Warm Black Bean and Quinoa Salad with Spicy Lime Dressing (2024)

I got a rice cooker for Christmas and I ❤️ it so hard. It only has a white rice and brown rice setting, but I decided to be a rebel and cook quinoa in it the other day – it was fluffy and delicious and perfect 😍👍! So – what to make with my cooked-to-perfection-thanks-to-my-new-rice-cooker quinoa? Thiiiisssssss.

Salads in winter are hard. Freezing cold weather doesn’t exactly make me crave cool, crunchy, refreshing salads. You have to find the right type of salads to eat during winter. Kale salads are good for winter because kale is a hearty green! But…I think kale is amazing for every season and event and day and minute and second, and I would wear it as clothes if I could (what?), so I might be a teensy bit biased.

THIS salad, though – it’s perfect for winter! Mainly because it’s warm. It’s warm and filling and hearty. The quinoa and black beans are seasoned with lots of yummy chili powder and cumin and tossed with tons of crunchy bell peppers, shallots, and cilantro. And then it’s doused in the dressing…

The heavenly spicy lime dressing (#bae):

• Lime juice
• Olive oil
• Garlic
• Honey
• Cayenne pepper

Shake, shake, shake – shake, shake, shake – shake yo boot-ay. I hope you know what song I’m referencing, or else I just seem strange and maybe slightly creepy? Shake the dressing up (or whisk it), and dump it allllllll over that bowl of hearty, warm, quinoa-ness. Stir and proceed to devour.

This salad is yummy on its own before you stir in the dressing, but the dressing just coats every little grain of quinoa and every soft black bean with tangy, garlicy, slightly spicy, SUPER DELICIOUS dressing.

Dear dressing and sauce in all forms,

Thank you for coming into my life and making everything better.

Sincerely, Annie.

It snowed in Kansas yesterday. I had no idea it was even supposed to snow, but as I was getting ready for work, my husband texted me saying “Be careful driving today! The roads are icy.” So I looked out my window and BAM – snow. Snow like cray cray. Well…not like a foot or anything, but definitely enough to cover the roads!

Let me tell you this: I am TERRIFIED of driving in snow. Terrified. I grew up in Charlotte, where it didn’t snow often at all, and when it did, the entire city shut down. Then I went to college in the mountains where there was a foot of snow all winter. So I went from NEVER driving in the snow to driving in the snow constantly. I had so many terrifying experiences (read: attempting to drive up a hilly parking lot and spinning out/fishtailing with cars lining either side of me 😭😫), and it made me grow to just despise driving in this weather. I do loooove snow, but I definitely do not love being in a car with snow on the roads!

But school didn’t get canceled yesterday, so I had to drive. I was white knuckling it alllllll the way there. It took me like 40 minutes to get to school instead of 20…strug. A small little tip for ya, traffic circles are THE DEVIL when it comes to snowy/icy roads. Oh my goodness, I was going like two miles an hour around those babies, and my car was sliding all over the place. So sketchy…

It’s good I’m not a principal or the person who makes decisions on whether or not school should be canceled for snow, because I would be canceling it the second one snowflake fell while frantically hoarding bread and water. Aaanyway, now I’m sitting in my classroom with my blinds open, appreciating the beautiful white blanket spread across the ground outside…BUT DRIVING…so scary.

Must stuff face with warm quinoa salad to comfort myself from snow-driving anxiety…😬

For the 21 Day Fix people – here are your container amounts (per serving)!

• 1 green (peppers, cilantro, shallots)
• 2 yellow (quinoa, black beans)
• 1 orange (dressing)
• 1 blue (avocado)

*The cumin and chili powder are “free”*

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Nutrition information is for 1 1/2 cup servings.

If you make this or any of my other recipes, be sure to Instagram it and hashtag #thegarlicdiaries!

In the mood for more yummy quinoa recipes? Check these out:

Quinoa Mac and Cheese

Spicy Shrimp Bowls with Parmesan Quinoa and Garlic Kale

Quinoa Fried Rice