CHOPPED SPINACH SALAD & EASY PEASY BLACK BEANS

It has been months since I lasted posted anything - but not because I haven't had tasty things to share.  Just preoccupied I guess.  I have been a little obsessed with two things lately.  The first is this delicious Chopped Spinach Salad.  I like this dish because it is different from the usual spinach salad made with high fat goopy poppyseed dressing and soggy strawberries served at church parties.  This salad seems to have all the things that I love; spinach, seeds, sun-dried tomatoes, orzo, cheese, garlic and chicken. 

For Salad:
4 packages baby spinach leaves (10 oz each)
8 oz orzo pasta (cooked, rinsed in cold water, and drained)
white meat from one large rotisserie chicken (tear it off in small chunks)
2  tomatoes (or 5 Roma tomatoes) (seeded and chopped)
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes (rinsed if they are in oil) (chopped)
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts  (I used sunflower seeds)
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

For Dressing: (this makes a lot so I halved it the recipe)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper


To make the dressing mix all the ingredients in a blender and let it rest for at least 3 hours (can be made the day ahead) so the flavors mellow a bit.)

The next thing that I have been making lately is a very simple black bean dish.  It takes a drained and rinsed can of black beans,  half a jar of salsa,  a small can of minced green chilies and half a package of taco seasoning.  Heat through. Ta Dah!  I have added this to chicken and made it into a casserole and also just served it in bowls with brown rice and chopped lettuce and tomatoes.   It is a great inexpensive protein with 18 grams in 1 cup.  To simplify it even further, I have made it without the chilies and taco seasoning and it was equally tasty.  It can't get any easier than two ingredients!