Vegan Mexican "Black Bean Rotini" Salad

I got this pasta from Trader Joe's.  Then I wondered what the heck I was going do with it?!  So, immediately, my new love with "tofu ricotta cheese" sprang into my head.  I would make the one I did in my recipe here and this time I had Mexican oregano too!  Then I thought I'd make it all into a salad with Mexican flavors.  I thought it would be good for lunch and as side dish for quick weeknight dinners.  I made it Sunday evening.  I used:

• A pint of organic grape tomatoes, halved
• Handful of fresh cilantro, stems removed and chopped
• 2 large handfuls of organic baby arugula 
• 1 bunch of green onions, chopped
• 2 orange bell peppers, cleaned and diced
• 1 ear of fresh corn on the cob, kernels sliced off (it was super sweet and I wished I had bought two)
• 1 lime, squeezed for the juice, and the zest microplaned
• 1/4 cup of Kirkland organic extra virgin olive oil
• Fresh cracked pepper and kosher salt
• 1 375 ml container of fresh salsa (medium) with no preservatives (Fresh is Best brand)
• My tofu ricotta - Mexican style
• 12 oz package of Trader Joe's organic black bean rotini

I thought that was a nice mix of colors.  I made the tofu cheese first and this time I had Mexican oregano too.

I put this in a big pot because I knew the salad was going to be big.

I made the pasta next, rinsed, drained and then mixed it in with the tofu.  I had a taste, it wasn't bad at all.  I could have just ate it that way after I mixed it up - but it certainly didn't look very pretty.  I guess it would have looked the same with real ricotta cheese though.  😉  I think though that next time, I'd only use half the block.

I put it back in the fridge to cool down.

I started cleaning and cutting all the vegetables next and added everything one by one to the big pot, stirring after each addition.

I finished with the arugula and cilantro.

I put this back in the fridge for an hour, to let all the flavors meld together.  Wow, at this point it tasted really good!  I was impressed!!!  This was all I had for dinner and it was totally satisfying.  I dished my son a smaller portion and made a sub sandwich for him.  I garnished with more cilantro and S&P.

YUM!  I loved it, that's all I can say, but it felt very rich and I got full really quickly.  It had robust flavor with a nice impact on the palette.  It could definitely be made much prettier to look at by leaving out the tofu part, though I liked the creaminess of it.  Like I said, I'd only use half the amount of that next time.  There was really good textures to this.  I'm going to have it with some pan fried fish for dinner tomorrow.