Vegetarian Bean Tostadas with a savory medley of beans, cheese, and veggies. Easily vegan-ized and deliciously gluten-free, pile these tasty tostadas mile high with all your favorite toppings!
Have we taken a moment to talk about Mexican pizzas yet?
They’ve been drive-thru indulgence of choice for more years than I care to confess. Though I’d always order them sans beef, they were still far from healthy. Regardless, I insisted that I did not, under any circumstances, want to know what was in them…
Sand. There’s freaking sand in the tortillas.
It’s actually silica, to be more exact, which is supposed to make the tortillas crispier or prevent caking or breakage or who-cares-what.
If you’re partial to sand-free Mex pizzas as well, I whipped up a healthy alternative for lunch the other day!
I had a few heaping cups of leftover filling from my triple-bean flautas as well as a pile of corn tortillas that were just begging to be reintroduced to my face. It was no-brainer, really.
The result was a crazy flavorful, crisp and crunchy tostada (think old school tacos in open face form) that instantly earned itself a spot in our regular rotation. SO GOOD!
More Tasty Tostada Recipes
While we’re on the topic of tostadas, here are a few more versions that are sure to rock your plate.
- NEW! Breakfast Tostadas
- White Bean Tostadas
- Shrimp Tostadas with Easy Blender Guacamole
- Copycat Tijuana Flats Tostadas Recipe
You can basically turn any taco recipe on this blog into a tostada so feel free to have fun with your food!
Crispy Vegetarian Bean Tostadas
There are two different ways you can introduce these tasty tostadas to your face.
The first method would be tostada-style where you place a layer of flavorful bean-y goodness atop the crispy tortilla and assault it with cheese and toppings galore.
The second method involves layering the tortillas with hot melty cheese and beans between each layer.
Of course you’ll want to plaster them in toppings too, so the main question you’ll want to ask yourself is if you want a single or double?
I went with a triple, because I like to live dangerously.
By live dangerously, I mean it was simply more fun to photograph that way!
When I’m not trying to impress anyone and plan on simply stuffing my face while standing in the kitchen, wearing a baby, and simultaneously trying to clean up after myself WHILE eating, well then I just make a double and call it a day.
Extra cheese and toppings on mine, please and thank you.
Ooh! Before I forget, if you use the scaled down version of the triple-bean fillng above you’ll still have a little bit left over. You can store it in the fridge to make another tostada or two for lunch the next day or slap it in a taco or quesadilla and enjoy a quick meal with it! The recipe above makes four mini pizzas.
Let’s get our recipe on!
Crispy Baked Vegetarian Bean Tostadas
Ingredients
- 2 cups leftover triple bean flauta filling or use the scaled down recipe below
- 1/2-1 cup refried beans
- 8 small yellow corn tortillas
- a few tablespoons of your favorite taco/enchilada sauce
- your favorite toppings from the list below
TRIPLE BEAN FILLING
- 1/2 cup onion
- 1/2 TBSP avocado oil or coconut oil
- 1/2 large bell pepper (diced)
- 1 cup black beans
- 1 cup chickpeas
- 1/2 cup cannellini or pinto beans
- 1/4 cup salsa verde
- 1/2 TBSP chili powder
- 1/2 TBSP garlic powder
- 1/2 TBSP cumin
- a pinch of cayenne pepper or paprika
- a pinch of oregano
- fresh chopped cilantro, to taste
- salt, to taste
TASTY TOPPINGS
- freshly grated cheese
- fresh cilantro
- chopped green onion
- tomatoes
- jalapeños
- salsa
- pico de gallo
- guacamole
- sour cream or greek yogurt
- shredded lettuce
Instructions
- Combine two cups of flauta filling or the bean and veggie recipe above (simply saute the onions in oil, drain and rinse the beans, and then combine with remaining ingredients) with a half to full cup of refried beans and heat in a sauce pot on the stove on medium-low until hot.
- While it cooks, chop and grate your toppings and set aside. I went with freshly grated gouda and white cheddar cheeses, fresh jalapenos, cherry tomatoes, chopped cilantro, and red pepper flakes. I also used an all-natural enchilada sauce to add a little extra oomph at the end.
- For the tortillas, preheat your oven or toaster oven to 400 F. Wrap 4 tortillas in moderately damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds on high. If you’re making 8, only nuke four at a time so they properly steam.
- Rub each tortilla with olive or coconut oil and place directly on the rack so that both edges are supported enough to lay each tortilla completely flat. I used a toaster oven so this was easy, if you’re using your oven you might want to employ a wire cooling rack [like this] to prevent them from falling to their doom.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes, turning over at the halfway point, until golden brown.
- Remember when I told you to choose between two options earlier? Well it’s crunch time — literally! Whichever method you go with, you’ll essentially be doing the same thing. Spread the crunchy tortilla with the beans, drizzle with taco sauce, enchilada sauce, or even hot sauce and top with freshly grated cheese. Lots of it. Then either stack it or return it by it’s lonesome to the oven/toaster atop a sheet of foil or a baking pan to melt the cheeses. Once you’ve achieved melty perfection, pile on as many toppings as you can physically muster and commence faceplant.
Notes
Nutrition
so . . . how were they!?
Better than the original! I’ve been making these with plain ole refried beans for a while now but they were always a wee bit boring. The triple-bean filling provided the flavor punch that took these to the next level.
The top level.
Super-posh penthouse, even!
more taco night favorites
- NEW! Kale Taco Salad with Crispy Roasted Chickpeas
- Instant Pot Lentil Tacos
- Chicken Taquitos from Dinner at the Zoo
- Sheet Pan Nachos with Homemade Queso
- Avocado Salsa Verde
If you get a chance to try these tasty Vegetarian Bean Tostadas, let me know!
You can leave me a comment here (LOVE checking those daily!) or tag @PEASandCRAYONS on Instagram so I can happy dance over your creations. I can’t wait to see what you whip up!
These tostadas are absolutely delicious!
Thanks Brandy!
Love tostadas! They were so yummy – a hit with the whole family!
So happy to hear it Justine – thanks!
Tried and loved it! I can’t believe I used to buy the hardened tortillas for tostadas! Now I can easily just put them in the oven 🙂
So so so glad you loved them Bianca! Thanks!
Hi. I’ve been reading through some of your posts and came across to this post- looks yummy and now I know what I’ll do with my left over corn tortillas. Thanks for the inspiration! By the way, what a beautiful profile pic!
Thank you so much Lauren!
These look wonderful and so easy to veganize, thanks!
You never fail to amaze me, and I’m ever so grateful I haven’t had a sand pizza in years…maybe ever. Wow. I just impressed myself, but no worries, I consumed enough chemical laced sugar candy back then to more than make up for it.
I ate three pieces of Coconut Orange Blueberry French Toast yesterday because three slices looked better in the pictures. I was completely stuffed. Totally worth it though.
First, I want to say that those look absolutely wonderful! I cannot wait to try this recipe out! However, sand in the tortillas? That’s absolutely disgusting! I can’t say that I’m surprised really, but disgusted nonetheless. I’m sure yours taste better than fast food-y ones anyway 🙂
Yummm!!! Isn’t it scary learning what’s in drive thru food? This looks like a much more delicious alternative 😉
Umm these sound amazing and not just because they are sand free 😉 That is so weird that the original drive through ones are allowed to use that ingredient, yuck!
I could eat mexican food everyday and I love cooking my own. Def trying this recipe!
These look delicious! I’ve actually been making a similar kind of thing for Jesse lately and he’s obsessed – but the first time I said “Oh I made you… Mexican… pizza… thingies?” he was like “Mexican.. pizza? That can’t work”
Ate his words, may I say ;P