Try, try again

Definitely not a resolution...and "goal" sounds too structured. Aim? Maybe. For awhile now, I've made an ongoing effort to try new things. Not crazy things like bungee jumping or body piercing, but just to be on the lookout for opportunities to expand my horizons.

For example, not too long ago, I tried parsnips. I'd never eaten them before; I don't know if I could have even told you what they looked like. But I found them at the grocery store and decided to give them a try. They look like a big, white carrot, and, as it turns out, they have a sweet flavor similar to carrots. Don't know if I feel the need to eat them again, but they were fine.

Next up on the culinary list were blood oranges. When I was in Italy, the hotel offered blood orange juice every day as part of its breakfast buffet. It was so sweet and delicious, so when I saw blood oranges on sale recently, I decided to try a few:



The juice looked beautiful, but the taste was disappointing. Just ordinary orange juice, with some of that bitter pith taste mixed in there. Definitely not as good as the Italian kind.

The most recent experiment subject was pork chops. I grew up eating pork chops (as part of a balanced meal), but somewhere in adulthood, I decided I didn't like the taste of pork. I can't point to a particular incident, but somehow, the idea of eating pork made me a little queasy, although I should point out that this did not apply to sausage or bacon. Well, after many years of avoiding most chops and roasts, it was time to revisit my reluctance. The verdict? Okay, I guess. I didn't feel queasy, but it wasn't really my thing.

To recap:

Parsnips: YES

Blood oranges: FAIL

Pork chops: MEH**

**Edited to update pork chops to FAIL status. Enough said.

Stay tuned for continuing adventures in newness--