Pasta Salad with Black Beans and Cashews

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Pasta Salad with Black Beans and Cashews can be a quick and tasty solution for dinner, but also for lunch. Beautifully colored, full, spicy, this salad is very tasty!

The salad can be done in about 10 minutes as long as you soak dry beans during the night, which doesn’t require almost any effort. If you are really in a pinch and don’t have any time, canned beans will also work, they will just need to be drained and thoroughly rinsed. All you have to do is just boiling the whole grain pasta, add the cashews, and then combine all the ingredients in a food processor. It is a simple, satisfying, and lightly spicy dish!

Nutrients in this recipe

To start with, a cup of black beans provides 64% of the required amount of daily recommended fiber intake, 42% of the daily requirement of potassium, and also 42% of the required amount of protein. Moreover, black beans are a good source of calcium, magnesium, vitamin B6, and iron. The composition of black beans provides a large amount of protein, making them an excellent choice for people who avoid eating animal products. Black beans contain all 9 essential amino acids in varying amounts – which makes them a complete protein.

Spinach is considered a vital food for the entire digestive tract (stomach, duodenum, small intestine, large intestine). Basically, spinach is the best organic material for cleansing, rebuilding, and regenerating the intestinal tract.
The benefits of spinach are due to the multitude of nutrients it contains minerals, vitamins, pigments, and phytonutrients, including potassium, manganese, zinc, magnesium, iron, and calcium.

Capsaicin is the active ingredient in hot peppers and is the compound that gives them a spicy taste. It is a type of capsaicinoid and is a very strong irritant. However, there are a number of impressive health benefits to using capsaicin. Consumption of peppers and spicy foods is often encouraged for metabolic strength and the immune system.

Coriander leaves are a good source of fiber, calcium, magnesium, manganese, and iron. It also contains 11 components of essential oils and six types of acids, including ascorbic acid or vitamin C, each with several beneficial properties on the body. Coriander seeds are rich in phytonutrients and have a nutritional profile similar to that of coriander leaves.

Corn contains nutrients such as vitamins B and C, fibers, magnesium, and potassium, but also two of the most important antioxidants: zeaxanthin and lutein. Corn provides a large amount of fiber, and it should be noted that it does not contain gluten.

Cherry tomatoes represent the smallest variety of tomatoes, which, as the name suggests, are generally the size of a cherry. They can be round or elongated, black, yellow, red, green, or green with red stripes. Despite their small size, cherry tomatoes are rich in vitamins and minerals. A cup of cherry tomatoes contains 1.3 grams of protein, 1.8 grams of fiber but also a dose of other vitamins and minerals essential for good health, including vitamins E, A, and C, and lycopene, an antioxidant that helps to prevent cancer.

Pasta Salad with Black Beans and Cashews

Necessary equipment:

  • a medium stockpot
  • two small pots
  • a food processor
  • a large bowl

Ingredients:

4 servings

  • 2 cups of whole-grain pasta or plant-based pasta (lentils or chickpea pasta)
  • 1/2 cup of cashews
  • 1 cup of frozen spinach
  • 1 cup of roasted red peppers
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 jalapeno pepper
  • 1/4 cup of freshly chopped cilantro
  • 1/8 teaspoon of sea salt
  • 2 cups of black beans
  • 1/2 can sweet corn, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1/4 teaspoon of ground black pepper

Instructions:

  1. Pour water into a stockpot and bring to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions. Drain and set it aside.
  2. In a smaller pot, add 1 cup of water and bring to a boil. Add the cashews and boil for about 10 minutes to soften them up. Drain and set them aside.
  3. In another pot, heat the frozen spinach to quickly thaw it.
  4. Put the drained cashews, red peppers, garlic, jalapeno pepper, cilantro, sea salt, and black pepper in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture is smooth.
  5. Mix the cooked pasta with beans, sweet corn, cherry tomatoes, spinach, and pepper mixture together in a large bowl. Serve while still warm.

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