The Essential Best Foods Cookbook: 225 Irresistible Recipes Featuring the Healthiest and Most Delicious Foods

Which foods offer the most nutritional value? Which supposed smart choices actually fall short of their promised good? Expanding the scope of her popular 12 Best Foods Cookbook, Dana Jacobi explores the micronutrient benefits in over 60 common foods and provides a wealth of recipes that prove, as Gourmet Retailer has previously written: "we are in the hands of a wonderfully creative and talented cook."

Did you know that green beans are a nutritional lightweight compared to the green soybeans called edamame? Or that zucchini is a weakling when rated against winter squashes packed with carotene, fiber, and more? For each "good food" she lists, Jacobi explains the science behind her selection—and shows how to exploit each ingredient's inherent "goodness" with her original, innovative spins on classic dishes like Turkey and Spinach Mini-Meatloaf or new combinations like Red Lentil and Apricot Soup . Always mindful of the home cook's need to get meals on the table quickly, Jacobi includes many dishes that take 30 minutes or less.

As cookbook author Jack Bishop has written of her 12 Best Foods Cookbook: "Dana Jacobi proves that good nutrition and pleasure are not mutually exclusive. Her inventive, simple recipes satisfy our desires and keep our bodies healthy."