Mexican Pasta Salad

Submitted by Jeanelle71

"This is a quick, easy, and refreshing dinner that I think is pretty healthy (contains veggies and fiber and can be made pretty low in fat). Although I did get the original recipe from the Moosewood Low Fat Favorites cookbook, I have altered this recipe through the years to meet our tastes. The best thing about this recipe is it can be altered to use whatever crisp veggies you have on hand and whatever spices you prefer. This recipe is also great as a leftover so do not be afraid to make ahead and store in your fridge."

 

• Ready In: 20mins
• Ingredients: 12
• Serves: 5-8

ingredients

• 8 ounces chunky pasta (such as rotini, wheels, medium macaroni, etc)
• 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn (or the equivalent in frozen corn)
• 1⁄2 large red onion, chopped
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 large bell pepper, chopped (green, red, yellow - whatever color you have on hand)
• 1 large tomatoes, chopped
• 1 -2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 -2 tablespoon lemon juice (you can also use lime juice)
• pepper, to taste
• 1 spicy seasoning mix (such as Mrs Dash Extra Spicy) or 1 garlic powder
• cilantro, chopped,to taste
• 1⁄2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (or to taste, I have also used shredded monterey jack and shredded mexican soft cheese. If you are ve)

directions

1. Cook the pasta (al dente) During approximately the last 2 minutes of cooking time, add the corn.
2. While the pasta/corn mixture is cooking, combine all other ingredients (except for the cheese) in a large bowl.
3. Drain the pasta and corn.
4. Rinse the pasta and corn in cold water until the mixture is cool or cold.
5. Add the pasta/corn mixture to the other ingredients and mix.
6. Before serving, sprinkle mixture with shredded cheese.
7. (OPTIONAL) If you are vegan, do not complete this step.
8. *Please note, I have also added other vegetables, such as fresh and frozen chopped broccoli (add to pasta cooking process like the corn), fresh chopped cauliflower, etc.
9. You can also add cooked, diced or chopped chicken (great for leftovers).

Reviews

[Food.com]

Congrats! Your Recipe was featured on our homepage Saturday as the "Recipe of the Day"! (6/11/11)

 

[CookieMonster2323]

Yum, yum, yum, yum....can I say just one more time?-YUM! My family loved this recipe and ate it with every dinner for days! For personal tastes, we switched the black beans with sliced black olives, but it would have been fantastic either way! It was easy to throw together and tasted so fresh and fun (like a fiesta would taste, I assume!) :) We loved the addition of the cheese as well. Thanks so much for a new fav. to add to the rotation!

 

[llyubuggin]

Love, Love, Love this recipe! Thank you for the idea...tweaked it a bit using Rose's Lime juice instead of lemon and I use about 3/4 of a packet of Fajita seasoning. Great as a main dish or side. So quick and easy!

 

[Lalaloula]

This is a very yummy twist on pasta salad that we all enjoyed. The beans, corn and bell pepper go great together and the cheese is a nice addition, too. I made my own seasoning mix, but felt 1 ts was not enough, so next time Ill probably double that.<br/>THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing a quick, easy and healthy recipe with us, Jeanelle!<br/>Made and reviewed for the Pepper Event in the Photo Forum May 2011.

 

[Aunt Cookie]

This makes a really nice lunch! I followed the recipe as written, using garlic powder rather than the seasoning packet. I was a bit worried that the salad would be dry because of its relative lack of oil or dressing, but it really wasn't...I guess because of the veggies. Thanks for posting this!