Homemade salsa and "refried beans"

I absolutely love this easy and delicious dinner.  Homemade refried beans with no added oil or fat, can it be true? Yes, yes, yes it is absolutely true and way better than the full fat version.  This recipe is full of flavor.  Beans are inexpensive and a good source of protein and fiber.  Here is what you do...

Put all the following ingredients into a crockpot
2 cups pinto beans
5 cups of water
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 T cumin
1t coriander
2 bay leaves
2 T tomato paste (I had some diced tomatoes from the other night, I used those instead)
1 t chili powder
1 t garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook on low for 10 hrs or on high 5-6 hrs.  When the beans are soft remove the 2 bay leaves and mash them with a potato masher. I got this recipe from my friend Morgan's fabulous blog littlehouseofveggies.com the only difference is I don't add the olive oil.  I have tried it both ways and it doesn't seem to make a difference.  We put the beans on crispy tostada shells and topped with homemade salsa, lettuce, and avocado. Oh yeah baby!!

Now for the salsa. My mom shops at Cardenas Mexican market and they were having a sale on roma tomatoes 5 lbs. for a $1.  So she bought me 5 lbs. of tomatoes. We don't like spicy at our house so I didn't use a jalapeno but my mom always does.  For the fresh and tasty salsa you will need...

3 Roma tomatoes, (boiled, about 3-4 minutes until the skin splits)
1 small onion, or half or a quarter of a lg. onion
2 cloves of garlic
sm. handful of cilantro (about 1/4 of a cup)
1 or 2 t of salt (depending on how salty you like it)

Place all ingredients in your blender. Use the chop button and let it spin for 20-30 seconds. Not too long because you don't want it completely blended.  My salsa was a little spicy because of the onion.

The verdict: The beans were a big hit with everybody.  Steve asked where the salsa came from and was very impressed with it.  This is one of my favorite meals to make and eat. :)