Black, White, And Green Bean Salad

Hi guys!  Happy Labor Day!  I made a really easy and light bean salad today for packed lunches for this week and I wanted to share it with you!

Black, White, and Green Bean Salad:

Gluten Free, Vegan, Soy Free

Salad:

• 1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can of white beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 onion, chopped 
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/4 cup sprouts
• 1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped finely
• Serve with: mini pitas, avocado slices, lime wedges, lettuce wraps

Dressing:

• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar 
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1-2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1/2 tsp salt and pepper

Directions:  Drain beans and rinse well (I rinse them until there are no more bubbles).  Chop vegetables and parsley.  Mix beans, vegetables, and parsley in a large bowl or Tupperware container.  Mince the garlic clove and add it to a jar along with lemon juice, oil, and apple cider vinegar.  Put the top on and shake.  Add seasonings and maple syrup to taste.  Pour dressing over salad and mix well (I put the top on my Tupperware and shook it around).  Serve immediately or chill in the fridge.  Serves:  4

Step By Step:

1.  Drain and rinse beans:

2.  Chop your vegetables and parsley:

3.  Add vegetables, beans, and parsley to your bowl or Tupperware:

4.  Then add dressing, shake, and serve!  I went ahead and packed my lunch for tomorrow:

• Spinach with about 1 cup bean salad
• 3 mini pitas
• 1 apple
• 1 Plain Coconut Yogurt (I'll tell you what I think)
• 1/4 cup granola

I'm excited about the bean salad, but my Dad tried a coconut yogurt and he did not like it at all.  Alex, my brother, said it tasted like eating butter :( I'm scared!  I got 4 of those when we went to whole foods and only 2 amande (almond) yogurts- but I loved those almond yogurts.  I'll see if I like the coconut yogurt, but I just don't know...

On the other hand, my breakfast this morning was fantastic!  Overnight oats with oats, chia seeds, banana, chocolate peanut butter, almond milk, mulberries, goji berries, almonds, walnuts, pepitas, raisins, and dried cranberries!  Goodness, it was AMAZING!  I nuked the peanut butter before adding it, so it made the whole thing a little warm and chocolatey.  I miss it.

Yesterday Adria and I ran 7.5 miles as part of the 1/2 marathon training.  This was the farthest I've ever run in my entire life!  Following my "upping" principle, I ate about 2,400 calories yesterday.  I thought that would be enough.  It was!  I was barely hungry for dinner, but I ate a salad with some veggies, tempeh, and balsamic vinaigrette.  On our run we used my interval timer and did 3:1 intervals of running and walking.  At first, the running intervals are short and walking intervals surprise me, but by the 4th or 5th mile, I'm checking the timer to see how long we have left!  Adria's Heart Rate Monitor said that we burned about 1000 calories by the time we walked through the door.  Weee!

About halfway through our run, we stopped at a convenience store to buy a water- but Adria only had her credit card and their card limit was $5.00.  We didn't want to carry anything else on our run, so we were stumped- until the cashier told us that she would get it and for us to just pay her back another time.  How sweet!  I'm always so shocked when people are just that nice.  It warms my heart so much (maybe I've been watching too much Seinfeld and my standards have changed ;)  We can't forget to pay her back!  

My legs are tired.

Have you ever been shocked by people's kindness?  How?

I hope you guys are having a fantastic Labor Day Weekend!  Good night!  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GILLI!!!