Refried Beans

I've been trying to feed my family less processed foods in an effort to instill a healthy lifestyle with my kids. Yesterday, my neighbor introduced me to a co-op of local farmers, so now, I have a way to obtain fresh fruits, veggies, herbs, eggs, and meat. So excited! It's funny how that little invitation from her has me giddy with the possibilities of creating some really delicious and healthier meals for my family. :)

So, one of the first things that I decided to conquer that I usually buy processed, (because honestly, I was completely afraid of the making process) is re-fried beans. We have tacos weekly in this house, and I just recently tackled one of my other faves that I used to leave to the pros, Taco Pizza, so I figured this one had 2 options: 1. really tasty or 2. really ugh... not for me. Luckily for me it turned out super tasty!! :) Yay!! My kids also said they liked them more than the "other" kind. Double yay!!

These beans were so incredibly easy to make, total cost for a huge crock pot's worth of 're-fried' beans less than $3. Seriously. Not only were they inexpensive, they are delicious!

Here's the easy peasy recipe:

1 yellow onion (mine was about the size of a softball), peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 cups of dried pinto beans
9 cups of water
1/8 tsp ground cumin (I used 1/4 tsp. and it was not overpowering at all)
5 tsp. salt
1 3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper (I coarsely ground mine)

Step 1. Rinse beans thoroughly in water, and place in crock pot.

Step 2. Put water into crock pot, and turn crock pot on high.

Step 3. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper to crock pot.

Step 4. Cover crock pot and let it cook for 8 hours. Periodically check on it, stir to make sure it doesn't burn to bottom. (Long time to cook, but really worth it. I guess you could do it over night, but I started mine at 10am and they were ready for dinner at 6pm.)

Step 5. I used a slotted spoon to pull my beans out of the crock pot, then placed them into my food processor. If you don't have a food processor, you could mash them however you would like to your desired consistency using a whisk, potato masher, blender, etc . Reserve some of the water to thin out beans if you want them thinner. Entirely up to you.

Enjoy. :)

Oh my goodness...

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love to bake, cook, create, etc. My guilty pleasure though, is spicy foods. Every now and then, I get a craving for a sweet treat, but mostly, I'm a savory/spicy kind of gal. My family has moved around a lot in the past few years- so much so, that it seems as soon as we find a restaurant we like to go to, we end up moving away and the process starts all over again. Frustrating. Anyhoo... imagine my squeal of delight to have found a recipe that is pretty darn close to replicating one of my favorite foods in the entire world. Salsa. Huh? Really? Salsa? Yes, salsa.




This salsa reminds me of home, because it is so similar to the kind I used to order in Oregon at my all time favorite Mexican restaurant. I have yet to find a Mexican restaurant that I like even close to the same level in 4 different states- but I digress. My only problem is I can't have enough tortilla chips on hand for that spicy, red deliciousness. I usually and up snacking away on the tortillas and salsa before my meal arrives causing me to have no room for my dinner. You know what I'm talking about! ;) ha ha




So... where is the recipe? Here. That's where. This is the best tasting homemade salsa that my taste buds have ever had the pleasure of tasting. Seriously. It is so inexpensive and you'll see how ridiculously simple this is to make, you will never, ever, ever buy a store brand jarred salsa again. This is the type of salsa that you can eat literally from the bowl without chips. Maybe that's just me being a weirdo, but I swear that stuff is addictive! ;) Enjoy!


Go check out Brown Eyed Baker's website for other goodies. She has a ton of recipes, and even better, all of her pictures make you want to go, bake up a storm and eat until your heart's content. Her food is delish, but I'm not so sure how this is going to be on my waistline though. ;)