness)
  • Sprinkle of sea salt (optional)


Steps: 
(Pretty simple here!)
  1. Cook lima beans - I simply put them in a microwave safe dish, added a little water, covered, and cooked for 7 minutes (It was a large bag of beans; I always cook slightly less than package instructions, since I don't like soggy veg!). Place in a colander & run under cold water to cool.
  2. Drain mandarin oranges.
  3. Add all ingredients in a large bowl and toss. If desired, sprinkle on a little sea salt. I also added the lime zest on top. 
  4. Chill in the fridge, or serve and enjoy!
It's funny how much our taste preferences can change through life. Lima beans & Brussels sprouts are kind of quintessential foods hated by all children.... I was no exception to that rule, and yet, I now love them both.

I also love salads like this- soooo easy to make, but still tasty and satisfying. This would also be good on top of some baby spinach as a dinner salad and/or lunch for the next day (big fan of the multi-purpose recipe!)

As a side note, I can't have cantaloupe without thinking of my Dad. Every time my mom ever asks if he wants some cantaloupe, he always says, "We can't elope, we're already married!" (arharhar).

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