6.6.13 - A Change in the Weather

Given last week's rain and chill, I was not thinking 80 and sunny and had planned to make a Black Bean Chilaquile. But I didn't really want to crank up the oven, nor do I imagine others will wish to do so tomorrow. Temps seem to call more for a cold dish, like this Black Bean Asparagus Salad. Naturally, I was short on some ingredients and wanted to use others originally slated for the Chilaquile. So, here you have a grand experiment and fixings for some quesadillas. Hopefully it will all work out.
Here goes:

1) BLACK BEAN & ASPARAGUS SALAD
Add chopped tomatoes and greens. I thought I was buying a bag of fresh spinach at the farmer's market. It seems more like cabbage but tasty nonetheless and should be good in limited quantities. 
 
Salad went something like this:

2+ pounds fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

3 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained

3 ears corn

lots of little sweet red/yellow/orange peppers, chopped

1 bunch scallions chopped, salted and soaked in red wine vinegar

1 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley -- I didn't have nearly this much, but I think lots would be good

1/2 cup olive oil

1/3 cup lime juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

dash each cumin and chipotle pepper

In a Dutch oven, bring 1 in. of water to a boil. Add asparagus; cover and boil for 3-4 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain and immediately place asparagus in ice water. Drain and pat dry. In a large serving bowl, combine the asparagus, beans, red pepper, onion and parsley. In a small bowl, whisk the oil, lime juice, salt and pepper. Pour over vegetables and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. 

2) QUESADILLAS