I bet that if I had a look at your cookbook shelf right now, there would be a lot of titles that you use only once in awhile and one or two that you rely on almost daily.

Add Healthy Cooking by The Culinary Institute of America to your list of must-have cookbooks.

This awesome tome has over 235 recipes to choose from, keeping weeknight dinners from being the same old, same old. And speaking of weeknight dinners, I know that the last thing you want to do as soon as you get in the door is work on making an elaborate meal when you're so tired and worn out from the day and incredibly hungry to boot. That's why you're going to love this book - the recipes are fantastic, but the ingredients and steps are super short, allowing you to get a great meal on the table in no time!

Getting pointers from the pros of The Culinary Institute of America is like having a personal cooking lesson, right in your own home! I love the idea of creating soup samplers (p.21), the helpful advice on shaping and baking pizza (p. 62) and the different between sauteing, braising and stewing (p. 159).

The recipes are based on the new USDA food guide pyramid and the latest dietary guidelines, doctor recommendations and research, but they are anything but boring. They take recipes you're familiar with and give it a modern twist, making it new and exciting to both create and consume. I mean just imagine this dinner: