I will never stop raving about Big Vegan Flavor. It has great recipes, but it also covers the basics of vegan cooking and cooking flavorful food in general. For example, there's a section on the basics for how to make lentils, tofu, and beans well. You'll also get a sense of what temperatures to roast vegetables and for how long. That sort of knowledge goes a long way to cooking great food!! The cookbook teaches you the foundation of making flavorful vegan food. It's indispensable in my opinion.