http://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Geeks-Science-Great-Hacks/dp/0596805888
Check this out. was purchased for me as a gift, and i've finally started getting into it. It's really more of a cover to cover read than a recipe book/shelf reference, but there's some great stuff in there. It's like someone took on food and cooking and made it a little more accessible and easy to digest.