A Grain, a Green, a Bean: One Simple Formula, Countless Meatless Meals

by Gena Hamshaw

In this collection of over 80 delicious, plant-based recipes, nutritionist, blogger, and author of The Vegan Week explores one simple meal planning a grain, a green, and a bean.

“Gena’s fun formula, made accessible by her bright recipes, is for anyone who wants to consume fewer animal products (me) and not feel unsated doing so (also me).”—Emma Laperruque, associate director of cooking at Bon Appétit and Epicurious

This simple trinity of foods lends itself to endless possibilities. Gena Hamshaw expands on the nourishing and economical trio with meals that include not only dark, leafy greens, whole grains, and beans, but also pasta, bread, zucchini, edamame, and tofu. She offers an approach to wholesome vegan eating that's welcoming and adaptable to any lifestyle. 

Keeping busy schedules in mind, A Grain, a Green, a Bean includes time-saving methods and formulas, including sheet-pan meals and one-pot wonders. Bring the beans and grains in your pantry to life with recipes such  

• Bowls & Baked Pita, Crispy Chickpeas, and Spinach with Curried Cauliflower and Beet Couscous, Cheesy Tofu, and Watercress
• Beans and Greens on Kidney Beans and Kale over Savory Waffles and French Onion Brothy Beans and Greens with Garlic Toast
• Stovetop Red Wien Braised Mushrooms and French Lentils with Farro and Gochujang Pasta with Scallions, Kale, and Edamame
• Oven to Spinach Lasagna Rolls and Sheet Pan Shawarma-Spiced Soy Curls and Freekeh
• Cashew Sour Cream and Eggy Tofu
• Sweet Freezer Fruit Crumble and Olive Oil Cake

These recipes serve as flashes of inspiration for when you've looked in your cabinets ten times for dinner ideas and still don't know what to make. A Grain, a Green, a Bean will quickly set you up to create an array of beautifully balanced grain bowls, soups, salads, toast, and more—with the promise of endless possibilities to keep you inspired.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Food

417 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 15, 2025

Reviews

[Miss✧Pickypants ᓚᘏᗢ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well-done plant-based cookbook! Recipes are extremely well-written and there are tasteful photos for every one. This would be a great cookbook for anyone, not just vegans, looking for tasty dishes that just happen to be plant-based.

Each recipe follows a format of using, as the title states, a grain, a bean and a green. What I particularly liked was the author didn't limit her definition of greens to just dark leafy greens but instead includes many green vegetables. This helped to vary the recipes and avoid repetitiveness. I also appreciated that recipes tended to use canned beans, which makes them easy to whip up without having to plan ahead to soak the beans. And the other thing that was cool was the inclusion of from scratch vegan replacements for store-bought processed vegan products.

[Alexandria · Rating 4 out of 5]

great for inspiration. first recipe was a taco bowl, though.

[MAYA QUARTZ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gena Hamshaw’s A Grain, a Green, a Bean presents itself less as a collection of recipes and more as a formula for everyday plant-based cooking. I liked her deceptively simple but clever approach: every meal can be built from a grain, a green, and a bean. From this structure, she spins out salads, bowls, toasts, pastas, sheet-pan dinners, and even desserts, layering in sauces and pantry basics to encourage flexibility. The book is also beautifully photographed and organized, with each recipe clearly mapped to the framework. On first read, many dishes sound appealing and nutritious, with enough variety to showcase how versatile the formula can be.

The idea itself is solid; every meal feels balanced, both nutritionally and visually, and the variety of grains, beans, and “greens” keeps the framework from becoming monotonous. At the same time, I found myself hesitating over certain recipes because they demanded too many separate preparations, sometimes requiring additional recipes within the same dish. For a book that presents itself as a solution to weeknight indecision, a handful of these meals felt overly complicated or required extra planning that undercut the supposed simplicity. Nothing in the book struck me as especially inventive, though that may be a result of my having read a large number of cookbooks; readers newer to the genre may find more novelty here. The style is clean and approachable, but the pacing sometimes wavers between straightforward pantry meals and more ambitious undertakings, leaving the collection slightly uneven.

Overall, A Grain, a Green, a Bean is a practical and health-conscious cookbook with an appealing guiding principle. I liked the structure and found many of the dishes worth trying, but the execution occasionally felt at odds with the promise of streamlined, everyday cooking. For me, it was a useful read rather than an inspiring one. It was solid, reliable, but not revelatory.

[MD Arif · Rating 4.75 out of 5]

A Grain, a Green, a Bean is a wonderfully creative cookbook that makes meatless cooking feel simple, flexible, and genuinely enjoyable. I really love the straightforward formula behind the book because it provides an easy framework for creating satisfying meals without needing complicated recipes or a long list of ingredients.

The concept is both practical and inspiring. By combining grains, greens, and beans in different ways, the book offers countless possibilities while encouraging readers to experiment with flavors, textures, and ingredients they already enjoy. It is an especially useful approach for anyone who wants to eat more plant-based meals without feeling like every dish has to be elaborate.

I also appreciated the emphasis on variety. The simple formula gives home cooks plenty of room to personalize meals and adapt recipes based on what is available in the kitchen. That flexibility makes the cookbook feel realistic for everyday cooking rather than something that only works on special occasions.

Overall, A Grain, a Green, a Bean is an approachable, clever, and inspiring addition to a vegetarian cookbook collection. It shows that wholesome meatless meals can be flavorful, satisfying, and surprisingly easy to prepare. I would happily recommend it to both longtime plant-based cooks and anyone looking for fresh ideas for eating more vegetables and legumes. Five stars!

[Marion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hamshaw opens up with an introduction which includes background, going back to basics, the building blocks, meal prep and storage, featured ingredients and how to explore this book. All her recipes contain at least one grain, one green and one bean and most of the ingredients you will find easily in your grocery stores. The directions in the cookbook were easy to follow and every recipe had a photo to show you what it should look like. I tried the following recipes which came out excellent and were very tasty and filling. Starting with the section Stovetop Meals, I tried the Pasta, Kidney, Bean & Kale Soup, then I went to Oven to Table, which I cooked, Sheet Pan, Panzanella w/Escarole, Burst Tomatoes & White Beans, I also tried Baked Risotto w/mushrooms & Edamame. I then made Pesto from the Basic section and finally I made Olive Oil Cake and Chocolate Snack Cake from the Sweet Things section. I would not only recommend this book for vegetarians but anyone who enjoys eating vegetables. Thank you, Ten Speed Press, for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Shamim Reza · Rating 4.75 out of 5]

This is a wonderfully practical cookbook for anyone who wants to make delicious, satisfying meatless meals without complicated recipes. The simple combination of a grain, a green, and a bean provides an easy foundation for creating countless flavorful dishes. I love how the approach encourages creativity while keeping meals nutritious, affordable, and approachable. The recipes offer plenty of variety, so eating more plant-based meals never feels repetitive or restrictive. The book is especially helpful for busy cooks who want wholesome meals without spending hours planning or preparing them. The clear formula makes it easy to mix and match ingredients based on what is available in the kitchen. Overall, this is an inspiring and useful cookbook that makes vegetarian cooking feel simple, flexible, and enjoyable. Highly recommended for both beginners and experienced home cooks!

[Steph Raph · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am always hesitant when I read a new cookbook, almost as a challenge for the author to surprise me or bring something new to the table. This author did just that: what a creative and fresh take on food! I was amazed by her wizardry and tips. Did you know a butter bean is just a mature lima bean?! The knowledge I gained was immeasurable (I guess not, as I gave it 4 stars...but you know what I mean)! I have already made the tempeh and walnut balls and they are a protein-packed bite! So easy and such whole ingredients. I am a fan. I can't wait to make more of her recipes and to check out her other books. Bravo!

[Kim Veach · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is my favorite book of hers. There are so many delicious recipes and ideas. It's particularly timely for me. I just joined the Rancho Gordo Bean Club, and I'll be using this book to make recipes with their beans. Just to be clear, she calls for canned beans or gives the measurement for the amount of cooked beans.

[Sarah R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a solid cookbook with many solid vegan recipes that follow the grain, green, bean formula. There are plenty of surprising and savory combinations here, and nothing looks too difficult to make or find ingredients for.

I like that this book contains plenty of not-too-complicated recipes that look delicious and are also well-rounded.

[Lucy T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid collection based on a formula for building a meal that will pretty much never steer you wrong. There’s a genius fruit crumble recipe at the end that is so fast and easy but so, so good! The book is worth checking out for that alone.

[Anastasia Tuckness · Rating 3 out of 5]

I made the Miso Edamame Udon last night and it was quite tasty! I also look forward to making the Kale Wheat Berry Apple salad.

It's definitely a vegan cookbook and may feel a little inaccessible to "regular" cooks, but it's creative and has lots of different types of food (salads, oven, etc.).

[Jaque · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gena's recipes in this book remind me of my favourite vegetarian magazine, the FOK. I love most of the recipes in this book!

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Gabrielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as Power Plates, in my opinion.

[Jennybeast · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the concept, and got at least 2 tasty recipes for our regular rotation.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think there was more than a half dozen recipes I wanted to try, it was more that it was inspiring in the combinations.