Page Street Publishing (2024). 160pp.

Well hello, Booksmarters! It’s been a minute, so let’s see if I remember how to do this! Just in time for winter and the need for cozy food, as well as the ability to use cans of stuff you already have so you don’t have to go outside… here is Bangin’ Beans: 60 Vibrant Vegan Meals Powered by Plant-Based Protein by Sarah Doig, who unlike many vegan cookbook creators, has only been vegan since 2019!

This slim paperback, offered by the creator of the website Sarah’s Vegan Recipes, is divided into Soups, Stews, & Cozy Beans, Plant-Powered Mains; Fresh, Flavorsome Salads & Bowls’ and Beany Snacks, Dips, & Sides.  I’m not entirely sure what the difference is between the recipes in the first and second sections, but who cares, because the first one on the first page is Creamy Lemon & Herb Beans. The author states this recipe went viral when she posted it, and I can see why!

Like all the recipes I tried from this book, this is extremely easy to make – but boy is it yummy, and comfort food at its best. I love cooking with fresh herbs – this one calls for plenty of parsley and dill – and it smells soooo good when it’s cooking. This is weekend-slow-cooking fare with weeknight ease-of-prep. Serve with crusty bread as she recommends, and you can’t go wrong. You’ll be returning to this one. 

Also from chapter one, I made the Spicy Peanut Butter Beans with Sweet Potato.

Again: easy, flavorful, filling, comforting, and…. kale!  Yay. All the elements work perfectly together, and, other than the the kale and maybe the ginger and chili (which you can fudge with stuff from the pantry), you already have all the ingredients you need to make it. (You DO have black beans, diced tomatoes, peanut butter, coconut milk, and sweet potatoes stocked at all times, correct? If not, please get thee to Costco, prontissimo.) Onward.

I made the Coconutty Curried Beans because I wanted to use up an excess of carrots I had around. It was fine, but I’ll note here that there is a fair amount of flavor-profile repetition in this book, which is okay if you like the flavor profile. But if its, say, harissa, which I very much do not like, it’s a bummer, because it rules out several things. Whoops, looks like maybe I lingered too long in the first section, because I also made Edamame, Coconut & Cilantro Soup. This has nice brightness and heat, although I am generally not a fan of a pureed soup. I might add chunks of baked tofu next time. 

From the “Mains” category I made the Stroganoff Beans with Mushrooms and Garlic Rice. This should have slayed from the sound of it, but, I don’t know, blah. I was excited to try Marmite -one of the various ingredients that show up here which will tip you off the author is British, but that didn’t save the dish from yawnsville for some reason. It may be for me that stroganoff just has to be served on egg noodles, for which I have yet to find a decent vegan substitute. Suggestions welcome. (But please don’t say fettuccine. That’s not it.) 

From the salads and bowls chapter, I made the Caesar-Style Crispy Butter Bean Salad. The dressing, which is based in vegan mayo and capers, is good. And who doesn’t like homemade croutons? But here is a place – a salad – in which I’m not sure the texture of butter beans, even if roasted, quite fits. I think I’d rather have a salad as a accompaniment to a bean dish. Although A for effort, because I never would have thought of this, and Booksmarters appreciate vegan creativity. 

From the snacks chapter I tried the Crispy Spiced Potatoes on Garlicky Beans with Cilantro Chutney. As we know, Numero Uno here doesn’t really love potatoes, but this sounded like a good application. The potatoes are served on top of a bean puree which ended up having too much raw garlic for me. And the whole thing was a little heavy on the acid (granted I just squeezed a lemon in there and didn’t measure). It was a no for me. I had a similar disappointment with the Whipped Edamame & Tofu Dip with Crispy Soy Mushrooms. It’s super nutritious, but kind of tasteless. Needs heat or umami or something. But a good starting point for those things. The mushrooms were supposed to be pan fried, but I have utterly no idea how to get something with that much water content crispy in a pan. I air fried them, and they were chewy, not crispy, but I’d still eat a pile o’ those suckers three times a day if it weren’t for the sodium content. 

Last but definitely not least, I made the Spiced Crispy Bean Snack Mixes. There are spice mixes here for three different kinds of beans – just open the can, mix, and roast, and you have a great snack for a binge- watch or a game. I mean…these recipes make it a little too easy to down an entire can of beans, so… y’know… just be aware of that. 

While it’s not flawless, this book is worth owning for a bunch of reasons. First, the lemony herby beans. Second, its hands-down vegan beginner, so if you know someone who is just starting to cook, or if you find yourself having to cook vegan for one member of your family, this is great choice. There generally aren’t tons of steps, and there are no fancy techniques. The ingredients are readily available – a lot of them are pantry staples other than the fresh produce. Granted a couple of them are British like the aforementioned Marmite, or otherwise aren’t very well known in the U.S., like Romano peppers, French Echalion shallots, hispi cabbage, and chestnut mushrooms, but you can easily find substitutes. 

Go forth and eat your beans, kids! They’re cheap, versatile, and good for ya.

I did not receive any form of compensation in exchange for this review.