Homemade Refried Beans

Tuesday is 'Taco Tuesday' at our house and the best part of that meal is the homemade refried beans.  After eating these homemade beans, I can't bring myself to eat the 'stuff' they sell in the cans!  This recipe took me a few times to get the flavor right to our liking.  The more garlic powder and dried onions, the better!  I am able to cook  2 C of dried pinto beans in my 4 quart crock pot on high in 4-5 hours.  My crock pot cooks things really fast, so this time frame will vary with every crock pot.  The amounts I have listed for the garlic, onions and salt are just a starting point.  This is something you will have to experiment and adjust to your liking.

Refried Beans
Yield: 4-5 C refried beans
2 C dried pinto beans
2 1/2 quarts of water
1-2 TBS garlic powder or fresh minced garlic (This amount is really a personal preference)
1/4-1/3 C dried onions (This amount is really a personal preference) 
2-3 tsp salt (This amount is really a personal preference)  (but do not add this until after the beans are cooked and drained)


Place beans, garlic, onions and water in crock pot. Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours.
When beans are soft, drain and reserve juices.  Place beans in blender, add salt.  If beans are to thick, add some of the reserved juices.  Beans will thicken up as as they cool.  May serve hot or refrigerate until needed.

Seriously the best beans ever!!