With my numerous allergies and my choice to eat a whole-foods plant-based diet, I have a hard time finding food that will travel easily especially in the heat. A friend of mine sent me this recipe from Richmond Magazine and I absolutely love it! It is simple to make, really flavorful, keeps for a week in the refrigerator, extremely nutrient dense and is really fantastic for taking to friend's houses for summer parties/get-togethers. The original recipe has a bit more oil and turmeric so you can always increase the amounts of these in your recipe but I personally don't think the recipe needs it!

Avocado, Black Bean and Quinoa Salad

Salad Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa (can substitute brown rice)
1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can of corn (I love fire roasted)
1 diced bell pepper (you can substitute tomatoes but the recipe will not last as long)
1/2 cup chopped Cilantro (I leave this out because I can't stand Cilantro and it still has a lot of flavor)
1-2 avocados for topping

Dressing Ingredients:

2 limes juiced
1/8 cup olive oil
1 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp salt

Instructions:

1) Rinse quinoa and cook according to package. Dump all the salad ingredients into a large bowl and combine.
2) In a small bowl, mix together all of the dressing ingredients. Stir the dressing into the salad mixture, cover and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.
3) Top each serving with a few pieces of avocado.

(Adapted from Elizabeth Miller, Richmond Magazine)