Broccoli Salad with Kidney Beans and Bell Pepper

Who doesn't love a delicious fresh summer salad on these hot days? 

Since the summer is made to be outside and enjoy the sunshine, I have a special appreciation for meals that stay fresh even when we are out, playing in the heat.

Before, I used to relay on veggie sandwiches whenever we had plans to get out of the house but it got a bit boring, there wasn't a lot of room to get creative and I realised that I was using carbs a little too much.

It's very common for people following a vegan lifestyle to end up with a rather hight carb consumption, sometime it's hard to get away from them and a lot of recipes out there tend to include some sort of carbohydrate. I wanted to have alternatives, not only for the days we are out but for when I need a healthy, easy to put together meal.

This is why I'm happy to share this recipe with you. There are times all we need is a big bowl of veggies but still be able to have a flavourful meal that is actually enjoyable.  

I try to stay away from the basic lettuce and tomato salad and quite often go to this Broccoli Salad with Kidney Beans and Bell peppers salad instead since it's so easy to just throw a bunch of veggies in a bowl and add some legumes to get more flavour, some protein and extra nutrients. 

Whenever I can I use broccoli as the base salads, they're one of those -have-it-all veggies. Broccoli has anti inflammatory and anti oxidant properties, is high on fiber, it's loaded with Vitamin A, B6, C, E B1, and K, and many minerals such as Calcium, Iron, Potassium among many more. It also has Omega-3 fatty acids and is super low on calories.

 What more can you expect from a vegetable? 

Actually there is more, if you cook them just enough they're super crunchy and add a lot of texture to any salad. Also you can cook them ahead of time, leave them in the fridge in an air tight container and use them when is most convenient for you. 

For this recipe, I try to cook the broccoli the night before, this way it’s cold when I am ready to make the salad and it turns out to be a lot more refreshing than if I cook them right there and then. 

Since I wanted this salad to be a full meal I added a few other ingredients to have it be well rounded plate whilst giving carbs a break. So we have:

• Greens 
• Colors 
• Protein
• Fiber 
• Healthy fats 

This combo will have your body well nourished with only 254 calories and 13g of protein. And you will be able to put it all together in less than 10 minutes since all you have to do is cut your veggies and toss them together.

We are trying to make life simple here and this summer salad will do just that!