Meatless Monday recipe of the week: Black bean and roasted corn pasta salad

OK, so it’s not fresh sweet corn season any more. That time came and went very quickly and very early in the summer.

Which is a total bummer.

But, thanks to the modern age of food preservation, it also doesn’t really matter that much. Thank goodness.

Thus, on yet another warm August Monday, we can enjoy corn, no matter what form it comes in. If you have fresh, then great. If you have frozen, that’s great too. Heck, even canned works in this recipe, which adds the heartiness of black beans with the filling nature of whole-wheat pasta for a nice little main course for your Monday meal.

Serve it with a green salad, steamed veggies and a side of brown rice and quinoa and take the leftovers (if there are any) with you to work on Tuesday.

Black Bean and Roasted Corn Pasta Salad

3 ears fresh corn, cut from cob (about 2 1/2 cups kernels or 1 (10-ounce) package frozen corn, thawed)

8 ounces whole wheat fusilli pasta, cooked, drained and cooled

1 can no-salt-added black beans (about 1 1/2 cups), rinsed and drained

1 tomato, diced

1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

3 tablespoons sliced green onion

3 tablespoons nutritional yeast

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari

1 teaspoon lemon zest

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread corn kernels in a single layer and roast 18 to 20 minutes or until starting to turn golden. (Alternately, grill corn on the cob, allow to cool and remove kernels.)

In a large mixing bowl, combine roasted corn with pasta, beans, tomato, cilantro, green onion, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, tamari and lemon zest. Toss well and serve.

— Recipe from www.wholefoodsmarket.com