We are fully in the thick of tomato season, which means we are again thinking about all of the different ways to cook and use tomatoes. One of our favorite ways to use fresh cherry tomatoes is to make a large taco salad. This is an easy way to serve a large group (multiply ingredients by 2 or 3) or a family. We recently made this for a farm lunch celebrating a few of our employees with summer birthdays. There is no heating required, unless you want to add meat. In that case, we suggest grilling your meat of choice outside to keep the heat down in your kitchen during these hot summer months.

Ingredients: For the Salad

• Large head of iceberg lettuce, chopped
• 3/4 cup dry black or pinto beans fully cooked, rinsed & strained, or 1 (16 oz.) can black or pinto beans
• 1  (2.25 oz.) can of sliced black olives
• 1 pint Durst Organic Growers cherry tomatoes (any variety will work), chopped into quarters
• 1 cucumber, chopped into small cubes
• 2 ears fresh sweet corn steamed/grilled with kernels shaved off, or 1 (16 oz.) package of frozen sweet corn
• 1/2 bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 cup of crumbled Mexican white cheese like cotija, or shredded cheddar
• 2 thinly sliced radishes
• 3 cups of your favorite tortilla chips, crumbled into bite size pieces
• 1 avocado cut into small cubes or thin slices
• 1 medium size jalapeno, diced

Optional Meat Ideas for Salad:

This salad goes great with sauteed ground beef, BBQ chicken, or BBQ Tri-tip seasoned with lots of cumin, garlic, lime, and s+p

Ingredients: For the Dressing

Chipotle Lime Dressing

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise or greek yogurt
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbl olive oil
• 2 tbl chipotle sauce, we used La Costena brand (7 oz. can)
• juice from 2 small limes
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• a few drops of your favorite hot sauce
• enough cold water to loosen dressing to your preferred thickness, about 1/8-1/4 cup

Directions: For the Salad

1. Mix lettuce, beans, olives, tomatoes, cucumber, corn, and cilantro in a large serving bowl.
2. Serve the remaining ingredients as optional toppings, or sprinkle over the top of salad and meat (if adding)

Directions: For the Dressing

1. For the dressing: Whisk all ingredients together in a small jar
2. Serve along side salad. (If dressing is served on side and not all salad is eaten, you can easily save the dry salad and keep dressing separate for future use.)