How to Make Easy Pizza Beans (Plant-Based Recipe)
Jul 12, 2022 • Updated Sep 25, 2024
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Make Pizza Beans for a hearty and comforting one-pot meal that’s vegan, gluten-free, and full of rich tomato flavor. It comes together in 20 minutes with super simple ingredients!
What Makes This Recipe Great
To develop this recipe for Pizza Baked Beans, I was inspired by the viral baked feta pasta dish. I leaned into that pizza vibe and this meal was born! It’s an easy one-pan dish that’s packed with plant-based protein. It features baked butter beans in a burst tomato and garlic sauce, fresh herbs, and melty cheese (vegan, of course!) to finish.
🍕 + 🫘 = Pizza Beans! Beans with all the pizza flavors you love and it’s vegan, gluten-free, and protein-rich. It makes an excellent lunch or quick dinner any day of the week. You can customize with all your favorite pizza toppings, but the recipe as is has great flavor and comes together so easily!
You only need one pan and maybe 20 minutes to make this and you can use your favorite vegan cheese. Eat by the spoonful or with bread and it’s perfect to make while tomatoes and basil are in season! Plus, this dish is even better the next day, as the flavors meld and become even more delicious.
More recipes using beans: Easy Vegan Fejãio Tropeiro and White Bean, Kale & Quinoa Salad.
Ingredient Notes
Here’s what you need for this simple one-pan meal.
- Cherry tomatoes. You can use all red cherry tomatoes or a mixture of colors. We’re making our tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes so there’s no need for a jar of marinara sauce or pizza sauce, though these make good substitutes if you don’t want to make homemade sauce.
- Garlic. For a classic Italian pizza flavor.
- Red pepper flakes. You can increase or decrease this according to your preference for spice.
- Tomato paste. Use double-concentrate tomato paste to maximize the umami in the beans.
- 15-ounce cans of Butter beans. You can use any kind of white beans that you like such as cannellini beans, great northern beans, navy beans, or white kidney beans.
- Mozzarella. Use your favorite vegan mozzarella that melts well. I used Parmela Creamery vegan mozzarella shreds. You can also add vegan parmesan cheese here too.
- Fresh Basil
- Oregano (Optional): You can use dried or fresh oregano, depending on your preference. Alternatively, a little bit of Italian seasoning will work well too.
How to Make Pizza Beans: Step-by-Step Instructions
The sauce for these beans starts in the pan by bursting fresh cherry tomatoes and herbs. Then toss in the beans. Finally, stick the pot in the oven to heat everything through, develop the flavors, and melt the cheese. It’s that simple!
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 475F degrees.
- In an oven-safe pan, Dutch oven, or large skillet, heat a drizzle of olive oil to a sizzle and add cherry tomatoes. Cook for about 4-5 minutes over medium heat, using a spatula to turn occasionally, or shaking the pan. The tomatoes should start to wrinkle.
- At this point you should be able to start to crush your tomatoes with ease. Use your spatula to break it down until nice and jammy then add garlic, chili flakes, and oregano, if using, and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Stir in your tomato paste.
- Add your beans and basil to the pan and cook for 4-5 minutes on low heat (a gentle simmer), using your spatula to make sure everything is nice and coated. Add salt to taste.
- Finish with vegan cheese to top and place in the oven to melt down the cheese. It may help to cover the pan in the oven to steam as vegan cheese can be trickier to melt down.
- Garnish with fresh basil and enjoy by the spoonful or serve with crusty bread of choice.
Do I Need Dry Beans?
I recommend using canned beans for convenience and to save time. However, you can also use homemade beans. You can also use any white bean variety. However, I love the larger size and texture of butter beans.
Secrets to Success
- You can use all red cherry tomatoes or a mixture of colors. We’re making our tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes so there’s no need for a jar of marinara sauce or pizza sauce, though these make good substitutes if you don’t want to make homemade sauce.
- Use your favorite vegan mozzarella that melts well. I used Parmela Creamery vegan mozzarella shreds. You can also add vegan parmesan cheese here too.
- You can use any kind of white beans that you like such as cannellini beans, great northern beans, navy beans, or white kidney beans.
Serving Suggestions
These beans are delicious on their own! Or try serving them with a side of fresh garlic bread or a simple green salad.
You can also serve the pizza beans as a base for favorite pizza toppings just like regular pizza! For example, try adding black olives, vegan pepperoni slices, vegan Italian sausage, mushrooms, red onions, bell peppers, or eggplant.
Storage Tips
Store leftover pizza beans in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days. Reheat over the stove top and garnish with more fresh basil and other favorite toppings if desired.
More Recipes with Beans
If you make this recipe, be sure to let me know what you think with a star rating and comment below! Follow me on Instagram for more delicious recipes!
How to Make Easy Pizza Beans (Plant-Based Recipe)
Ingredients
- 24 ounces cherry tomatoes
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tsp red chili flakes
- 2 tbsp double concentrated tomato paste
- 2 15 ounce cans of butter beans or other white bean of choice, drained and rinsed
- 1/3 cup fresh basil leaves
- 1 1/2 tsp salt more to taste
- handful vegan mozzarella cheese to top
- optional
- more fresh basil to garnish
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 475F degrees.
- In an oven-safe pan or skillet, heat olive oil to a sizzle and add cherry tomatoes. Cook for about 4-5 minutes, using a spatula to turn occasionally, or shaking the pan. The tomatoes should start to wrinkle.
- At this point you should be able to start to crush your tomatoes with ease. Use your spatula to break it down until nice and jammy then add garlic, chili flakes and oregano, if using, and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Stir in your tomato paste.
- Add your beans and basil to the pan and cook for 4-5 minutes on low heat, using your spatula to make sure everything is nice and coated. Add salt to taste.
- Finish with vegan cheese to top and place in the oven to melt down the cheese. It may help to cover the pan in the oven to steam as vegan cheese can be trickier to melt down.
- Garnish with fresh basil and enjoy by the spoonful or serve with crusty bread of choice.
Notes
Secrets to Success
- You can use all red cherry tomatoes or a mixture of colors. We’re making our tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes so there’s no need for a jar of marinara sauce or pizza sauce, though these make good substitutes if you don’t want to make homemade sauce.
- Use your favorite vegan mozzarella that melts well. I used Parmela Creamery vegan mozzarella shreds. You can also add vegan parmesan cheese here too.
- You can use any kind of white beans that you like such as cannellini beans, great northern beans, navy beans, or white kidney beans.
Serving Suggestions
These beans are delicious on their own! Or try serving them with a side of fresh garlic bread or a simple green salad. You can also serve the pizza beans as a base for favorite pizza toppings just like regular pizza! For example, try adding black olives, vegan pepperoni slices, vegan Italian sausage, mushrooms, red onions, bell peppers, or eggplant.Storage Tips
Store leftover pizza beans in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days. Reheat over the stove top and garnish with more fresh basil and other favorite toppings if desired.Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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