Spicy Black Bean Salsa

Shopping List:

1 can black beans
1 can favorite corn (the fiesta or Mexican corn works great)
1 can purple hulled peas (or black eyed peas)
2 cans diced tomatoes (fresh equivalent greatly recommended if you can afford it)
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
fresh cilantro, as much as you like
1 cup favorite italian dressing
green bell pepper, chopped
minced garlic to taste, I think I did 3 cloves or so
1 small white onion, chopped

This seriously makes a ton of salsa. I chucked it after 3 days of munching because I was not sure about the expiration. It also makes your breath STINKY. If you cut down the onions and garlic it would lose a lot of flavor, but you wouldn't be Lady Stinky Face. DO NOT USE A FOOD PROCESSOR FOR THE ONION. It takes longer to chop it all up in little bits but if you use a food processor the onion becomes very over powering.

Assembly:

1. Drain and rinse all the beans/peas, try to remove as much moisture/goop as possible. Add to bowl.
2. Drain tomatoes and try to remove as much moisture from them, squeeze them a little even. Add to bowl.
3. Drain corn and add.
4. Add all other ingredients, aside from dressing. Mix.
5. If you still have a lot of liquid accumulation, push ingredients to one side of the bowl and drain liquid from the other.
6. Add dressing a little at a time till it looks right...it should look like salsa but not like soup.
7. Cover and put in the fridge overnight, or 6+ hours

Presentation:

Serve with chips or celery pieces (It's carby enough, right?) or you can just eat it with a fork like a bean salad...or put on top of salad...

Verdict:

I thought it totally rocked. It was mega addictive and fresh and nice. I did get annoyed with being stinky, but I'm not used to eating raw onions ever ever ever. I swear I could not brush or rinse the smell away. I feel like if I had listened and NOT food processed the onion..it would have been cool. I've made it since with no onion, no green pepper, and no corn...was still good, the corn was sorely missed however (I just forgot it)...removal of onion did hurt the flavor...removal of the green pepper was somewhat successful. It was pretty overpowering in the original dish, maybe better to half it, not remove it.

The Man:

He had some the first day, said it was good in the form of a "thumbs up" however he didn't have any more ever. Probably not a success on his side.

As always let me know if you see any non-vegan items in a recipe