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Grist: A Practical Guide to Cooking Grains, Beans, Seeds, and Legumes
T he only grain and legume cookbook you need!
Shortlisted for the 2022 Art of Eating Prize
As featured in Epicurious , Modern Farmer , Refinery29 , Shape , Plated , Eater, Food52, Midwest Living , Bon Appetit , MindBodyGreen , The Infatuation , Associated Press , On the Menu , and NPR's The Splendid Table.
Make grains the easiest, healthiest, and most exciting stars on your table. Abra Berens, a James Beard semifinalist for Outstanding Chef and the author of Ruffage , shares more than 300 recipes and variations, plus substantial reference information to help you discover the next great grain.
Grist includes more than 125 recipes for 29 different types of grains, legumes, and seeds that, in combination with vegetables and lean proteins, are the stars of the healthiest, most variable, and most satisfying meals—many of them gluten free.
Home cooks will be attracted to the reference quality of the book, its beauty (more than 100 gorgeous photos and 30 illustrations) and heft (125 recipes + 300 variations = 448 pages), as well as the great writing, relatable voice, author authority, and unique recipe style. New and seasoned home cooks alike will find themselves turning to this guide to develop a repertoire of approachable, big-on-flavor recipes.
THIS IS THE A TO Z OF GRAINS, BEANS, AND The content is deep and authoritative, but also wide-ranging, with information and recipes for 29 different grains, legumes, and Amaranth, Barley, Black-Eyed Peas, Buckwheat, Bulgur, Chickpeas, Common Beans, Corn, Cowpeas, Crowder Peas, Farro, Fava Beans, Field Peas, Fonio, Freekeh, Legumes, Lentils, Lima Beans, Millet, Oats, Quinoa, Rice, Sorghum, Split Peas, Soy Beans, Teff, Tiny Seed Grains, and Wheat Berries.
REFERENCE Organized by type of grain/legume/seed, each chapter offers authoritative info and tips that home cooks can use to deepen their knowledge of ingredients and broaden their stable of techniques. The recipes are simple, generally quick to prepare, and use ingredients that are easy to find or often already in people's pantries.
FOLLOW-UP ON Ruffage by Abra Berens was named a Best Cookbook by the New York Times and Bon Appétit , was a 2019 Michigan Notable Book winner, and was nominated for a 2019 James Beard Award.
"Things in my kitchen have changed since Ruffage arrived. This organized, easygoing guide to 29 vegetables offers a few cooking methods for each one, supplemented by several variations."—Kim Severson, New York Times
"[ Ruffage ] is a total classic in the making."—Christina Chaey, associate editor, Bon Appétit
"Crammed with exciting ideas that encourage creativity, this lively book will quickly become an essential item in the home cook's library."— Library Journal (starred review)
Perfect
Shortlisted for the 2022 Art of Eating Prize
As featured in Epicurious , Modern Farmer , Refinery29 , Shape , Plated , Eater, Food52, Midwest Living , Bon Appetit , MindBodyGreen , The Infatuation , Associated Press , On the Menu , and NPR's The Splendid Table.
Make grains the easiest, healthiest, and most exciting stars on your table. Abra Berens, a James Beard semifinalist for Outstanding Chef and the author of Ruffage , shares more than 300 recipes and variations, plus substantial reference information to help you discover the next great grain.
Grist includes more than 125 recipes for 29 different types of grains, legumes, and seeds that, in combination with vegetables and lean proteins, are the stars of the healthiest, most variable, and most satisfying meals—many of them gluten free.
Home cooks will be attracted to the reference quality of the book, its beauty (more than 100 gorgeous photos and 30 illustrations) and heft (125 recipes + 300 variations = 448 pages), as well as the great writing, relatable voice, author authority, and unique recipe style. New and seasoned home cooks alike will find themselves turning to this guide to develop a repertoire of approachable, big-on-flavor recipes.
THIS IS THE A TO Z OF GRAINS, BEANS, AND The content is deep and authoritative, but also wide-ranging, with information and recipes for 29 different grains, legumes, and Amaranth, Barley, Black-Eyed Peas, Buckwheat, Bulgur, Chickpeas, Common Beans, Corn, Cowpeas, Crowder Peas, Farro, Fava Beans, Field Peas, Fonio, Freekeh, Legumes, Lentils, Lima Beans, Millet, Oats, Quinoa, Rice, Sorghum, Split Peas, Soy Beans, Teff, Tiny Seed Grains, and Wheat Berries.
REFERENCE Organized by type of grain/legume/seed, each chapter offers authoritative info and tips that home cooks can use to deepen their knowledge of ingredients and broaden their stable of techniques. The recipes are simple, generally quick to prepare, and use ingredients that are easy to find or often already in people's pantries.
FOLLOW-UP ON Ruffage by Abra Berens was named a Best Cookbook by the New York Times and Bon Appétit , was a 2019 Michigan Notable Book winner, and was nominated for a 2019 James Beard Award.
"Things in my kitchen have changed since Ruffage arrived. This organized, easygoing guide to 29 vegetables offers a few cooking methods for each one, supplemented by several variations."—Kim Severson, New York Times
"[ Ruffage ] is a total classic in the making."—Christina Chaey, associate editor, Bon Appétit
"Crammed with exciting ideas that encourage creativity, this lively book will quickly become an essential item in the home cook's library."— Library Journal (starred review)
Perfect
448 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2021
233 people are currently reading
5462 people want to read
About the author
Abra Berens
3 books96 followersAbra Berens is the chef at Granor Farm and author of Grist: a practical guide to cooking grains, beans, seeds, and legumes and Ruffage:a practical guide to vegetables. Abra strives to make simple, delicious food that celebrates the Midwest. She has been cooking since 2006, from the storied Zingerman's Deli, to chef driven restaurants in Chicago. In 2017, she left her position as Executive Chef at Local Foods to join the Granor team. As the chef at Granor Farm, Abra combines her love of Michigan, cooking vegetables just-pulled from the ground, and sharing them with others around one big table.
Ruffage is her first cookbook and focuses on vegetables-- how to select them, how to store them, how to prepare them along with hundreds of recipe variations to make it easy to work delicious veggies into your daily repertoire.
Grist is a continuation of the practical guide series and is a reference for incorporating whole grains and pulses into every day meals.
Ruffage is her first cookbook and focuses on vegetables-- how to select them, how to store them, how to prepare them along with hundreds of recipe variations to make it easy to work delicious veggies into your daily repertoire.
Grist is a continuation of the practical guide series and is a reference for incorporating whole grains and pulses into every day meals.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
abandona2
June 29, 2021Thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I dropped this right after the intro. I don’t think I am able to review this because of how shockingly terrible the intro is. It just put me off the whole book. This is all based on uncorrected proofs, so there’s still hope, maybe.
The author’s explanations on why she chose to include meat just took me out. Let me just state that my issues are not with the inclusion of meat, because this isn’t a vegetarian or vegan book and I am fine with that, but with the completely incoherent mental gymnastics the author felt the need to include here to justify her decision.
Listing some of the good reasons for minimizing or avoiding meat, she states, ‘Animal rights: To eat meat is to take a life; to pretend otherwise is denial.’ But a few paragraphs after that, we learn that the author advocates eating meat ‘that does not negatively impact the animal’. I am not making this up. How can you go from acknowledging that eating meat is taking a life to advocating for meat that does not negatively impact animals? It’s a natural thing to have insane levels of cognitive dissonance, but it’s another to put those thoughts to paper, presumably review them in the cold light of morning, and not see any problems with it. A truly embarrassing thing to read.
But wait, it gets better. The author then defends including meat in her book about legumes on cost grounds. The author explains that we cannot talk about food cost without discussing food access, and that demonising certain foods and the people who buy them divorced from the economic and material reality of the system and people is a terrible idea, which is something I 100% agree with. Many people genuinely rely on really cheap meat, and they’re certainly not the problem – it’s all part of a big class and systems issue.
The problem is how she tries to make all the pieces fit together. So after advocating for eating and paying big bucks (‘paying the true price of that ingredient’) for meat that doesn’t negatively impact the animal (?), she defends including meat that is by her own admission totally unnecessary in her legume recipes, most of which are pretty inaccessible if you struggle with food access to begin with, because...... some people rely on cheap meat (true) and they shouldn’t be demonised (true)? I swear this is a new world record in mental gymnastics, and truly an embarrassing thing to read. So basically adding an unnecessary, very expensive ingredient to recipes and justifying it because working class people rely on cheap versions of similar ingredients to survive. Very normal and coherent. I’m sold!
Please, if you want to include meat, include meat and just go, but don’t write a long explanation that is beyond incoherent on a very basic level. And don’t co-opt legitimate social issues of class, food security and access to justify adding whatever ‘organic hand-reared happy meat’ you stan.
I dropped this right after the intro. I don’t think I am able to review this because of how shockingly terrible the intro is. It just put me off the whole book. This is all based on uncorrected proofs, so there’s still hope, maybe.
The author’s explanations on why she chose to include meat just took me out. Let me just state that my issues are not with the inclusion of meat, because this isn’t a vegetarian or vegan book and I am fine with that, but with the completely incoherent mental gymnastics the author felt the need to include here to justify her decision.
Listing some of the good reasons for minimizing or avoiding meat, she states, ‘Animal rights: To eat meat is to take a life; to pretend otherwise is denial.’ But a few paragraphs after that, we learn that the author advocates eating meat ‘that does not negatively impact the animal’. I am not making this up. How can you go from acknowledging that eating meat is taking a life to advocating for meat that does not negatively impact animals? It’s a natural thing to have insane levels of cognitive dissonance, but it’s another to put those thoughts to paper, presumably review them in the cold light of morning, and not see any problems with it. A truly embarrassing thing to read.
But wait, it gets better. The author then defends including meat in her book about legumes on cost grounds. The author explains that we cannot talk about food cost without discussing food access, and that demonising certain foods and the people who buy them divorced from the economic and material reality of the system and people is a terrible idea, which is something I 100% agree with. Many people genuinely rely on really cheap meat, and they’re certainly not the problem – it’s all part of a big class and systems issue.
The problem is how she tries to make all the pieces fit together. So after advocating for eating and paying big bucks (‘paying the true price of that ingredient’) for meat that doesn’t negatively impact the animal (?), she defends including meat that is by her own admission totally unnecessary in her legume recipes, most of which are pretty inaccessible if you struggle with food access to begin with, because...... some people rely on cheap meat (true) and they shouldn’t be demonised (true)? I swear this is a new world record in mental gymnastics, and truly an embarrassing thing to read. So basically adding an unnecessary, very expensive ingredient to recipes and justifying it because working class people rely on cheap versions of similar ingredients to survive. Very normal and coherent. I’m sold!
Please, if you want to include meat, include meat and just go, but don’t write a long explanation that is beyond incoherent on a very basic level. And don’t co-opt legitimate social issues of class, food security and access to justify adding whatever ‘organic hand-reared happy meat’ you stan.
July 16, 2021
This book was received as an ARC from Chronicle Books.
Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a huge foodie, so any time a book like Grist crosses my path, I get really excited. Grist, however, is kind of a let down. Don't even both reading the intro. It's off putting and is more on why the author decided to include meat in a grain, bean, seed and legume cook book. It's almost like a justification or that she didn't want this to be labeled a vegetarian cook book. Ok, great, but not necessary. Tell us about why you love grains, beans, seeds, and legumes so much that you decided to write an entire book, dedicated just to them.
She then gives a glossary of terms, as well as a cheat sheet on picking great vegetables. Seems more like filler than anything else.
Finally we start with the recipes. Condiments are up first. Very basic, and just a list format. No explanations, no pictures, just the name, ingredients, and incredibly brief directions. In my opinion, this should go at the end of the book, or because of how incredibly brief it, just put it on the page with the recipe it's being used for. It is just a bad way to start off.
And now onto the stars of the books.
She does give an intro which is nice, and even note pages that get into some detail on specific beans, grains, etc. Then onto basic preparations. How to boil, stew, puree, etc. And finally some recipes. I do like the few sections where she shows you how to cook for instance, black beans, at the beginning of the week to eat all week long without feeling bored.
The other interesting thing, are the interviews with a couple farmers, presumably who she bought ingredients from. The only down side to this, is again, it feels like filler.
Overall, it's just okay. Not something I'm going to pre-order, nor something I have to have. If I see in a book store, I might pick it up and flip through it, just to see how I feel having it in my hands, seeing if the layout gets changed up, or the intro edited.
Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a huge foodie, so any time a book like Grist crosses my path, I get really excited. Grist, however, is kind of a let down. Don't even both reading the intro. It's off putting and is more on why the author decided to include meat in a grain, bean, seed and legume cook book. It's almost like a justification or that she didn't want this to be labeled a vegetarian cook book. Ok, great, but not necessary. Tell us about why you love grains, beans, seeds, and legumes so much that you decided to write an entire book, dedicated just to them.
She then gives a glossary of terms, as well as a cheat sheet on picking great vegetables. Seems more like filler than anything else.
Finally we start with the recipes. Condiments are up first. Very basic, and just a list format. No explanations, no pictures, just the name, ingredients, and incredibly brief directions. In my opinion, this should go at the end of the book, or because of how incredibly brief it, just put it on the page with the recipe it's being used for. It is just a bad way to start off.
And now onto the stars of the books.
She does give an intro which is nice, and even note pages that get into some detail on specific beans, grains, etc. Then onto basic preparations. How to boil, stew, puree, etc. And finally some recipes. I do like the few sections where she shows you how to cook for instance, black beans, at the beginning of the week to eat all week long without feeling bored.
The other interesting thing, are the interviews with a couple farmers, presumably who she bought ingredients from. The only down side to this, is again, it feels like filler.
Overall, it's just okay. Not something I'm going to pre-order, nor something I have to have. If I see in a book store, I might pick it up and flip through it, just to see how I feel having it in my hands, seeing if the layout gets changed up, or the intro edited.
October 5, 2021
Grist by Abra Berens
A Practical Guide to Cooking Grains, Beans, Seeds, and Legumes
Fascinating book both informative and practical that is filled with delicious recipes, multiple variations, and ideas that were interesting and inspiring. This is a book I would gladly have on hand in my kitchen!
What I liked:
* Easy to read and understand
* Concise easy to follow recipes
* Multiple variations on basic recipes
* Seasonal variations for some recipes
* Vegetable cheat sheet with information on selecting and storing with notes about each one
* Glossary of terms (and learning a few new ones)
* Cooking and cutting techniques explained – though not necessarily new to me
* The wide variety of flavors used
* The 1+2+3+more basic ideas to create dishes of your own
* Basic information about each legume and grain
* Interviews with farmers
* A week without boredom providing five ideas to use one bean or grain cooked in quantity
* The condiment recipes including herb mixes
* Plating ideas
* The recipe for oat and rice milks
* Wishing I had this cookbook already
What I didn’t lik:
* I can’t really think of anything really except not being able to choose ONE recipe to try first
Thank you to NetGalley and Chronicle books for the ARC – This is my honest review.
5 Stars
A Practical Guide to Cooking Grains, Beans, Seeds, and Legumes
Fascinating book both informative and practical that is filled with delicious recipes, multiple variations, and ideas that were interesting and inspiring. This is a book I would gladly have on hand in my kitchen!
What I liked:
* Easy to read and understand
* Concise easy to follow recipes
* Multiple variations on basic recipes
* Seasonal variations for some recipes
* Vegetable cheat sheet with information on selecting and storing with notes about each one
* Glossary of terms (and learning a few new ones)
* Cooking and cutting techniques explained – though not necessarily new to me
* The wide variety of flavors used
* The 1+2+3+more basic ideas to create dishes of your own
* Basic information about each legume and grain
* Interviews with farmers
* A week without boredom providing five ideas to use one bean or grain cooked in quantity
* The condiment recipes including herb mixes
* Plating ideas
* The recipe for oat and rice milks
* Wishing I had this cookbook already
What I didn’t lik:
* I can’t really think of anything really except not being able to choose ONE recipe to try first
Thank you to NetGalley and Chronicle books for the ARC – This is my honest review.
5 Stars
August 11, 2021
This was my first time reading through a cookbook instead of hunting and pecking for recipes. The format of this book is tailored to be flexible to the needs of families after the pandemic with an eye on making meals accessible and easy to fit into your lifestyle whether you're a vegan or a carnivore.
Berens starts off the necessary vocabulary and an introduction to different cooking methods. What I appreciated was how she has an "empirical formula" - or basic recipe that you can easily adjust to your family's needs - for each type of grain. She also gives general recipes for things like mayos, vinaigrettes and marinades if you prefer to make your own at home. The book is sectioned off by grain families and includes brief synopses on their historical usage and nutritional value. Included throughout the book are farmer profiles which talk about the agricultural techniques, challenges faced and the future of farming. Perhaps one of the best features for meal planners like myself was the many different variations of each recipe that Behrens includes. This makes it easier to cook the grains in big batches but offers enough variety that tiny tummies won't get bored. From a mommy perspective it's time and cost efficient and that's a deal maker for me.
Berens starts off the necessary vocabulary and an introduction to different cooking methods. What I appreciated was how she has an "empirical formula" - or basic recipe that you can easily adjust to your family's needs - for each type of grain. She also gives general recipes for things like mayos, vinaigrettes and marinades if you prefer to make your own at home. The book is sectioned off by grain families and includes brief synopses on their historical usage and nutritional value. Included throughout the book are farmer profiles which talk about the agricultural techniques, challenges faced and the future of farming. Perhaps one of the best features for meal planners like myself was the many different variations of each recipe that Behrens includes. This makes it easier to cook the grains in big batches but offers enough variety that tiny tummies won't get bored. From a mommy perspective it's time and cost efficient and that's a deal maker for me.
October 16, 2021
Grist: A Practical Guide to Cooking Grains, Beans, Seeds, and Legumes is a wonderful cookbook from Southwestern Michigan chef and author Abra Behrens, the follow up to her vegetable-centric Ruffage.
You can't really review a cookbook without cooking from it, and the recipe I found that will probably most switch up my cooking life is her Lentil Soup with Garlic, Cumin, Lemon, and Pine Nuts. I've been making the Deborah Madison lentil soup recipe from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone for over twenty years, but the gremolata-like topping that Berens employs is zippy and refreshing and takes this soup to a whole other level. Cheesey Rice Porridge with Greens was as soothing as it might sound. As we take a deep dive into fall and I begin to crave more filling food, comfort food, I'll be turning to this book again and again.
Berens suggests a handful of variations to each of her recipes, in case you want to mix up the flavor profiles.
While I'm grateful to NetGalley for providing an electronic ARC for me to review, I'll be picking up a hard copy soon.
You can't really review a cookbook without cooking from it, and the recipe I found that will probably most switch up my cooking life is her Lentil Soup with Garlic, Cumin, Lemon, and Pine Nuts. I've been making the Deborah Madison lentil soup recipe from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone for over twenty years, but the gremolata-like topping that Berens employs is zippy and refreshing and takes this soup to a whole other level. Cheesey Rice Porridge with Greens was as soothing as it might sound. As we take a deep dive into fall and I begin to crave more filling food, comfort food, I'll be turning to this book again and again.
Berens suggests a handful of variations to each of her recipes, in case you want to mix up the flavor profiles.
While I'm grateful to NetGalley for providing an electronic ARC for me to review, I'll be picking up a hard copy soon.
Want to read
December 29, 2021Four stars. Grist is a beautifully designed cookbook with many recipes for legumes and grains. As someone who has been trying to eat somewhat healthier and increasing plant-based meals in my repertoire, this is definitely a cookbook that I will be returning to often. Most of these recipes seem fairly straightforward enough even for inexperienced cooks and use ingredients found in most pantries (or that are easy to source). The interviews with farmers were a nice touch, though I do wish there were more photos of the recipes as well as nutritional information.
I'm grateful to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the opportunity to read and review Grist.
I'm grateful to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the opportunity to read and review Grist.
November 13, 2021
***Received this book through a goodreads.com giveaway***
Reviewing a cookbook is a tricking thing that I haven’t figured out. ‘Grist’ is no exception. There is a lot to like and a lot that left me scratching my head.
The good:
-The book is beautiful. The photography is foodie eye-candy. The illustrations harken to traditional flora and fairytale drawings. The font and page layouts remind me of modern minimalism.
-I like the ‘A week’s worth of X without any boredom’ sections. Basically make a large pot of this bean, or other, and here’s five different ways to make one meal for each of 5 days with no two the same.
-Great substitute and variations
-I also like the sections on how to take a serving of the bean, or other, and here are 4 easy mix and match combos for a fast fresh meal.
-Farmer profiles
-The history of the grains, beans, seeds, and legumes
Scratchin’ my head:
-this is the largest cookbook I’ve ever possessed! I even took out a tape measure and measured it! It’s 1.5 inches! It’s a beast! A 448 page hardback!
-This book would not be easy to use while cooking. Maybe if you have a book stand?
-The farmer profiles are longer than a page. They should have been 1 page at the most. They were 3-6 pages in length! Yikes!
-For me, a lot of the recipes were very involved. But that’s personal taste.
-Despite the beauty of this book, the cover was not created with the idea that someone cooking would be touching it with oils on their hands. The cover would soak up the oils and permanent fingerprints would be left behind.
-Minus the recipes and this could almost have been the script for a documentary.
Will I try any of the recipes? Maybe. I’m curious about the base horchata recipe.
Reviewing a cookbook is a tricking thing that I haven’t figured out. ‘Grist’ is no exception. There is a lot to like and a lot that left me scratching my head.
The good:
-The book is beautiful. The photography is foodie eye-candy. The illustrations harken to traditional flora and fairytale drawings. The font and page layouts remind me of modern minimalism.
-I like the ‘A week’s worth of X without any boredom’ sections. Basically make a large pot of this bean, or other, and here’s five different ways to make one meal for each of 5 days with no two the same.
-Great substitute and variations
-I also like the sections on how to take a serving of the bean, or other, and here are 4 easy mix and match combos for a fast fresh meal.
-Farmer profiles
-The history of the grains, beans, seeds, and legumes
Scratchin’ my head:
-this is the largest cookbook I’ve ever possessed! I even took out a tape measure and measured it! It’s 1.5 inches! It’s a beast! A 448 page hardback!
-This book would not be easy to use while cooking. Maybe if you have a book stand?
-The farmer profiles are longer than a page. They should have been 1 page at the most. They were 3-6 pages in length! Yikes!
-For me, a lot of the recipes were very involved. But that’s personal taste.
-Despite the beauty of this book, the cover was not created with the idea that someone cooking would be touching it with oils on their hands. The cover would soak up the oils and permanent fingerprints would be left behind.
-Minus the recipes and this could almost have been the script for a documentary.
Will I try any of the recipes? Maybe. I’m curious about the base horchata recipe.
February 12, 2022
I was skimming through other reviews of Grist and goodness, folks got rankled over the Introduction, especially concerning meat. Not recalling anything overly nefarious or off-putting, I reread it just now. I still don't get why this would be upsetting. because Abra states that she does eat meat? It includes educational information, opinions on fair compensations for farmers, mindful eating practices; any recipe in the book, though, can be made veggie or vegan.
That all struck me as odd, as I rathe renjoed the Intro (especially the second time around).
I read Grist first as a digital ARC from netgally, but face it, I like physical cookbooks. Especially hers. Ruffage: A Practical Guide to Vegetables (from 2019) was a joy and is on my kitchen shelf, well paged. So when this popped up on netgally, well, yes, please! I've moved to cooking more plant-based meals and am pleased to say there's a bean farmer near me, so no S/H to get "fresh" dried beans! need more guidance, though, and that is where this book shines.
A Weeks' Worth of Black Beans Without Boredom (p.95), perfect, thanks. And it's there for lentils, barley... I've made the Greens & Beans Pot Likker and a (much shorter) Congee that freezes well into to-go servings. I have a feeling Grist will be on my kitchen shelf soon, too.
That all struck me as odd, as I rathe renjoed the Intro (especially the second time around).
I read Grist first as a digital ARC from netgally, but face it, I like physical cookbooks. Especially hers. Ruffage: A Practical Guide to Vegetables (from 2019) was a joy and is on my kitchen shelf, well paged. So when this popped up on netgally, well, yes, please! I've moved to cooking more plant-based meals and am pleased to say there's a bean farmer near me, so no S/H to get "fresh" dried beans! need more guidance, though, and that is where this book shines.
A Weeks' Worth of Black Beans Without Boredom (p.95), perfect, thanks. And it's there for lentils, barley... I've made the Greens & Beans Pot Likker and a (much shorter) Congee that freezes well into to-go servings. I have a feeling Grist will be on my kitchen shelf soon, too.
May 11, 2021
I have been looking for a book to inspire me to cook more legumes for a long time. I know legumes are healthy and I want to make more for my family, but they are not exactly the most exciting ingredient. I have been disappointed by many books, but not this one.
I think I finally found the bean book I was dreaming of.
This book goes through it all, it gives formulas that you can loosely follow with what you have at hand / your favourite things to obtain a nice dish. It breaks each type lentil / chickpea / various beans into their own category to suggest many different ways to preparing them so that they are not boring or repetitive. It also had a long intro into many different world classic sauces and spice mixes, so as to always pack a punch of flavours and it has precise recipes too.
A wonderful book to have if you want to know how to cook many different legumes in many interesting ways. This book really gets you excited about the humble ingredient and I am so happy for that!
I think I finally found the bean book I was dreaming of.
This book goes through it all, it gives formulas that you can loosely follow with what you have at hand / your favourite things to obtain a nice dish. It breaks each type lentil / chickpea / various beans into their own category to suggest many different ways to preparing them so that they are not boring or repetitive. It also had a long intro into many different world classic sauces and spice mixes, so as to always pack a punch of flavours and it has precise recipes too.
A wonderful book to have if you want to know how to cook many different legumes in many interesting ways. This book really gets you excited about the humble ingredient and I am so happy for that!
April 28, 2022
I’m enjoying exploring the recipes, flexibility and new combinations of food that this book provides. I’m not rating it based on the author’s
Introduction or extended commentary. I read these sections if I find them interesting but I don’t buy a cookbook for these sections. Ultimately it’s about how much I will use a book. I have lots of cookbooks and I think this is unique and interesting and most importantly not prescriptive. This is probably not a book for someone who needs to follow recipes exactly or someone who doesn’t enjoy exploring and cooking new food combinations.
I found the layout/organisation practical and easy to navigate once I had spent a bit of time exploring it.
Introduction or extended commentary. I read these sections if I find them interesting but I don’t buy a cookbook for these sections. Ultimately it’s about how much I will use a book. I have lots of cookbooks and I think this is unique and interesting and most importantly not prescriptive. This is probably not a book for someone who needs to follow recipes exactly or someone who doesn’t enjoy exploring and cooking new food combinations.
I found the layout/organisation practical and easy to navigate once I had spent a bit of time exploring it.
January 23, 2022
I like to read cookbooks and this one was 4 stars. Michigan author, so close to places I have been to.
January 24, 2022
Grist by Abra Berens is a welcome addition to my kitchen cookbook shelf because it is such a useful guide to cooking with legumes, seeds, grains, and beans. I think Grist can be considered a companion to her earlier book Ruffage (published in 2019; review here), and just as Ruffage is part memoir, part cookbook, so is Grist. Here the home cook is invited to follow along with Berens as she demonstrates, through her recipes, how crucial whole grains are to our health and their importance to the food system. And, in recent years, I've found that many cookbooks have focused on the fresh produce aspect of incorporating more plants into our diets, so I fully appreciate that Berens is showing home cooks that cooking with grains, beans, legumes, and seeds isn't difficult. While canned beans are convenient, she shares tips and techniques that prove cooking grains/legumes/beans from scratch is convenient in its own way. Ruffage told us Berens story as a vegetable farmer, and Grist tells us the story of the American grain and legume farmer. At the beginning of her book she offers a discussion in the section Farmer and Our Food System and throughout the book in the Farmer Profiles, she has "included several conversations with different growers to share stories and contextualize how an ingredient is cooked with and how it is grown."(19) I think of farms and farmers as hearty but in this section, Berens also shows how delicate the system is -- influenced not only by natural events, but through social and political events too.
Grist is organized into three parts: Condiments, Legumes, and Grains. And, in these three parts, Berens offers a wide variety from beans and legumes (such as: lima, chickpeas, lentils, split peas) to grains (barley, buckwheat, oats, rice, bulgur, freekeh -- just to name a few). The recipes offered support a variety of different dietary needs (some of the recipes are vegetarian/vegan and some include meat). While I grew up watching crops get planted, then harvested, we never ate the grains grown on the farm. Things like flour, wheat berries, bulgur, and buckwheat were purchased at the local UFA Co-Op grocery store for my grandmother to use. Now that I find myself as a grown up in my own kitchen, I too rely on grocery stores and supermarkets as the source for grains, beans, and legumes. With Berens' Grist as my guide, I found so many recipes and strategies to get me excited about cooking.
One of my favourite sections in the book are the "a week's worth of black beans without any boredom" and "a week's worth of barley without any boredom" because if an author is going to advocate in favour of batch cooking, then it is helpful when they provide a week's worth of suggestions and recipes. I find the most challenging aspect of cooking with grains/beans/legumes is the actual cooking of them. Using Grist, I felt encouraged to cook ahead and once the batch was ready, all I needed to do was pull the container from the fridge and I was already on my way to having a meal on the table. The suggestions she gives are useful and delicious -- when wondering about what I would make my daughter for lunch one day, it was Berens' easy offering of making a black bean hummus to slather on a BBLT (black bean, lettuce, tomato) Sandwich that I settled on.
Batch cooking grains can be easily overlooked but with Berens’ recipes, having a week’s worth of grains on hand to use is enticing! With the big batch of barley that I cooked ahead of time, one of the ways we enjoyed the barley was for breakfast by using it in the recipe for Barley Breakfast Porridge w/ Spiced Milk, Dried Cherries, and Nuts. Grist serves as inspiration -- barley can be used in breakfast too and, porridge doesn't ever have to be made only using oats. Having said this, her recipe for Cut Oatmeal w/ Brown Sugar, Heavy Cream and Salt is heavenly -- dry toasting the oats adds such great flavour (and so does that healthy dash of Drambuie!).
And it's not just the "week's worth" of suggestions that has me excited -- Berens also gives variations along with the main recipes. So that when I had boiled buckwheat waiting in the fridge, I was able to find a recipe to suit my needs and the ingredients I had on hand. I made the Buckwheat w/ a Soft Egg, Shredded Carrot, Kale and Pickle Liquid Dressing for lunch one day. I swapped out the egg for chickpeas on my husband's plate and, it was such a hearty, delicious lunch. I love these types of salad assemblages and what makes it even better is that dressing! It's the combination of liquid from a jar of pickles and mayonnaise that has my mouth watering!
While wheat flour is what home cooks primarily use, Berens encourages us to consider other types of flour too. Intrigued by her section on barley flour (can be used 1:1 for AP flour), I made her Barley Pancakes for breakfast. Pancakes aren't exactly the most flavourful thing and are usually a vessel for copious amounts of butter and syrup, but in this case, the use of barley flour adds so much flavour! A rich, nutty taste that only gets better with butter and syrup -- these are so good that I batch cook them and freeze so that my daughter can take them in her lunch. Another alternative to wheat flour is buckwheat flour. I've used it before, and I really appreciate the earthy, nutty flavour. Here, Berens uses it for making Buckwheat Crepes -- I used a lighter buckwheat flour, so my crepes didn't have that lovely colour which the darker variety of flour imparts but they tasted great, nonetheless. I served them with egg and sautéed kale (a variation suggestion from the book) and the whole dish made for a perfect lunch. The great thing about crepes is how versatile they can be -- filled sweet or savory, they make an excellent snack or superb supper.
With just a small sampling of recipes that I've made from Grist, with over 140 recipes (with more than 160 variations), I haven't even scratched the surface of all the great things Berens offers in her book. Well-researched, I appreciate all the facts and information she provides, as well as the discussions on the modern food systems at work in the US. Just as with her earlier book, Ruffage, Grist is beautifully photographed by EE Berger and illustrated by Lucy Engelman. Not only is Grist a practical guide, but it is also a compendium on cooking with beans, legumes, grains, and seeds.
Please note that this is an excerpt of a review posted to www.shipshapeeatworthy.wordpress.com
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Raincoast Books and Chronicle Books for providing me with a free, review copy of this book. I did not receive monetary compensation for my post, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
Grist is organized into three parts: Condiments, Legumes, and Grains. And, in these three parts, Berens offers a wide variety from beans and legumes (such as: lima, chickpeas, lentils, split peas) to grains (barley, buckwheat, oats, rice, bulgur, freekeh -- just to name a few). The recipes offered support a variety of different dietary needs (some of the recipes are vegetarian/vegan and some include meat). While I grew up watching crops get planted, then harvested, we never ate the grains grown on the farm. Things like flour, wheat berries, bulgur, and buckwheat were purchased at the local UFA Co-Op grocery store for my grandmother to use. Now that I find myself as a grown up in my own kitchen, I too rely on grocery stores and supermarkets as the source for grains, beans, and legumes. With Berens' Grist as my guide, I found so many recipes and strategies to get me excited about cooking.
One of my favourite sections in the book are the "a week's worth of black beans without any boredom" and "a week's worth of barley without any boredom" because if an author is going to advocate in favour of batch cooking, then it is helpful when they provide a week's worth of suggestions and recipes. I find the most challenging aspect of cooking with grains/beans/legumes is the actual cooking of them. Using Grist, I felt encouraged to cook ahead and once the batch was ready, all I needed to do was pull the container from the fridge and I was already on my way to having a meal on the table. The suggestions she gives are useful and delicious -- when wondering about what I would make my daughter for lunch one day, it was Berens' easy offering of making a black bean hummus to slather on a BBLT (black bean, lettuce, tomato) Sandwich that I settled on.
Batch cooking grains can be easily overlooked but with Berens’ recipes, having a week’s worth of grains on hand to use is enticing! With the big batch of barley that I cooked ahead of time, one of the ways we enjoyed the barley was for breakfast by using it in the recipe for Barley Breakfast Porridge w/ Spiced Milk, Dried Cherries, and Nuts. Grist serves as inspiration -- barley can be used in breakfast too and, porridge doesn't ever have to be made only using oats. Having said this, her recipe for Cut Oatmeal w/ Brown Sugar, Heavy Cream and Salt is heavenly -- dry toasting the oats adds such great flavour (and so does that healthy dash of Drambuie!).
And it's not just the "week's worth" of suggestions that has me excited -- Berens also gives variations along with the main recipes. So that when I had boiled buckwheat waiting in the fridge, I was able to find a recipe to suit my needs and the ingredients I had on hand. I made the Buckwheat w/ a Soft Egg, Shredded Carrot, Kale and Pickle Liquid Dressing for lunch one day. I swapped out the egg for chickpeas on my husband's plate and, it was such a hearty, delicious lunch. I love these types of salad assemblages and what makes it even better is that dressing! It's the combination of liquid from a jar of pickles and mayonnaise that has my mouth watering!
While wheat flour is what home cooks primarily use, Berens encourages us to consider other types of flour too. Intrigued by her section on barley flour (can be used 1:1 for AP flour), I made her Barley Pancakes for breakfast. Pancakes aren't exactly the most flavourful thing and are usually a vessel for copious amounts of butter and syrup, but in this case, the use of barley flour adds so much flavour! A rich, nutty taste that only gets better with butter and syrup -- these are so good that I batch cook them and freeze so that my daughter can take them in her lunch. Another alternative to wheat flour is buckwheat flour. I've used it before, and I really appreciate the earthy, nutty flavour. Here, Berens uses it for making Buckwheat Crepes -- I used a lighter buckwheat flour, so my crepes didn't have that lovely colour which the darker variety of flour imparts but they tasted great, nonetheless. I served them with egg and sautéed kale (a variation suggestion from the book) and the whole dish made for a perfect lunch. The great thing about crepes is how versatile they can be -- filled sweet or savory, they make an excellent snack or superb supper.
With just a small sampling of recipes that I've made from Grist, with over 140 recipes (with more than 160 variations), I haven't even scratched the surface of all the great things Berens offers in her book. Well-researched, I appreciate all the facts and information she provides, as well as the discussions on the modern food systems at work in the US. Just as with her earlier book, Ruffage, Grist is beautifully photographed by EE Berger and illustrated by Lucy Engelman. Not only is Grist a practical guide, but it is also a compendium on cooking with beans, legumes, grains, and seeds.
Please note that this is an excerpt of a review posted to www.shipshapeeatworthy.wordpress.com
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Raincoast Books and Chronicle Books for providing me with a free, review copy of this book. I did not receive monetary compensation for my post, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
May 11, 2021
I’m sure I wasn’t the only person who early in the pandemic bought more dried beans, lentils and peas than they would eat in a year. I wanted to read Grist because of two sentences in the introduction:
“Prep the ingredient instead of the finished dish so that ingredient can be used speedily while avoiding the dreaded ‘lentil soup fatigue.’ Throughout the book there are a week without boredom grids to illustrate how one pot of lentils can feed you throughout the week while eschewing boredom along the way.“
As the proud owner of three pounds of various colors of lentils not to mention a whole grocery bag of pounds of different beans, how could I pass up finding a way to use them up—without boredom. Most of the recipes use relatively common and inexpensive pantry ingredients. That makes Grist a good choice for home chefs trying to save on their food bill. Of course, the healthy ingredients will also attract cooks trying to eat wiser. I always like cookbooks to have photographs of every recipe as well as nutritional information. Unfortunately, this cookbook fails both of those criteria so I’m deducting a star. 4 stars!
Thanks to Chronicle Books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.
“Prep the ingredient instead of the finished dish so that ingredient can be used speedily while avoiding the dreaded ‘lentil soup fatigue.’ Throughout the book there are a week without boredom grids to illustrate how one pot of lentils can feed you throughout the week while eschewing boredom along the way.“
As the proud owner of three pounds of various colors of lentils not to mention a whole grocery bag of pounds of different beans, how could I pass up finding a way to use them up—without boredom. Most of the recipes use relatively common and inexpensive pantry ingredients. That makes Grist a good choice for home chefs trying to save on their food bill. Of course, the healthy ingredients will also attract cooks trying to eat wiser. I always like cookbooks to have photographs of every recipe as well as nutritional information. Unfortunately, this cookbook fails both of those criteria so I’m deducting a star. 4 stars!
Thanks to Chronicle Books and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.
July 26, 2021
Grist is phenomenal!! HIGHLY highly recommend this book. This is a down to earth and accessible encyclopedia on cooking legumes and grains.
I love the author's voice - Abra is relatable, passionate, and opinionated and the context that she provides for each category is so valuable. The book features gorgeous illustrations paired with detailed information on types of ingredients or the history of them. There are also farmer profiles sprinkled throughout, I love how this adds context to where these ingredients come from and offers the reader a face to the product.
The recipes throughout this book are lovely, but they almost serve as more of a guideline. The author encourages flexibility and using what you have. I love the general equation that Abra recommends for each recipe, it helped me reframe how to create these recipes on my own.
A few recipes I'm particularly excited about: all-corn cornbread w/ jalapenos, peaches + ricotta, whole roasted leeks w/ chickpeas, lemon vin, ricotta, and chard, cranberry bean salad w/ roasted carrots + mojo de ajo, and anchvy-garlic marinated corona beans w/ arugula + beets.
PICK UP THIS BOOK WHEN IT COMES OUT! It is one that I will turn to regularly and has inspired me to cook from my pantry more.
I love the author's voice - Abra is relatable, passionate, and opinionated and the context that she provides for each category is so valuable. The book features gorgeous illustrations paired with detailed information on types of ingredients or the history of them. There are also farmer profiles sprinkled throughout, I love how this adds context to where these ingredients come from and offers the reader a face to the product.
The recipes throughout this book are lovely, but they almost serve as more of a guideline. The author encourages flexibility and using what you have. I love the general equation that Abra recommends for each recipe, it helped me reframe how to create these recipes on my own.
A few recipes I'm particularly excited about: all-corn cornbread w/ jalapenos, peaches + ricotta, whole roasted leeks w/ chickpeas, lemon vin, ricotta, and chard, cranberry bean salad w/ roasted carrots + mojo de ajo, and anchvy-garlic marinated corona beans w/ arugula + beets.
PICK UP THIS BOOK WHEN IT COMES OUT! It is one that I will turn to regularly and has inspired me to cook from my pantry more.
November 28, 2021
We all know we should be eating more legumes and grains- they're healthy, and better for the environment- but they can be so boring, and where do you even start? Start here, with this book. Berens lays out everything you need to know about how to prepare legumes, grains, and seeds. My favorites part is the "a week without boredom" grids, where you make a big pot of something (lentils, black beans, etc) at the beginning of the week, and get ideas for meals to make for the week, a different meal each day. The recipes also include seasonal variations for inspiration. Chapter One is all about condiments: dressings, vinaigrettes, flavored oils, relishes, pickled and marinated toppings, etc, to add flavor, Chapter Two is about legumes, and Chapter Three covers grains, with lots of tips and tricks to make things easier. Throughout the book, there are essays and profiles of farmers, which I found really interesting. The variety of preparation methods, recipes, and inspiration make this a book that should be on every home chef's shelf!
#Grist #NetGalley
#Grist #NetGalley
December 8, 2021
I was excited to win Grist in a Goodreads giveaway. I have to admit that I have a bit of a problem following any cookbooks in a Kindle format, so I suppose it's no surprise I had a difficult time going back and forth in the digital format of Grist. Maybe if I had a hardcopy version of the cookbook I wouldn't be quite so confused with following and incorporating all the suggestions. I was also a bit put off by the author's rationale for eating meat. How in the world do you eat meat that does not negatively impact the animal? I have plenty of non-vegan cookbooks that I absolutely love, cook from all the time, and have no problem either leaving the meat out or substituting, but the intro to Grist put me off just because it seemed like a whole lot of excuses. Starting off with Condiments first was also odd to me. I wish info on cooking grains, beans, seeds and legumes had started the book. Anyhoooooo, potentially the hardcover version made more sense that the Kindle version as far as layout.
May 22, 2021
Anyone who stocked up on staples during the pandemic will be looking for a way to use them up now that food production seems back to normal. This is a pretty neat cookbook, giving you recipes for many staple with an fun array of variations.
What did I like? Versatility of this cookbook is huge, and I loved the shout out to the farmers. Over four hundred pages of detailed cooking methods for pretty much every grain, bean, seed, and legume. I would have loved more pictures though since a ton of us don’t eat these things day to day, like we should. I enjoyed the recipes and bookmarked a ton to try!
Would I recommend or buy? I’m hoping this cookbook will have a great price since it’s pretty versatile and any household could benefit from eating this way. I would love a copy! The authors first cookbook was a huge success so no surprise this one will be as well.
I received a complimentary copy to read and voluntarily left a review!
What did I like? Versatility of this cookbook is huge, and I loved the shout out to the farmers. Over four hundred pages of detailed cooking methods for pretty much every grain, bean, seed, and legume. I would have loved more pictures though since a ton of us don’t eat these things day to day, like we should. I enjoyed the recipes and bookmarked a ton to try!
Would I recommend or buy? I’m hoping this cookbook will have a great price since it’s pretty versatile and any household could benefit from eating this way. I would love a copy! The authors first cookbook was a huge success so no surprise this one will be as well.
I received a complimentary copy to read and voluntarily left a review!
June 8, 2021
Abra Berens’ Grist is a delightful treasury of information about “grains, beans, seeds, and legumes,” but I found it was the kind of cookbook I prefer to read from than cook from. Berens’ attitude makes reading even the glossary, which contains definitions for things like “glug”, “science feel”, “divvy”, and “acidulated water”, a pleasure. I didn’t skip the parts that I normally skip in cookbooks, like her interviews with growers or her opinions on canned vs. dry. (For the record, she gives quite good advice for how to use both.) The headnotes on recipes are worth reading even if you never read the recipes themselves.
January 22, 2025
2.5 ⭐️
It isn’t always that I read a cookbook front to back, but this one had a good balance of education, recipes, and anecdotal sections, so it was less of a slog to get through than most cookbooks. I can’t argue that much of it was worth reading (especially the random, weirdly long interviews with farmers) but I digress.
I thought the recipes themselves and the general information about cooking techniques was useful and exactly what I was looking for, so I can’t really complain on that front. It had fewer photos than I’m used to in a cookbook, but beans aren’t exactly aesthetically pleasing, so I get it. I also think the overall organization of the book could’ve been better; I read this in ebook format, so it was easier to refer to the table of contents when I needed to, but that shouldn’t have been necessary. I learned some techniques that I’m excited to try, and the section on condiments was particularly interesting to me. All in all, I think as a cookbook, it succeeded. It’s the rest of the book that turned this into a train wreck.
The majority of the introduction rubbed me the wrong way — it felt like the author was making empty commentary on a lot of things that didn’t directly affect her and that she also didn’t do much research on. Her social commentary felt out of touch, as did her personal views on eating meat (both of which, truthfully, could’ve been omitted from this book entirely). That she advocates for eating meat that “does no harm to the animal” struck me as odd, especially in the context of some of her other points, and just lent to the general cognitive dissonance clearly present in the entire introduction. It also confused me that in a book dedicated to affordable food staples, she felt the need to argue in favour of only buying expensive meat, just for the sake of “paying what it’s worth” without much additional nuance. I can see what the author was trying to say, but the entire thing felt completely removed from the very real financial struggles that many people face. I think she tried to engage in more meaningful discourse through some of the interviews, but the whole thing fell flat after the personal opinions she voiced at the start.
My breaking point, however, came when I got to the glossary and the author felt it prudent to include the term “science feel” which, and I quote, is “a term [used] when you think there might be some science behind your opinion but don’t have the facts (or the time to research it); it seems logical, and you really feel like there is science behind it.” … if this doesn’t tell you all you need to know about the pseudoscience and mental gymnastics going on in this book, I don’t know what will.
It isn’t always that I read a cookbook front to back, but this one had a good balance of education, recipes, and anecdotal sections, so it was less of a slog to get through than most cookbooks. I can’t argue that much of it was worth reading (especially the random, weirdly long interviews with farmers) but I digress.
I thought the recipes themselves and the general information about cooking techniques was useful and exactly what I was looking for, so I can’t really complain on that front. It had fewer photos than I’m used to in a cookbook, but beans aren’t exactly aesthetically pleasing, so I get it. I also think the overall organization of the book could’ve been better; I read this in ebook format, so it was easier to refer to the table of contents when I needed to, but that shouldn’t have been necessary. I learned some techniques that I’m excited to try, and the section on condiments was particularly interesting to me. All in all, I think as a cookbook, it succeeded. It’s the rest of the book that turned this into a train wreck.
The majority of the introduction rubbed me the wrong way — it felt like the author was making empty commentary on a lot of things that didn’t directly affect her and that she also didn’t do much research on. Her social commentary felt out of touch, as did her personal views on eating meat (both of which, truthfully, could’ve been omitted from this book entirely). That she advocates for eating meat that “does no harm to the animal” struck me as odd, especially in the context of some of her other points, and just lent to the general cognitive dissonance clearly present in the entire introduction. It also confused me that in a book dedicated to affordable food staples, she felt the need to argue in favour of only buying expensive meat, just for the sake of “paying what it’s worth” without much additional nuance. I can see what the author was trying to say, but the entire thing felt completely removed from the very real financial struggles that many people face. I think she tried to engage in more meaningful discourse through some of the interviews, but the whole thing fell flat after the personal opinions she voiced at the start.
My breaking point, however, came when I got to the glossary and the author felt it prudent to include the term “science feel” which, and I quote, is “a term [used] when you think there might be some science behind your opinion but don’t have the facts (or the time to research it); it seems logical, and you really feel like there is science behind it.” … if this doesn’t tell you all you need to know about the pseudoscience and mental gymnastics going on in this book, I don’t know what will.
July 26, 2021
Grist: A Practical Guide To Cooking Grains, Beans, Seeds, and Legumes is the ultimate guide on the subject matter stated in the title. Author Abra Berens has a reverence for our food, and for those who grow it. This is an interesting reference to anyone who wants to expand their knowledge of cooking with these ingredients and having a more plant based diet. Although the author espouses eating more plant based proteins, she admits that she herself eats meat on occasion. This book would be relevant for vegetarians, as well as those wanting to add more vegetarian meals into their weekly cycle.
The book is divided up into chapters for each of the various beans and grains. Different ways of cooking are presented, as well as a couple of recipes for each ingredient. My favorite section was at the beginning where she had recipes for savory dressings and add ons to make the bean dishes sing. I learned a new term, "rig", which stands for chunky, acidic relish, and recipes are given for these. When reading about each ingredient one senses the authors interest and admiration for these food staples, and a mini text is given explaining each one, before moving on to recipes.
The book is also interspersed with stories from the farmers who grow these foods. The author says she wants to make people think more about where their food comes from, and think about the process of getting it to the table. She also bemoans the lack of diversity in what we have available to use in the stores. These are literally a kaleidoscope of variations in the foods we eat, but only the most popular and "sellable" are widely available.
There is a wealth of information about beans, grains, and legumes in this book and the reader will come away with some unusual recipes. The reader who is just looking for recipes and not information may wish there were more recipes in the book, but I enjoyed the explanation of each ingredient, and learning more about this subject. This is a big book!
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Chronicle Books for allowing me to preview this ARC.
The book is divided up into chapters for each of the various beans and grains. Different ways of cooking are presented, as well as a couple of recipes for each ingredient. My favorite section was at the beginning where she had recipes for savory dressings and add ons to make the bean dishes sing. I learned a new term, "rig", which stands for chunky, acidic relish, and recipes are given for these. When reading about each ingredient one senses the authors interest and admiration for these food staples, and a mini text is given explaining each one, before moving on to recipes.
The book is also interspersed with stories from the farmers who grow these foods. The author says she wants to make people think more about where their food comes from, and think about the process of getting it to the table. She also bemoans the lack of diversity in what we have available to use in the stores. These are literally a kaleidoscope of variations in the foods we eat, but only the most popular and "sellable" are widely available.
There is a wealth of information about beans, grains, and legumes in this book and the reader will come away with some unusual recipes. The reader who is just looking for recipes and not information may wish there were more recipes in the book, but I enjoyed the explanation of each ingredient, and learning more about this subject. This is a big book!
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Chronicle Books for allowing me to preview this ARC.
August 19, 2022
Grist should've been a great cookbook for me. I LOVE grains and pulses, and have several cookbooks on the theme. The author's flavour profile seems to suit me well. But I didn't immediately feel tempted to make recipes from this book. In the end, several components took it down to a 3/5.
PROS:
- The sauces and condiments are interesting
- The aesthetic is pleasant
- There are several imaginative recipes for barley
- The interviews with farmers are a nice addition
CONS:
- The structure is confusing. There are recurrent sections named "boiling" and "stewing", and it's difficult to know if you're in the corn section or in the lentil section
- The common format of basic recipe + variations is a bit difficult for me to decipher
- I like warm food, and this book has multiple recipes on grain and pulse salads (some warm, most cold). Granted, there is nothing wrong with those recipes. It's just not what I'm after.
- Plenty of matrix-structured recipes/instructions. "Take any of these 4 veg, then any of these 4 herbs, then any of these 4 sauces.... ". I've not been a fan of those in Anna Jones' cookbooks, and I'm not a fan of them here.
- As a Northern European, I think the treatment of rye is criminal for a grain cookbook. It's shoved under the "wheat family", and given a single recipe
PROS:
- The sauces and condiments are interesting
- The aesthetic is pleasant
- There are several imaginative recipes for barley
- The interviews with farmers are a nice addition
CONS:
- The structure is confusing. There are recurrent sections named "boiling" and "stewing", and it's difficult to know if you're in the corn section or in the lentil section
- The common format of basic recipe + variations is a bit difficult for me to decipher
- I like warm food, and this book has multiple recipes on grain and pulse salads (some warm, most cold). Granted, there is nothing wrong with those recipes. It's just not what I'm after.
- Plenty of matrix-structured recipes/instructions. "Take any of these 4 veg, then any of these 4 herbs, then any of these 4 sauces.... ". I've not been a fan of those in Anna Jones' cookbooks, and I'm not a fan of them here.
- As a Northern European, I think the treatment of rye is criminal for a grain cookbook. It's shoved under the "wheat family", and given a single recipe
August 23, 2024
TLDR: if you’re into local food production, new fun foodie ways to make grains and beans the star, and agriculture read this.
Honestly I don’t normally reviews books a lot but after reading all the hate for the intro and the picking apart of the book I had to show it some love. First I have to say that the intro didn’t bother me a ton. I think she was just saying yeah I see all sides to the meat thing the way I vote with my dollar (because of her privilege which she acknowledged with the food insecurity piece) is by buying the best ingredients I can and paying the true price. I don’t think her saying that was directed at people who cannot afford top quality meat, I think it was directed at people who CAN and choose to freak out about what it truly costs for an ingredient and buys the cheap mass produced version instead of voting with their dollar.
I bought it right away after borrowing it from the library. I love the variations, I love the farmer profiles, I love the shout outs it gives to the regenerative and heirloom agriculture people. I am excited to give the recipes a try and honestly found it very inspiring to read. I was in a bit of a kitchen rut and this propelled me out of it.
Honestly I don’t normally reviews books a lot but after reading all the hate for the intro and the picking apart of the book I had to show it some love. First I have to say that the intro didn’t bother me a ton. I think she was just saying yeah I see all sides to the meat thing the way I vote with my dollar (because of her privilege which she acknowledged with the food insecurity piece) is by buying the best ingredients I can and paying the true price. I don’t think her saying that was directed at people who cannot afford top quality meat, I think it was directed at people who CAN and choose to freak out about what it truly costs for an ingredient and buys the cheap mass produced version instead of voting with their dollar.
I bought it right away after borrowing it from the library. I love the variations, I love the farmer profiles, I love the shout outs it gives to the regenerative and heirloom agriculture people. I am excited to give the recipes a try and honestly found it very inspiring to read. I was in a bit of a kitchen rut and this propelled me out of it.
October 31, 2021
I received this book through a Goodreads giveaway and am providing an honest review. I was so excited to win this cookbook but was truly blown away when I received it - the quality of paper this is printed on is impressive. It is a beautifully printed book. I am a novice cook when it comes to beans/legumes/grains - pretty basic and plain cook. I love how this cookbook is set up and clearly divided but also allows for the substitution of different beans/legumes within each recipe. I appreciate the use of meat in the recipes as often this is omitted in this type if cookbook. But, I think my favorite part of this book is that at the beginning of each section there is a breakdown of what the types of grain/seed/bean etc is included, and all the relevant information to those grains/seeds/beans. This cookbook has taught me so much, not just recipes but about each ingredient. The recipes are very clear, easy to read and very adaptable to varied kitchen pantries. I highly recommend this cookbook for those who want to better include grains, beans, seeds into their cooking and daily/weekly cooking.
July 8, 2021
This book was received as an ARC from Chronicle Books in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.
I have been trying to get grains and legumes into my diet but was never confident on the right way to cook them. Grist was a very helpful and practical guide in telling you the science of cooking grains, beans, seeds and legumes. I do have to say though, it wasn't until the very end where we saw some recipes so that at first was difficult for me to get through however, I did appreciate the science and explanation on how to cook especially beans and grains properly and this will be a good book to refer to whenever I want to incorporate them into my diet. (I really hate undercooked beans!) We also have community members who are vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free and want more ideas and recipes to add to their collection and Grist will definitely help with that.
We will consider adding this title to our TX Non-Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.
I have been trying to get grains and legumes into my diet but was never confident on the right way to cook them. Grist was a very helpful and practical guide in telling you the science of cooking grains, beans, seeds and legumes. I do have to say though, it wasn't until the very end where we saw some recipes so that at first was difficult for me to get through however, I did appreciate the science and explanation on how to cook especially beans and grains properly and this will be a good book to refer to whenever I want to incorporate them into my diet. (I really hate undercooked beans!) We also have community members who are vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free and want more ideas and recipes to add to their collection and Grist will definitely help with that.
We will consider adding this title to our TX Non-Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.
July 16, 2021
*Received and ARC from the publisher after ALA Annual 2021*
I was a little put off by the preachy section on vegetarianism (the author is a meat eater). I also didn't like the gendered language of a "a farmer and *her* animal"... Why? Yes, there are plenty of female farmers out there, but you'll find they're still primarily men, and even more so family-run operations. A gender neutral "they" would have been appreciated.
But then, a few sections down, is a a couple of paragraphs about farts, so...it's hard to stay mad.
The photography is nice, but there's something about the layout here that I didn't care for. There is alot of prose throughout the book, and frankly: I'm here for the food. So, if you're one of those people who actually *reads* the the lead up to a recipe on a blog --not just scrolling to the bottom for that print icon, you might enjoy this book more than I did. It was all right, but not something I think I'll be purchasing for my library.
I was a little put off by the preachy section on vegetarianism (the author is a meat eater). I also didn't like the gendered language of a "a farmer and *her* animal"... Why? Yes, there are plenty of female farmers out there, but you'll find they're still primarily men, and even more so family-run operations. A gender neutral "they" would have been appreciated.
But then, a few sections down, is a a couple of paragraphs about farts, so...it's hard to stay mad.
The photography is nice, but there's something about the layout here that I didn't care for. There is alot of prose throughout the book, and frankly: I'm here for the food. So, if you're one of those people who actually *reads* the the lead up to a recipe on a blog --not just scrolling to the bottom for that print icon, you might enjoy this book more than I did. It was all right, but not something I think I'll be purchasing for my library.
October 15, 2021
Thank you to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for the chance to read an early copy of this book.
This cookbook is intimidating in its massive scope. I tried to casually flip through, but it's stuffed with information--all kinds of background color on the different grains, all kinds of variations and suggestions for each recipe, even interstitial sections where she interviews farmers. I can see where this could be a cook's dream, really diving into things, but for a novice like me, there are so many options it just makes me freeze up.
The book is beautifully formatted and laid out, organized by grain type, with a few cooking methods and variations covered in each section. This is not a vegetarian cookbook but the recipes are of course plant-forward and there is plenty of flexibility for different diets.
This cookbook is intimidating in its massive scope. I tried to casually flip through, but it's stuffed with information--all kinds of background color on the different grains, all kinds of variations and suggestions for each recipe, even interstitial sections where she interviews farmers. I can see where this could be a cook's dream, really diving into things, but for a novice like me, there are so many options it just makes me freeze up.
The book is beautifully formatted and laid out, organized by grain type, with a few cooking methods and variations covered in each section. This is not a vegetarian cookbook but the recipes are of course plant-forward and there is plenty of flexibility for different diets.
March 16, 2025
What a disorganized and pretentious mess.
I wanted to love this book as I am a big fan of grain salads and wanting to incorporate more beans into our diet. The vast majority of the recipes are base instructions plus a lot of “variations” (that really fundamentally change the dish) with no additional pictures. The format is frustrating and involves a lot of flipping back and forth. She also uses a high percentage of expensive and/or harder to source ingredients. This feels out of place when many readers may be going out of their cooking comfort zones with new grains or pulses anyways.
The things I did enjoy would be the sauce section, ways to incorporate the same bean/grain in different ways through the week, and the background info on each grain/bean. Wish there was a better selection of recipes suitable for everyday cooking using staples I already have in the house.
I wanted to love this book as I am a big fan of grain salads and wanting to incorporate more beans into our diet. The vast majority of the recipes are base instructions plus a lot of “variations” (that really fundamentally change the dish) with no additional pictures. The format is frustrating and involves a lot of flipping back and forth. She also uses a high percentage of expensive and/or harder to source ingredients. This feels out of place when many readers may be going out of their cooking comfort zones with new grains or pulses anyways.
The things I did enjoy would be the sauce section, ways to incorporate the same bean/grain in different ways through the week, and the background info on each grain/bean. Wish there was a better selection of recipes suitable for everyday cooking using staples I already have in the house.
April 4, 2022
This is an interesting cookbook but so beyond my skill level. It feels more like a bedside cookbook than a spattered with stuff cookbook - for me anyway. If you are a good cook and not horrified at the thought of being asked to make your own flavored oil to be able to complete a faro recipe, go for this book. I wish I hadn't been so quick to return it to the library; maybe I could have found the courage to try one on the recipes so I could give a flavor comment. Also, most of the recipes that I read would required 2 or 3 different grocery stores for the ingredients. For reference, Veganomicon kind of freaked me out with its tiny tiny print, but I have made several of the recipes.
Would I give this as a gift - absolutely! It is beautiful.
Would I give this as a gift - absolutely! It is beautiful.
May 30, 2021
I received Grist as part of a NetGalley giveaway.
Grist is a compendium of information and recipes involving a wide array of "grains, seeds, and legumes" from around the world. There's a ton of information packed in here: not only recipes, but rundowns on cooking procedures and tips, procedures for preparing and serving, meal plans, pairing tips, interviews with farmers, and more. It's a really, nice, holistic look at a significant but often-underappreciated segment of the food world The photography and layout are beautiful and the recipes are fairly simple and straightforward.
Grist is a compendium of information and recipes involving a wide array of "grains, seeds, and legumes" from around the world. There's a ton of information packed in here: not only recipes, but rundowns on cooking procedures and tips, procedures for preparing and serving, meal plans, pairing tips, interviews with farmers, and more. It's a really, nice, holistic look at a significant but often-underappreciated segment of the food world The photography and layout are beautiful and the recipes are fairly simple and straightforward.
June 9, 2021
This book is full of great ways to add beans, grains, seeds, and legumes to your diet. The photos are beautiful, and the information is a great resource for all cooks. I’ve been looking for ways to add more whole grains and beans to our menu, and this book has lots of great ideas. The format is flexible and allows you to choose from various options, which is great if you love certain beans but not others. It allows you to creatively create your own dish. Grist is well written, and packed with great information. I love this book!
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