My sister is the great entertainer. At one of the parties she hosted last year, she served a couple of fresh and tasty salads I had never seen before. I asked her to pass along the recipes that she labeled as coming from Sunset Magazine.

The one I remembered featured black eyed peas and fresh cilantro. Since everyone needs an opportunity to get more fiber, vegetables and healthy carbs in their diet, I thought I would pass this along.

When I set out to recreate this salad, of course I revised, I added color with yellow corn (thus the name Sunshine Salad).

Maybe just to fight back after such a long winter and so many days of rain. This will wake up your taste buds and make you feel sunny. Mix everything in a large bowl and serve chilled or at room temp after you prepare it. Everything in the salad should stand up to a few days of refrigeration if you need to prepare ahead for a party.

Sunshine Salad

1 can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed (black beans could substitute)

1 can cut corn, drained

1⁄2 cucumber peeled and diced (I’m okay with seeds)

2 Roma tomatoes diced

6 green onions chopped (red onion in original Sunset version)

1⁄4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

3 tablespoons Pace Triple Pepper Salsa (your favorite fresh chili pepper or salsa could substitute)

3 tablespoons lemon juice

Salt and Pepper to taste

It occurs to me that the Cilantro could be substituted with fresh Basil and add fresh garlic for an Italian version. Please feel free to play around with ingredients. Enjoy!