Black beans and soy beans are the cornerstones of longevity diets around the world.

-Bobby Darin

This last week was the second week of camp for me and it’s been a busy one. Teaching camp is a lot more work than normal day-to-day as I have to prepare a lot more material and put a different “teaching cap” on to make sure the kids have a lot of fun. I know my 3rd graders are having a blast but I’m not so sure about some of the older kids!

Anyway, I’ve had to bring a lot more work home with me so I haven’t had much time to prepare food for dinner and lunches. Luckily, I came up with an amazing little salad that has been a lifesaver this week; it’s healthy, tasty, and best of all, assists with lowering cholesterol and improving digestion. Yay for legumes!

The idea for this salad was thanks to a trip to Costco where I picked up a large jar of oil-packed, oven-dried organic Roma tomatoes and some avocados. I basically threw together whatever I had on hand and came up with something I ate six times in one week.  My favourite part of this salad is that it is a no-dressing salad. The oil from the tomatoes is dressing enough!

Tomato, Beans, and Avocado Salad

Serves 1-2

Ingredients

• ¾ cup kidney beans
• ¾ cup black beans
• ½ cup oil-packed oven-dried tomatoes/sun-dried tomatoes
• 10-12 cherry tomatoes, halved
• ½ avocado, sliced*

Method

1. Put all the ingredients in a seal-able plastic container and shake.
2. Refrigerator for a minimum of thirty minutes and then eat. I usually make it the night before and then bring it to work.
3. Eat by itself, serve with bread, corn tortilla chips, or toss with pasta. You could also wrap in lettuce leaves.

*Use an avocado that is on the firm side. If you don’t have one, add the avocado just before eating.

TIPS

Make it your own: This recipe is easily doubled or reduced depending on your needs. Additionally, add some fresh coriander/cilantro or garlic if you want. I really wanted to add some coriander but sadly the Asia Mart in my town was out.