Southwestern Basmati Rice

1. If you are cooking the beans from dried, get that started now. You want them to be cooked so that they are soft inside, but not too soft. You don't want them to be mushy. Make note of the fact that once they are done, they should be drained, rinsed under cold water, and set aside. Once the black beans are on their way to being ready, cook the rice, either on stovetop or in a rice cooker. Place rice aside once it is ready, leaving the lid off so the rice may cool.
2. Fill a small pot halfway with water, and bring to a boil. Put the corn in this pot for only a few minutes, then drain and rinse under cold water (to stop it from continuing to cook). Set aside.
3. Place bell peppers in a bowl. You may also add the corn, rice and beans to this bowl (so it better be a big one!). Mince the garlic roughly, not finely. Add the garlic little by little to the rice mix until it's just the way you like it.
4. Add green onions to the rice mixture. Add cumin seeds if you have decided to, and salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle slowly with olive oil until it's as moist as you'd like it. If you like dry rice, you won't need the full 1/4 cup. If you like it really moist, you'll need the 1/4 cup.
Some of the produce in this recipe is also raw, which gives it lovely texture, and makes it even healthier! The only real fat in this recipe is olive oil, and I think we all know that fat from virgin olive oil is good fat! Now, for the recipe! Keeps good for about 4 days when refrigerated. Usually need to add a little more olive oil if it's been stored for more than 24 hours.
Source of recipe: After trying lots of vegan rice salads in the deli sections of grocery stores, I got really tired of the undercooked rice and bland flavor. I decided to make my own, and this is what I came up with!