Homemade bean dip recipe

I don't know about you, but when I make a pot of beans it always manages to be huge.  I can't seem to make a small pot.  This past weekend, I bought beans and got a bigger bag than I usually get and ended up soaking more of them than I planned so started out with my pot full before I even started cooking.  I decided to make the large pot I was planning with my ham bone (from Easter that I had froze) and make a smaller pot for bean dip.  A few years ago, I had a similar problem with too many left over beans and didn't really need to freeze them all so found a recipe for homemade bean dip.  It's so easy, so yummy and so much better than the canned stuff in so many ways.  I like to mix pinto and Great Northern beans together when I make a pot of beans so that's what I used.  I've also added lentils in before and sometimes kidney or black beans as well depending what I have.  Since my pot was already full, I just had a mixture of pinto and Great Northern.  As with pretty much everything I make, I also like to add  veggies to my beans.  I finely chop them and add them in the beginning so they cook down with the beans but are not really noticeable, just adding to the nutrition and flavor.   I added 2 carrots, 2 celery stalks, 1/2 to 1 cup green onions, 2 cloves minced garlic and 2 small turnips. Sometimes I add eggplant but  I wasn't cutting that up this weekend so just added what I had bought at the farmers market and was cutting up anyway to freeze. Since I was planning to make the bean dip right after cooking the beans instead of using leftovers,  I added chili powder and cumin while they were cooking and added a bit more to taste after pureeing with the other ingredients. The recipe calls for salsa but for this batch I just added 2 T of sofrito  (that I had freshly made) and 2 to 3 T of spicy tomato dressing I had in the refrigerator that I wanted to use up.  I mixed mine up in the food processor which was super easy but you could also puree it in a blender.  I put some in a microwave bowl, added shredded cheddar cheese, heated it for 1 minute and served it to my husband with tortilla chips and he loved it.  He said it tasted so good he didn't care there were veggies in it. It also freezes really well.

Here's the recipe:

Homemade bean dip

pureed beans in food processor

small pot of beans for dip

3 to 4 c cooked beans, pinto, Great Northern or any combination (when cooking beans add 1/2 to 1 c chopped onion, 1 clove minced garlic, 1 finely chopped celery stalk, 1 finely chopped carrot or any desired veggies)

huge pot of beans which is why I had to do a small one

2 to 4 T of salsa
2 T sofrito
1 to 2 t each seasoned salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, parsley, turmeric and paprika
1/2 to 1 t red pepper chili flakes
can also add cilantro if desired

In food processor, combine beans, salsa, sofrito and seasonings.  Blend until smooth.  Store in refrigerator or freeze.  To serve, place in microwave safe dish, top with shredded cheddar cheese and heat 1 minute, serve with tortilla chips.  Would also be great in a 7 layer dip or on burritos.

Enjoy,
Bamah

chicken nachos with bean dip, chicken and cheese