Dimensions of Food

Dr. Vaclavik, Registered Dietitian, now retired, has taught for over 25 years at the college level in Dallas, TX. Included are nutrition students at the Dallas County Community College District; Food Science and Management Undergraduates and Graduate students at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Clinical Nutrition Department; and culinary students at The International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Dallas. Dr. V. is a graduate of Cornell University where she studied Human Nutrition and Food, Purdue University - majoring in Restaurant, Hotel, Institution Management, and Texas Woman's University - studying Institution Management and Food Science.


She has been the Author of Dimensions of Food since its 3rd edition (of 8 editions now, and for the original version when she was a student worker in college.) She also wrote Essentials of Food Science, now in its fourth edition with 2 foreign translations. Dr. Vaclavik authored The Art of Nutritional Cuisine, a lecture and cooking textbook for student chefs, with Amy Haynes. Personally, she really likes passing on what she knows and enjoys. Prior to teaching and writing, Dr. Vaclavik has worked in various foodservice operations - including hotel restaurants, meals-on-wheels and more.


Happy, healthy cooking!





Amy Haynes is a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) who has been an educator in the science of nutrition and its application in food preparation for the past 17 years. Amy is a graduate of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, where she studied clinical nutrition. Her passion to educate others with her knowledge of nutrition and healthful food preparation lead her into the field of culinary arts as an instructor at the International Culinary School at the Art Institute of Dallas, where she taught nutritional cooking, food safety and sanitation, and vegetarian cuisine for 12 years. During that time, Amy sought other opportunities to promote healthier living with experiences including professional speaking in various settings, teaching kids cooking classes, and being featured as "guest chef" at the renowned Hilton Head Health Institute in South Carolina. The chance to educate and inspire future chefs and foodservice professionals expanded into writing as she co-authored a text alongside Vickie A. Vaclavik, PhD, RD, entitled The Art of Nutritional Cuisine, published in 2013, which is currently used in culinary classrooms across the country.


Amy's latest endeavor has broadened her scope of influence into outlying Dallas areas working for the community outreach division of Medical City Healthcare and Medical City Children's Hospital and their nationally recognized Kids Teaching Kids program. Amy's mission to herald her message of applying sound nutritional principles to all aspects of food selection and food preparation continues to spread and is strong as ever!





Marjorie M. Devine, Ph.D.


Professor Emeritus. Department Head, Retired. New York State College of Human Ecology. Cornell University. Human Nutrition and Foods. Ithaca, New York. Original author of Dimensions of Food.


Many people have contributed to the development of this manual. Special acknowledgments are extended to our colleagues for their careful review of parts of the manuscript and to our many teaching assistants for their helpful contributions. To our students, whose curiosity and penetrating questions continue to make teaching the dimensions of food a joyful challenge, we say, thank you!