Southwest Salad with 

Cilantro Honey Lime Dressing

Southwest Salad is the perfect salad for any occasion. Filled with lettuce, black beans, cheese, veggies and topped with a fresh cilantro honey lime dressing. 

Image is off abountifulkitchen website

https://abountifulkitchen.com/southwest-salad-with-cilantro-honey/

 PREP TIME 30 MINUTES 

 Serves 12 AS A MAIN DISH

Ingredients

SALAD:

1 1/2 large heads Romain lettuce (about 15-18 cups) washed and dried

1 small bag frozen corn white or yellow, or fresh, 3-4 large cooked and cut off cob

1 can black beans washed and drained

2 avocados chopped (not too soft) choose avocados that are fairly firm

1 bunch green onions sliced

4-5 Roma tomatoes chopped, or about 3 cups of cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half

1 red pepper chopped

1 1/2 cup Pepper Jack Cheese grated

1 1/2 cups Colby cheese grated

DRESSING:

1 cup cilantro rinsed, remove stems

1 cup mayonnaise

4-6 tablespoons fresh lime juice

lime zest from one lime

2 tablespoons honey

sea salt

pepper

1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne

FOR SALAD:

Chop lettuce into bite size pieces. Place lettuce in large serving bowl.

IF NOT USING IMMEDIATELY, LAYER IN THE FOLLOWING ORDER:

Lettuce

black beans

corn

peppers

green onion

avocado

tomatoes

grated cheeses

Instructions

For Dressing: 

Chop cilantro. Whisk together in bowl rest of ingredients, add fresh cilantro. Add more lime, honey or cayenne to taste.

Toss salad with dressing just before serving, or serve dressing on the side of salad. If serving on side, double dressing.

Recipe Notes

Use Romaine full heads, not Romaine hearts (Costco) You will be happier with the dark green color.

Important to drain veggies well and spin salad until dry. If you take the time to do this, the salad will last for up to three days if not tossed with dressing.

Layering in the order given will insure that the cheese won't get soggy, and the avocados will stay fresh(er) with the tomatoes layered on top. Romas, or grape tomatoes are best for this salad.

I like the look when hand chopping part of the Cilantro for the salad. You can throw all of the ingredients into a blender or use an immersion blender to make the dressing, then chop a few tablespoons by hand to get the larger leaf look in the dressing.

If you want more of a Taco-style salad, add some chopped cooked chicken and tortilla or corn chips.

If you want to make this a main dish salad, cook chicken breast halves, cool and chop when completely cooled. Add to salad with  veggies. 

The BEST Lemon Bars

 The Best Lemon Bars

https://www.averiecooks.com/the-best-lemon-bars/

Not my photo. It's off the website.

prep time 15 MINUTES cook time 30 MINUTES total time 45 MINUTES

These classic lemon bars pack a punch of big time lemon flavor, without being too tart or too sweet! Perfect for spring and summer baking!

INGREDIENTS

For the Crust

 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), very soft

 1 cup all-purpose flour

 1/4 heaping cup confectioners' sugar

 1 tablespoon cornstarch

 pinch salt, optional and to taste

For the Filling

 2 large eggs

 1 cup granulated sugar

 1/2 cup lemon juice, or to taste (about 2 juicy medium lemons; see note below)

 2 tablespoons half-and-half (whole milk or cream are okay)

 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional and to taste

 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract, optional and to taste

 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

 2 teaspoons lemon zest loosely packed, or to taste (see note below)

 confectioners' sugar, for dusting

INSTRUCTIONS

For the Crust:

Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-by-8-inch pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine all crust ingredients and cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pasty cutter or just stir and mash with a spoon until a sandy, crumbly mixture forms. I do it by hand because it's easy, fast, and I don't have to wash out my food processor; but use one if you prefer.

Transfer crumbly mixture to prepared pan and using your fingertips, press crumbs down to form an even flat layer of crust.

Prick crust with a fork haphazardly in a dozen places so air and steam can escape while it bakes. If air bubbles form while baking, prick them down and return pan to oven.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until crust has just barely set. It should not be golden or browned at all, it should still be white. You just want it to stick together and it doesn't need to be cooked through fully since pan is going back in the oven to bake filling.

While crust bakes, make the filling.

For the Filling:

In a large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, lemon juice (start with ¼ cup and increase to taste; I find that using less than ½ cup isn't intense enough, but add to taste), half-and-half, optional vanilla (I used it even though it's not traditional), optional lemon extract (I don't find it necessary and omitted it), and whisk until smooth.

Add the flour and whisk until lumps are gone.

Add lemon zest (add to taste, starting with 1 teaspoon but I prefer 2 teaspoons) and whisk to combine.

Pour mixture over crust. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes (I baked for 18), or until the top has just set and isn't jiggly in center. Some movement and looseness is normal and desired, you just don't want it liquid-like or runny; slicing into some looseness is fine, liquid is not. Top will be yellow and lemon-colored, but not browned.

Allow bars to cool at room temperature for at least 1 hour.

Cover pan and refrigerate for at least three hours, or overnight, before slicing and serving.

Optionally, dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

NOTES

Store extra bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: YIELD: 9 SERVING SIZE: 1

Amount Per Serving: CALORIES: 324TOTAL FAT: 12gSATURATED FAT: 7gTRANS FAT: 0gUNSATURATED FAT: 4gCHOLESTEROL: 70mgSODIUM: 38mgCARBOHYDRATES: 52gFIBER: 1gSUGAR: 39gPROTEIN: 3g