Black Bean and Corn Salsa

It seems most holiday feasts are filled with startchy heavy sorts of side dishes, vs. light or "crisp" types of veggies. So, after several of these kinds of meals over this holiday week, I find myself craving green things. I just had to make a stop on my drive home from Maine to get a salad with raw spinach. I couldn't get it into me fast enough. Where we stopped, by the way, was this little burrito place we love in Portsmouth, NH. They have great add-in selections and also have burritos in a bowl, which is what I had tonight. While we make our own version of a taco salad that I've talked about before, I got some new ideas tonight to spiff it up a bit. The burrito place is Dos Amigos and you should try it if you're there.

I often try to bring a big green salad to these occasions, which I did to one of my holiday gatherings, and I've decided to make that my standard dish to bring because I miss it when it's not there. I also tried a new appetizer that I liked - a tomato-less salsa. It was a fun alternative to the ho-hum tomato salsa. A friend at work, Doug, had made it for a potluck, and I liked it so much I had to give it a try. It is super easy to make, it seemed to go over well, and a couple of people asked for the recipe, so here it is:

Black Bean Corn Salsa
1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of shoepeg corn, drained (I think this variety is sweeter which is why it's used. I may try regular yellow corn to see how that goes)
1 bunch of scallions, peeled and minced - white parts only
feta cheese to taste (optional, but is very yummy) use at least 1/4 cup

dressing
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup extra light olive oil or canola oil
1/2 tspn garlic powder (or more to taste)
salt and pepper.

1 bag of scoop tortilla chips (these work best because the salsa is so chunky)

1. Mix salsa ingredients in bowl.
2. Mix dressing and add to salsa.