Midnight Mexican Pasta Salad

If you have “bean” longing for a healthy pasta salad with no shortage of flavor, look no further! Its tangy taste, combined with its unique textures and color, is a tastebud pleaser. Bold blacks. Yummy yellows. Radiant reds. Each one of this dish’s vibrant colors contains distinct phytonutrients that have their own unique health benefits.¹

Unlike a traditional pasta salad, this recipe uses black bean pasta, an excellent soluble fiber and protein source. If you don’t like black bean pasta, you can substitute it with a green lentil or chickpea pasta. Diets high in soluble fiber can help stabilize blood glucose levels, improve cholesterol, and reduce one’s risk of heart disease and certain forms of cancer. Plus, high-fiber diets are incredibly satiating and help keep you full between meals. Enjoy this tangy recipe as a side dish to your favorite lean protein, or make it the star of the show. Bring on the beans!

Makes: 6 servings
Serving Size: 1/6 mixture
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes

Ingredients for midnight Mexican pasta salad

• Juice from one lemon
• 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground pepper
• ½ tbsp tajin seasoning
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 12oz (340g) black bean rotini pasta
• 1 ½ cup corn
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes

Directions for midnight Mexican pasta salad

1. In a large pot of boiling water, cook pasta per package instructions. Approximately 6 to 8 minutes. Check at 6 minutes, do NOT overcook.
2. Once cooked, drain pasta and rinse with cold water.
3. Place cooked pasta in a medium-sized bowl.
4. Add halved cherry tomatoes and corn to the pasta mixture. Mix until combined.
5. In a small bowl, add lemon juice, vinegar, salt, ground pepper, tajin, olive oil. Mix until fully incorporated.
6. Serve and enjoy.