Southwestern Avocado and Black Bean Salad

You're probably going to start seeing a theme on here. I'm a massive Paula Deen fan (um... ok, clarification... I'm not actually massive. However, I have a feeling Paula's food may have the potential to make you that way if you eat it too often). And really, all she does is take what every Southern girl's MamMaw makes and adds more butter. Alright, I'll give her more credit than that. She just enhances awesome food.

Anyways...

I did get this recipe from Paula's show, but it's actually her son Jamie's concoction.

I fell in love with this salad when I tried it. Salads are always so incredibly good when they're filled with lots of different stuff. Every bite has a different flavor in it. I LOVE me some avocados too, so I knew it would be a winner.
But what really won me over was when we invited some friends over for dinner. At the time, my friend was going through a diet based off the book "Eat to Live" by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. It leaves you with a pretty limited food selection. Basically all she was able to eat were fruits, vegetables, beans, tofu, and nuts, etc. Most salad dressings weren't allowed either. As soon as I heard this, I knew this salad would be perfect. And it was.

And there's really not a whole lot of thinking to it. Just dump it in a big bowl and mix. Fyi, I didn't use as many black beans as it called for. I only used one can, and that was plenty. Don't get too hung up on the measurements. Play with it and put the amount in that suits your tastes!

Ingredients

• 
  
  1/2 cup freshly chopped cilantro leaves
• 
  
  1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 
  
  2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 
  
  2 or 3 dashes hot sauce (recommended: Tabasco)
• 
  
  4 cups chopped romaine lettuce
• 
  
  2 avocados, peeled and diced
• 
  
  2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels, thawed and drained
• 
  
  2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 
  
  1 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
• 
  
  About 3/4 cup (3-ounces) grated pepper jack cheese
• 
  
  Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

 Directions

In a small bowl, whisk together the cilantro, oil, lime juice and hot sauce.

In a large serving bowl, add the lettuce, avocado, corn, beans, tomatoes, and cheese. Add the dressing and toss well. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and serve.