The Back Story of Our New Plant-Based Meal Plan Classroom + Oven Roasted Garbanzo Bean/Chickpea Snacks

We started offering our weekly Plant Fueled Meal Plans in 2016.

I remember feeling nervous to offer them as a monthly subscription because that would mean I would have to come up with a new Meal Plan each and every week. And at the time, we were a two person team – my wife Luanne, and I, so we already had a lot on our plate. But sometimes you just have to say fuck it and start before you’re ready.

It turned out, people dug the Meal Plans and were excited to sign up. When we had enough members, we hired two Whole-Food Plant-Based recipe wizards (Jen and Tamie) to help me with the recipes and Meal Plans (that was such sweet relief!). The Meal Plans just kept growing and growing and we were able to hire more awesome people to help us with our business, and support our Meal Plan subscribers and Dirty community. We could finally work ON our business and not IN our business.

We knew that eventually we wanted to make the Meal Plans more customizable and user friendly. We wanted to keep the handcrafted essence of the Meal Plans and translate them into a customizable, responsive and interactive classroom.

In order to do that, we needed to find the right developers to help us create a custom classroom. We specifically needed database developers who were familiar with the Whole-Food Plant-Based diet and who had used our Meal Plans. Oh, and if they could be lovely people with no egos and totally easy to work with, that would be a bonus. Thanks whoever is in charge of these things 🙂

Seriously, the odds were stacked against us. We needed a very specific technical skill set with very specific experience and knowledge. But you know what happens when you ask for what you want and then let it go? The universe waters that seed and delivers it to you. In a plane. Right to your lunch table. On the Big Island of Hawaii.

And then one year and two months later, you launch the most kickass, impressive, beautiful, functional Meal Plan classroom in existence. And you geek out with your developers and tell the story to your community.

Here’s the story of how it all happened.

Magalie and Carl, THANK YOU. You are beautiful humans and it is such an honor to work with you.

I also have to thank our Dirty team because each and every one of them stepped up to help make this happen. Karen, Jo, Kellie, Laura, Tamie, Jen, Lyndsey, Sandrina, Amanda, Maggie, and Marijke – you all have my heart. Thank you.

It was a labor of love, and it is with great honor that I invite you to join our new and immeasurably improved Plant Fueled Meal Plans.

If you are already a subscriber, your classroom is waiting for you here.

Have you played in the new Meal Plan classroom yet? If so, we would love to hear about it in the comments below!

Oven Roasted Garbanzo Bean Snacks

About 3 cups

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate Recipe

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

• ▢ 3 cups canned garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed (aka chickpeas / directions below) (2 cans)

Seasoning:

• ▢ 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• ▢ 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• ▢ 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• ▢ ½ tablespoon garlic powder
• ▢ ½ tablespoon onion powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon white miso
• ▢ 1 teaspoon low sodium soy sauce
• ▢ ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon dried basil
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary crushed
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon black pepper about 10 turns
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

• Set your oven rack in the center position and preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a baking mat. Set aside.
• Place all of the Seasoning ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir well to combine. This will be a thick paste-like mixture. Set aside for now.
• Transfer the rinsed and drained garbanzo beans onto a clean kitchen towel in a single layer. Pull the sides of the towel around the beans and gently roll them around while patting them dry. This will remove some, but not all of the outer skins from the beans, which will help them to dry when baking. Don’t worry about removing all of the skins.
• Transfer all of the beans (and the skins!) from the towel to the mixing bowl with the Seasoning mixture. Using a flexible spatula, gently stir the beans to evenly coat them.
• Transfer the beans to the baking sheet and spread them out in a single layer. Bake for 15 minutes, stir and then bake for an additional 10 minutes. Stir the beans again and then bake for about 10 more minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn!
• Turn the oven off and then, without removing the baking sheet from the oven, give it a gentle shake to stir the beans. Leave the baking sheet in the oven and prop the oven door open slightly. Leave the beans inside to cool for 30 minutes. Don’t forget they are in there – set a timer if you have to!
• Once the beans are cooled, transfer to an airtight jar or container. Store the beans in your fridge.

Notes

If your beans get soft while being stored, you can bake them at 350°F (175°C) for about 10 minutes until crispy. Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn!

These are really yummy to top salad or bowls with, or to eat on their own.

Wishing you a happy week. May it be filled with believing that it’s possible.

Xo
Molly