White Bean Salad

Awesome Sauce and I visited a friend for dinner one night and he served a very delicious meal. His wonderful meal included an Eggplant Pilaf served with and Herbed Yogurt sauce and Bean Salad. Four our contribution, Awesome Sauce and I brought Baklava for dessert. At the end of the evening, I knew I must have his recipes and so we engineered a trade...his dinner recipes for my dessert recipe. Since then, I have made this recipe multiple times with several variations.

Here is the original recipe I was sent:

• 2 small cans of northern beans (butter beans are ok too)
• 1 medium size onion (red onion suggested)
• 4-5 green onions
• Parsley (amount depends on how much you like it), leaves only
• 2-3 medium tomatoes (4-5 roma)
• Balsamic vinegar
• Olive oil
• Lemon juice (one whole lemon)
• Salt

I have since made it with great northern beans, small white beans, and cannellini (my personal favorite). I also usually use two red onions rather than one. I don't always use green onions (for some reason...I like it better without even though I am typically a HUGE green onion fan). I tend to use a little extra lemon juice and balsamic vinegar than most might like...what can I say...I like sour and vinegary tastes. I also enjoy substituting cilantro for vinegar. This salad is incredibly healthy and very tasty. It is perfect as a picnic or BBQ side dish or delightful on its own as a light summer lunch.

Here are some pictures:

Top view.

Side view.

Junky Monkey really enjoyed this recipe but both she and Awesome Sauce prefer when I make it less vinegary. Awesome Sauce finds it a bit rough in the amount of onion (okay...this is definitely my fault). Guest tasters (my mom and sister) were thrilled with this dish and both wanted the recipe!! Whoo-hoo!!

Ratings:
The Clumsy Gourmet: 9
Awesome Sauce: 7.5 (he would like it much more if I laid off the onion a bit...oops.)