Bell pepper sticks with refried bean dip

Refried beans (refritos meaning very fried in Spanish) are a classic Mexican dip we've used before in our adventures (like the corn cakes with avocado salsa or the huevos rancheros etc). And we like them so much (not to mention they're a fast and healthy way to catch up with some of your nutritional weekly requirements) we decided to serve them simple, accompanied only by raw veggie sticks for dipping (in this case, three-colored bell peppers, but you could also use carrot or cucumber sticks etc). Double the health points and the fun! :)

Last year: Pissaladieres (French caramelized onion tarts), Pickled mustard, Marliesentorte (German chocolate cake), Potato puree with caramelized shallots and Pork muscle in spice crust. 


Ingredients (serves 2 as main, more as starter):

• 1/2 a green, a red and a yellow bell pepper
• 2 cans of red beans (kidney beans) (400 g total dry weight)
• 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 150 g grated emmentaler cheese
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• a good sprinkle of Tabasco sauce to taste

Place the beans, drained almost completely (keep 2-3 tablespoons of their water) in a medium pan oven low heat.

Season with salt and pepper and let them fry. Meanwhile, wash and chop the bell peppers into sticks:

When the beans are warmed, start smashing them with a large fork or some other stirring tool directly into the pan, as they cook. At some point they will become to dry and you'll need to add the olive oil:

When every bean was smashed and everything starts to come together in an even paste, add the grated (or chopped into pieces) emmentaler:

Stir for a couple of minutes for the heat to work its magic on the cheese, then transfer to serving bowls and decorate with the dipping sticks:

It's ready, dig in! (Preferably serve warm).