Three Bean Salad

The bean salads you find pre-made at the salad bar or deli usually aren’t the healthiest choices — they’re often swimming in oil and loaded with salt from the dressing. Yet the ingredients at the heart of these salads are super-healthy. Prepare your own version with just as much taste, without all that fat and salt. One serving of the salad below packs over 1/3 of your daily fiber need and is a great source of potassium, protein, and heart healthy monounsaturated fat.

Serves: 4
Time: 20 minutes

Salad Ingredients:

• 3 cups of French style green beans (fresh or frozen)
• 1 cup of canned chickpeas (no salt added)
• 1 cup of canned black beans (no salt added)
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped

Dressing Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon dried basil
• ½ teaspoon pepper

Instructions:

1. Cook green beans in microwave (about 7 minutes for frozen and approximately 9-10 minutes, or until tender, for fresh). Cool in refrigerator.
2. Rinse and drain the chickpeas and black beans. Place in a large bowl.
3. Chop the red pepper, onion, and garlic, and mix in with beans.
4. Add greens beans and toss all ingredients together until blended.
5. Prepare dressing in a separate bowl by stirring together all the ingredients.
6. Pour dressing over salad evenly. (If you want more dressing without adding many extra calories, drizzle extra balsamic vinegar over the salad.)

Nutrition content:
Per serving (1 1/3 cup): 240 calories, 8 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 34 g carbohydrate, 11 g fiber, 9.5 g protein, 110 mg sodium, 575 mg potassium (12% daily value)

http://www.skinnyandthecity.com/skinny-kitchen/main/