By Catharine Powers, MS, RD, LD and Mary Abbott Hess, LHD, MS, RD, LD, FADA 2010, Culinary Nutrition Publishing, LLC, Chicago, IL

If you are looking for a book that's an all-around, useful nutrition reference on just about everything, Essentials of Nutrition for Chefs is a great choice. It's a straight-forward guide written for culinary students, chefs, food educators and food writers.

Practical applications of nutrition principles lead the way to preparing food that is as healthful as it is delicious. The authors worked with chefs around the country in schools, healthcare, restaurants, and B&I. Advice and practical knowledge from that research bolsters the book.

For example, the chapter on Communicating Nutrition Messages, discusses effective ways to make nutritional promotions more effective and more educational. Another useful chapter focuses on meeting the nutrional needs of children, athletes, and aging adults, and features foods to limit, tips for chefs and more on each group.

Easy-to-comprehend charts and graphs abound in the book; be sure to check out the Comparison of Dietary Fats in the Fats and Oils chapter. Another useful area in the book is the chapter on Healthful Cooking and Techniques, which offers comparisons on many different methods and the foods with which they work best.