The Great Vegan Bean Book: More than 100 Delicious Plant-Based Dishes Packed with the Kindest Protein in Town! - Includes Soy-Free and Gluten-Free Recipes! [A Cookbook] (Great Vegan Book)

I was super stoked when I first heard about this book, I mean the title alone “The Great Vegan Bean Book” just makes you want to peek inside. As someone who primarily sticks to eating whole foods I’m a great lover of beans, though I tend to keep the same three in rotation - Garbanzo, Black, and Cannellini. Though I usually cook a different recipe each night of the week, I do tend towards many of the same flavor combinations, or cooking styles when it comes to beans. I was hoping that this book would broaden my bean horizon, teach me about new kinds of beans, and new creative ways of using them. Admittedly I have not had the time to cook as many of the recipes as I would have liked, but so far if found this book to be truly amazing.First of all I love the layout. Everything is well organized and easy to read, the directions and instructions are easy to follow and there is a ton of useful information in this book about beans. Cooking beans from scratch, information on different type of beans - including heirloom beans - tips for making perfect beans, and so on. The pictures are mouth-watering and beautiful, every one inspires you to want to start cooking. This book is also packed full of loads of other practical information and includes recipes for many staple ingredients like veggie bouillon, biscuits, sour cream and so on.As for the recipes themselves they are certainly creative. Kathy Hester invokes a wide range of culinary flavors to make a variety of dishes that are truly delicious. I’m particularly taken with the way she uses beans in the breakfast and dessert chapters. Overall this book is very whole foods focused with many of the recipes being either gluten or soy free, and many of them also having an oil-free option. Most recipes contain minimal ingredients, most of which are pretty easy to find - except perhaps for some of the heirloom beans which may need to be purchased online. Most of the recipes are also low in salt, and not overly sweet. Apparently grain-free is now a thing, and so you should be aware that grains are used throughout the book, and for those who care about such things nutritional and calorie information is provided for each recipe to make things easy.So far I’ve tried,Simple Pantry Salsa - Pretty goodBasic Whole What Biscuits - Loved itSweet Red Bean Paste - Loved itEasy Almond Parm - Pretty goodCashew Cream - Loved itAlmost a Meal White Bean Pesto Muffins - OkayWeekend Vanilla Belgian Waffles - Loved it!Sausage Spiced Savory Pancakes - Loved itSouthern Style White Bean Gravy - Loved itEnchained Vanilla Pancakes - Loved itBlueberry Almond Oatmeal Pancakes - Loved itOrange Blossom Brunch Biscuits - Loved itFour Layer Bean Dip - Loved itSmokey White Bean Spread - Loved itGer Well Fast Chickpea and Rice Soup - Loved itMarinated White Bean Nicoise Salad - Loved itAsian Black Soybean Slaw - OkayPesto White Bean Salad - Loved itIndian Chickpea Yogurt Salad - Pretty goodSloppy Buffalo Beans - Loved itWhere’s Dinner? Quick Burrito Filling - Loved itKidney Bean Masala - Pretty GoodRefried Bolita or Pinto Beans - Loved itKalpana’s Black Eyed Pea Curry - Loved itCreole White Beans - Loved itGood Mother Stallard Beans - Loved itBeluga lentil Stew over Fresh Spinach - Loved itWhite Bean Lemon Basil Stuffed Shells - Loved itDouble Chocolate Devil’s Food Cookies - Loved itPecan Chocolate Chip Chickpea Cookies - Loved itBlack Eyed-Peanut Butter Pie - Loved itBlack Bean Fudgesicles - Loved itThere really aren’t enough good things I can say about this book, and I think it makes a good addition to any vegan cook books collection. It’s simple enough for newbie vegans to follow and creative enough for seasoned vegans to enjoy. My only real complaint is that there weren’t more recipes involving heirloom beans, but maybe we’ll get another vegan bean book in the future.

As a vegan who loves beans, I was thrilled to find this cookbook. I've made many of the recipes and really enjoyed them all. The Bolognese sauce is one of my favorites, with the lentils and quinoa making it so healthy, and the crushed red pepper giving it the perfect amount of kick. I make the quinoa separately and add it to the sauce later because it seems to cook better that way. I've never tried a traditional meat based Bolognese sauce, so I can't compare it to that. It does not remind me of a meat sauce at all... if it did, I wouldn't eat it. I make this with pasta but this sauce is hearty enough to be eaten by itself.Another favorite is the "white bean lemon basil stuffed shells." I made this for Christmas Eve and my family loved it, although my very picky Italian mother refused to try it because it doesn't have real cheese. I'm not a fan of "fake cheese" products and appreciate the use of beans in this recipe to make the filling. These stuffed shells have a lot of basil flavor which I love.I was glad to see there aren't too many recipes in this book which try to simulate meat, for example, the "sausage-spiced savory pancakes." Recipes like this are good for vegetarians who miss meat, which I am not. I find meat repulsive and avoid anything that tries to resemble it.The recipe I've made most often are the "lemon coconut chickpea muffins." They are very easy and quick to make and come out fantastic every time. They're really filling. I use hemp protein powder to replace 1/3 of the flour and they're awesome this way and the hemp seems to bring out the coconut flavor.Another wonderful recipe is the "Indian chickpea yogurt salad" which the author mentions as her favorite. I prefer it without onion and add more cucumber because I think the onion overpowers the mild flavors of the cucumber, potato, and chickpeas. I also prefer using curry powder instead of the garlic and other spices listed. For anyone trying to avoid gluten, oil, or soy, the author offers alternatives in her recipes.

I had obtained this cookbook a few years ago when I was going through a meatless phase. I still prefer to eat less meat but couldn't give it up completely. That said, this book has THE MOST AWESOME bean recipes and Kathy Hester includes pointers on making them soy, gluten and/or oil free. Have given 2 of them as gifts (both parties LOVED it!) and this book is getting harder to find so plan to order another one to have on hand in case. The author also has an Oat cookbook that is just as phenomenal, but is a tad more expensive now.This is the most creative use of beans I've ever seen! My sister and I had tried the "Enchanted Vanilla Pancakes" and were amazed at how well beans translate into pancakes. Am still wanting to try the Sausage-Spiced Savory pancakes. Looks like a great way to get the flavor of sausage without the meat. Don't cook as much these days but still want to try the black bean fudgesicles, too. She includes recipes for soups/stews, casseroles, biscuits/muffins, dips, sandwiches, salads and desserts and there is a recipe for Sweet Red Bean Paste that she turns into filled mini-muffins/donuts and popsicles.If you're looking for a way to incorporate more beans in your diet, do yourself a favor and pick this book up. You won't be sorry!

Nice book... too bad the seller put a good size sticker on the back of the book. Covering the words. Took the sticker off.. now its sticky.

must have!! really like the recipes. thanks

This book is very well put together with lots of suggestions and swops to suit different dietary requirements. I have tried a couple of the recipes and found them easy to follow. Looking forward to working my way through it.

I love it, though my family and friend may not. Lots of ways for a vegan to get adequate, and tasty protein.And a good way of sticking one in the eye of all those carnivores who squeal what do you do for protein and vitamins.

I really like this book but it could do with less soup recipes. Looking forward to trying out all the new and different beans and legumes. I find it helpful too that the nutritional breakdown is there for all the recipes.

This is actually a really, really good cook book let alone vegan cookbook. Yes ok it would be made even better by lots of pics, but you'll cope!

used a few times okay