Black Bean, Corn, and Red Pepper Salad With Lime Cilantro Vinaigrette

This is the ultimate summer salad, and it's perfect for entertaining. Not only is it festive and colorful, but you can make it ahead of time—in fact, you should, because it gets better and better the longer it sits.

Charred Corn, Radish, Jicama, and Green Bean Salad With Lime Dressing

A bright summer salad of charred corn, green beans, radishes, and jicama in a lime and olive oil dressing.

Cowboy Bean Salad with Lime Dressing

Don't make a boring old Bean Salad - make a COWBOY one! Fun to say, delicious to eat, this juicy black bean salad is fresh, simple and fully loaded!

Bean Salad With Radicchio, Radish, Pickled Onions, and Marcona Almonds

What makes the difference between a great bean salad and a boring bowlful of beans? The answer is simple: Go for maximum contrast, both in texture and in flavor. Here, I add layers of crispness and crunch with almonds, radish, radicchio, fresh parsley, scallion, and quick-pickled onion.

Fruity Black Rice Salad With Cilantro, Avocado, and Pepitas in Chili-Orange Vinaigrette

This black rice salad is full of color: avocado and cilantro for a shock of green, mangoes and oranges for some contrast, followed by a sprinkle of red onion and a shower of earthy, crunchy pepitas, all tied together with chile and cumin-spiked orange vinaigrette.

Spicy, Smoky Bean Cakes with Lime Slaw and Charred Avocado

These hearty vegan black and kidney bean cakes are spiked with chipotle and handfuls of sharp vegetables, cilantro, and lime, baked until crisp, and served on a bed of slaw. Charred avocado on top adds a bit of smoky, creamy flavor.

Steak and Corn Salad With Tomatillos and Ancho-Chili Vinaigrette

This all-in-one meal in a salad is perfect for those late summer or early fall evenings. Sweet corn and spice-rubbed flank steak along with bright, crunchy raw tomatillos are tossed in a lime and olive oil vinaigrette with a hint of spicy chili and salty cotija cheese.

Black Nightfall Beans With Red Chili Pods, Tomatoes, and Avocado From 'The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone'

Beans and rice are a staple for good reason—they're hearty, simple, and a perfect blank canvas for many different flavors. Deborah Madison gives several variations for both beans and rice in her recently re-released cookbook, The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, one of the greatest of which is this creamy amalgamation of heirloom spotted black beans with New Mexican chilies.

White Bean and Tuna Salad

The perfect protein-packed light meal for when you don't want to do any cooking.

Guacamole With Charred Corn, Black Beans, and Scallions

A combination of beans, corn, and scallions add extra texture to the standard avocado mash.