There are two chefs who taught me how to cook by virtue of publishing the books that I learned from. The first is Madhur Jaffrey (World of the East Vegetarian Cooking--an outstanding, comprehensive book of recipes, methods, ingredients and their substitutions for beginners with a knack for flavors and the will to give it a try). The next is Eric Tucker, Head Chef of Millennium Restaurant in San Francisco (best restaurant I've ever had the pleasure of dining in) and author of two Millennium books including The Artful Vegan.I have both of Eric Tucker's books (Artful, and The Millennium Cookbook), and I reference them both frequently, whether I want to put on a pull-out-all-the-stops fabulous dinner party or just want a little inspiration for interesting flavor combinations for tonight's dinner.Complicated? Doesn't have to be:First thing you'll want to know about these books is that other reviewers are right that these are not meant for whipping up quick meals at the end of a long day. That said, I have on countless occasions pulled out Eric's books for inspiration for a quick something-or-other to do with, say, butternut squash. Say I've baked a butternut squash ahead of time and have it sitting in the fridge waiting for me to do something with it at the end of one of these hard days. A quick flip to the index of Artful for "squash, butternut" sends me to pp. 130-131, where I see the interesting combination of garlic, lemons, tahini, onion, tomato, and mint (plus some other things that I don't feel like putting in). I decide to combine those ingreds with some nice wild mushrooms I have in the fridge, a little minced serrano chile, and a smidge of raw sugar melted and poured over the squash, and I come up with a darned yummy and easy meal.The thing to remember is that cookbooks are suggestions, nothing more. They are launching pads. With The Artful Vegan, what you've got is a series of very interesting flavor combinations that should make you feel like a kid in the world's biggest sandbox--play Play PLAY with the flavors, play with the textures, use the bits that sound good to you, combine them with other bits that pique your curiosity, and learn from it. Some of your "experiments" might well suck--that's OK. A bunch of them will be exquisite. Artful gives you a very comprehensive bunch of ideas that take you--well, it definitely took me--to places I would not have thought to go on my own. Now I do think it, and this is why I say Eric Tucker is one of the chefs who taught me to cook by writing this excellent book.Well, unless you want it to be complicated:Using the recipes not as suggestions but as verbatim instructions will also have you singing with glee. This is where you should set aside a day of preparation ahead of time and then another day to do the cooking and assembling and serving. Really--plan for a Sunday eve meal that you start on Saturday morning (preferably with a visit to the local farmers' market). This is why I (and other reviewers) say the recipes are time-consuming. But if you love the subtle arts of cookery and fancy yourself brave enough to try new techniques and flavor/texture combinations, you are going to love this book, and you are going to have more fun in the kitchen and be more impressed with what you can make than ever before.Ingredients and equipment:It also helps immensely to live in a great place like the San Francisco Bay Area where access to all things gastronomic are readily available. Between the wide variety of our farmers' markets, international groceries, organic health food stores, and the great outdoors, any outstanding ingredients list is pretty well covered in the Bay Area. If you live in an area where there's not as much selection, you'll need to be creative about substitution ingredients. Fortunately, Eric's books are good about telling you what other (perhaps less "exotic") ingredients would work well, what pieces you could leave out of the recipe and still have something stellar, and so forth.You don't need a lot of specialized kitchen equipment to make these recipes. One assumes a blender and/or food processor and a basic set of quality knives and cookware. But you don't need all those stupid tchotchkes that have one use only, are impossible to clean and care for, and cost you a month's salary. Exquisite cooking is not defined by the fussiness of one's gadgets. (In my experience, reliance on fussy gadgetry is inversely related to cooking skill).Oh, those gorgeous photos!:One last thing: not every recipe in this book has a photo of the finished dish, but many do. The photos are works of art in and of themselves--the book is a visual feast as well as a collection of ideas for your own gustatory feast. Plus, with instructions that can seem at first to be very complicated, it's helpful to look at the photo and say "Oh, that's what he means by that!"`````To sum up:1) The other reviewers are right that these recipes can be very time-consuming and complicated. Sometimes you want that--satisfies the inner chef-artiste in all of us;2) The recipes are easily adaptable to be a lot less time-consuming and complicated, and Eric Tucker provides a lot of guidance on how to adapt the recipes;3) You don't need to be an expert with a bunch of ridiculously complicated kitchen equipment to make the food in this book. You just need a bit of an experimental attitude, good solid basic kitchen equipment, and the willingness to have fun with new flavors, textures, ingredients, and ideas;4) This shouldn't, however, be your first cookbook. You will likely enjoy the book most if you already have some experience fiddling around in the kitchen and are familiar with the basic terminology ("blanching" almonds, for example. Not too complicated--and there's a Basics section, a Techniques section, and a Glossary section in the back to help you with this stuff);5) The Artful Vegan, along w/ Eric's earlier The Millennium Cookbook, took my cooking to a new level. It's doable, it's absolutely worth doing, and it's a heck of a lot of fun!¡Buen provecho!There are some wonderful recipes in this book but it's not for beginners! There are several recipes on each page that make up a whole meal - lots of work, lots of ingredients and lots of incredible flavors! The downside, for me, is the lack of photographs. There are very few. I like photographs for inspiration. This book is what I'd call a "gourmet" book, no quick 'n easy every day stuff but I've already learnt a lot. For a vegan who is looking to up their game I'd recommend Tal Ronen's book, The Conscious Cook. There are great photographs for almost every recipe and clear instructions. Again, it's not simple quick fix stuff but the recipes are delicious and once you've practiced them several times they'll become easy to do without the recipe.I prayed - and I read and Genesis 1:29 says that we are truly designed to be VEGANS. I had been been serving the homeless; helped incorporate a shelter - helped purchase a home for for homeless women with children. Amazon sells the "BLUE ZONES" where 5 communities typically average age is between 100 years and 105 years with birth certificates. Thus my interest in how to maximize my taste buds and develop a very complex looking - and delicious meal. Oh - being a VEGAN reversed Heart Disease, stopped Diabetics, changes pH to above 7 and stops cancers.I purchased this book while in Culinary school to use for inspiration during our "spa cuisine" section. I still use it to this day, even though I am not a vegan. It has delicious recipes that are layered with flavor and texture experiences. I just love flipping through it for the photos as well. I LOVE this book. Anyone wishing to try a different style of eating or just eat meatless a few times a week would greatly benefit from this amazing book. Some of the dishes may be a bit complicated for a novice cook, but you can take several of the recipes and only prepare parts of them. The gnocci is AMAZING!As many other reviewers have mentioned - this is not a beginner's guide to vegan cooking. I have never seen a cookbook like this one. When I make a recipe from this book I have to plan a shopping list ahead of time and read through the recipes before I start preparing them. It takes quite a bit of effort but is worth EVERY SECOND I spend on it. The flavors are downright tantalizing and the dishes plate so beautifully you feel like you are dining in a 5-star restaurant. If you love to cook and love wowing your dinner guests then this is a definite book for you.All of the things we made in this book have blown my and my spouse's minds. We are not even vegetarian, but these are amazing! The pear crumble dessert is to die for, and the tarragon "ranch" dressing is also fantastic.Great recipes!The recipes in this book are rather complex to make, and for europeans the measures are not always easy. What's really missing is pictures of every dish. A picture really would help to visualise the end result, making it easier to understand the descriptions.I bought this book several months ago. It is clear that it is written by a restaurant chef with access to a multitude of exotic (and Stateside) ingredients and perhaps an army of sous-chefs. However, I think it's a great source of ideas and most of the recipes can be broken down and simplified for the home cook with limited time (and not all the ingredients to hand). Recipes usually have 3-4 components. I'm happy to focus on just one of the four to cook something different and delicious. Anything I have made has been great. For example, I made the carrot cake without the frosting and using regular chopped walnuts rather than candied. The ginger cookies are also excellent. Children and adults loved both.I source most ingredients in healthfood shops, e.g. the umeboshi vinegar mentioned by another reviewer. It is true that if you wanted to seriously tackle the recipes in this book, you would have to make an initial investment in some ingredients. But most of them keep well. I love cooking and for me a vegan diet should not be boring. I like the book so much that I have now ordered the first book, the Milennium Cookbook. Some vegan books focus disappointingly on meat and dairy substitutes instead of on the wealth of ingredients available in their own right (not as second best) to vegans. This book elevates vegan cooking and pushes me outside my comfort zone. It's great! If you're reading this, Mr Tucker, I would like the next book to offer more comprehensive information on nutrition, e.g. vitamin and minerals, type of fats, etc.This book is beautiful ,makes me really wish I lived near a decent vegan restaurant so I could give it to them in the hope they would make me something from it,I made the pear Huckleberry Trifle, By the time I had finished I was convinced this recipe had not been tested before hand,the dough I made was a slop,the mousse also and as we are all out of Huckleberries in Somerset I used rasberries...also a bit sloppy, very disappointed,so much expense went on ingredients,and alot of time working out substitutes for some ingredients, such a shame ,I had high hopes,I am not bad at cooking so am not convinced the problem could have been me not the recipe,however the recipes are so tempting,if it helps,,I was told rape seed oil is canola,Sucanet...now there's another story..!lovely looking recipes but rather complicated and not for every day. Special occasions very good if you have plenty of timeBrilliant book!I expected better. As a culinary student, I am fine with a cookbook that has rather complex recipes. And from a restaurant that puts a lot into generating great food and has multiple very well trained chefs putting their heads together I thought this would be better. First, there needs to be way more pictures. A lack of pictures is fine for simple recipes but when there are rather complex recipes, you need to be able to see what the product is. Second, it's like a mushroom cookbook. Like 2/3 of the dishes are mushrooms. What's up with that? If they had called this a mushroom cookbook then people would know what to expect. You can find several better cookbooks to provide sophisticated recipes. "Vedge" some to mind. "Vegan Secrete Supper" is also excellent! And this last one is just one person (who is not formally trained) and she puts together an amazing set of recipes, head and shoulders above all of the fancy-pants Millennium staff. I hate to be critical and rarely am but just have a look around and you'll find way better books than this one. If you need no photos and you love mushrooms then fine though.