Beans are something of a staple in the vegan pantry, and can be prepared in numerous different ways. For example, coming from Greek heritage, in our household we would regularly eat fasolia, which to this day remains a firm favourite with us all at home. However, I sometimes prefer to make mine using baked beans – cannellini, haricot or red kidney beans. This time round, I decided to take a different route, and to get inspired by the good old American southern style baked bean dish. Though this is usually cooked with smoky bacon strips, mustard, and other spicy flavourings, and I needed to capture the same kick with my flavours, but without the meat of course. So I used smoked paprika and maple syrup, with a good dose of chilli powder, and it gave me just the result I was looking for.
Spring may be round the corner, but it’s certainly still windy and chilly in Malta right now, and most people in Europe and the US have had a pretty rotten time with the weather over the last couple of months. This dish is just the antidote for that – warm, hearty and enormously inviting on a cold evening. Serve with green veggies and hot garlic bread, and you’ll go to bed warm and satisfied !
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
extra virgin olive oil
2 medium sized onions, finely chopped
1 large potato, cut into squares
6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
12 cherry tomatoes
3 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tsp smoked paprika (available in the US from here, and in the UK from here)
2 tsp chilli powder (adjust to suit your palette)
2-3 cups vegetable stock (adjust according to your consistency preference)
1 x 14 oz (400g) tin cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 x 14 oz (400g) tin red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 tsp maple syrup (but adjust to taste)
2 Tbsp fresh flat leaf celery, finely chopped
2 tsp vegan margarine
salt to taste
METHOD
- Heat your olive oil, and in a non-stick casserole, and fry your onion and potato pieces. Allow to cook, and mix for around 3 to 4 minutes.
- Then add the garlic, and continue to stir for a couple of minutes (don’t burn the garlic, or else it will become toxic).
- Now add the cherry tomatoes and tomato paste, and mix for another minute.
- Then add the cinnamon, other spices, vegetable stock, and all the other ingredients, and lower the heat. Allow to simmer for 40 minutes, checking on it every so often, and stirring.
- The stew is ready when the veggies are nice and soft. Serve hot and Enjoy !
All recipes and content © Miriam Sorrell www.mouthwateringvegan.com 2010
Are there more than one kinds of celery? I didn’t know there was a flat leafed celery vs a curly leaf? Did you mean parsley? Other than that…sounds yum-a-lish-ous!!!
Hi Miriam, i have made this tonight. It tastes fine but is very watery which I didn’t expect reading your recipe. Also should you be dicing the tomatoes? I nearly burned myself on a whole one in my desperation to eat :). Otherwise it is lovely.
Hi Miriam and Catherine, I also made this dish last night and yes it was a hit, even with my almost vegan husband who is very critical. Catherine, when I saw your post regarding the dish being a bit watery I simmered mine for the 40 mins without a lid on the pot and it ended up looking the same consistency as in the photo. I then divided the meal into 8 individual ramekins and topped them with a dollop mash potato and crisped the top in a hot oven. Thank you Miriam, I will definitely be adding this to my small collection of favorite recipes.
Hi Ingrid and thanks for dropping by here with your constructive feedback ! So glad you enjoyed it and yes, the trick is to keep them simmering until the sauce begins to evaporate and thus thickens. I look forward to your future comments on my blog ! 🙂
Catherine Hi there, sorry to hear you almost burnt yourself. Yes, just chop the tomatoes. The trick to my recipe is to cook it until it thickens, it will do this when you simmer it for long enough without the lid, in this way some of the liquid will evaportate, the starches from the beans will release into the juice from the stew and this creates a thick consistency – so all you need is a little more time on the heat. Sounds like you were hungry when you started off cooking and then thought (as we all sometimes do “that’s it, I must eat now”). Best your way ! 🙂
Hi there Connie, I did mean celery, but by all means use any kind you can get hold of. I hope you enjoy this dish ! 🙂
thank you for your wonderful website. It truly is mouthwatering and very healthy !
Thanks there Mary, glad you enjoyed it and I look forward to your future feedback on my blog. Meantime, enjoy !
Yes a nice dish
Glad you enjoyed it Maria. 🙂
Well, I’m really disappointed. I’ve been simmering this mixture for almost an hour – it is still like soup. It also had almost no flavor. I added 1/4 C. tomato paste, 1 T prepared mustard, 1 T maple syrup, 1 tsp. each Penzey’s Barbeque and Old World seasoniings. I followed the directions exactly, and cooked with no lid. I love baked beans, and hope this recipe turns out.
Phyllis Hi – I have adjusted the quantity of stock and is now less, in this way the cooking time required is minimized. Sorry for any inconvenience, it does thicken but takes a while, as you can see from the other comments.
This is the first time I’ve tried one of your recipes. I can it is so good! I only used one onion and 3 cups of water w/ veggie paste and 1 tsp agave – still so good! I will look into getting some maple 🙂 Thank you!
Oh yeah and I put diced avocado on top! Only second week being a vegan, with this website I am happy I won’t run out of things to make!
This sounds great and will be trying shortly. I also love how you make recommendations as to what to eat with it. Thank you. I made another stew of yours a few weeks ago, it was absolutely delicious.
Thanks for letting me know there Michelle – so glad you are enjoying my recipes (we love stews here). 🙂
Hi Julia – congrats on such a great decision to go vegan. My site is designed for all vegans including new ones that wish to remain so, so, enjoy my recipes and let me know what you think. 🙂
You are welcome Julia !
This was an excellent dish! It would stand alone as a fabulous meal, and it was great paired with a sandwich. Really filling and I enjoyed the spices. Thanks for the share!
Hi Courtney and welcome here. I am so glad you made this dish and enjoyed it ! It’s also perfect served with either cornbread or hot crunchy garlic bread – heaven ! I look forward to your future comments on my blog !