Lessons learned!
Last night was the final act in this past months ongoing drama, that if I had to give it a title would probably be "New Food: Is it Good Food?" Based on a whole month of making new dinners at home (okay, full disclosure, we fell back on some old reliables maybe twice when we were feeling really lazy), I have to without hesitation say "hell yes!" All those lonely cookbooks that hadn't been handled since they left the bookstore and were languishing on the shelf finally got their bindings cracked. Last nights delicious ending was a recipe we grabbed out of our local fishwrap The Oregonian. Fresh sea scallops wrapped in prosciuotto di Parma sautéed in a sage infused olive oil with fried sage leaves and sautéed apples on the side. Really good and pretty light. With some of my beloved roasted fingerlings and brussels sprouts it was working.

All in all the month was a pretty cool learning experience. The things we liked most and will find their way into our regular repertoire were the fish dishes. I've been a mostly meat/pasta/chicken cook, and playing with fish was really fun. Plus it ups the kitchen confidence level when the new chow you're cranking out actually tastes good with a couple of "wow" moments thrown in. I think it will be an annual event with us, and I'd highly encourage you to do the same. It's not that tough, and ya just might learn a thing or two!