Three Bean and Grilled Corn Salad

This salad is so good, I made it Saturday for dinner and couldn't stop eating it all weekend. We had leftovers for lunch after church Sunday, then I took a nap and when I woke up, all I could think about was eating more salad and granita. I think I practically had a dream about it. Sad, right?

Pre-grilling...

Post-grilling...

But seriously- this is so amazing! I think it just took up residence in the top slot of my "Favorite Summer Salads" list. The grilled vegetables and the abundance of lime juice take the flavors to a whole new level and the addition of creamy avocado is to die for. I went a step further and added a grilled chicken breast to "make it a meal" (the recipe was for a side dish), but it really isn't absolutely necessary. The beans are quite filling and there is plenty to go around.

Fresh, crisp veggies infused with smoky grilled flavor, colorful beans, juicy tomatoes, topped with buttery avocado and sparkling with zesty lime...

Is your mouth watering yet?

Three Bean and Grilled Corn Salad

(printable version)

adapted slightly from Myrecipes

serves 12 as a side dish, 6 as a main dish

1 cup halved grape tomatoes

1 tsp salt, divided

3 ears shucked corn

1 med. yellow onion, cut into 1/4 in. thick slices

1 jalapeño pepper

2 chicken breasts (optional)

about 1 TB olive oil

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/3 cup fresh lime juice

1 can pinto beans

1 can black beans

1 can kidney beans

2 diced, peeled avocados

Preheat the grill to med.-high heat.

Place tomatoes in a large bowl and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt. Let stand 10 min. Drain and rinse beans.

Brush corn, onion, jalapeño and chicken evenly with olive oil. Place on grill rack. Grill chicken until cooked through, turning once. Grill onion and jalapeño 8 min. or until lightly charred, turning halfway through. Grill corn 12 min. or until lightly charred, turning halfway through. Let vegetables stand 5 min. 

Cut kernels from cobs. Coarsely chop onion. Finely chop jalapeño, discarding stem and seeds. Dice chicken.

Add corn, onion, jalapeño and chicken to tomato mixture; toss well. Add remaining salt, cilantro, lime juice and beans to corn mixture; toss well.

Top with avocado.