So while I have been cooking up a storm these past few months, I haven’t been posting the recipes — shame on me and I forgot how fun it is to share good food with everyone!  Well this is one recipe I have made over and over with several variations; it has become a go-to appetizer for potlucks and an easy make-ahead meal.  Since I have promised to send the recipe to a few people, what better time than to finally create a new blog post.

This Zesty Shrimp and Black Bean Salad recipe originates from Eating Well magazine.  It doesn’t call for tortilla chips, but we have found this is the most fun way to eat it.  Adding diced avocado is a delicious option too.

Zesty Shrimp Salad

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced chipotle chile in adobo (see note below)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 pound peeled and deveined cooked shrimp cut into pieces
• 1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed
• 1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
• 1 large poblano pepper or bell pepper, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped scallions
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• Tortilla chips for serving

Directions:

Whisk vinegar, oil, chipotle, cumin and salt in a large bowl. Add shrimp, beans, tomatoes, poblano (or bell pepper), scallions and cilantro; toss to coat. Serve room temperature or cold.

Chipotle chiles in adobo are sold in cans in most grocery stores.  You only ever need a small amount for a given recipe, so I like to toss the contents of the whole can (seeds and all) into the mini food processor and blend, then lay flat in a Ziploc bag in the freezer.  It keeps for a long time and you can just break off a chunk when you need it.