Dinner for the Eyes

I think I'm really getting the hang of this cooking thing. Of course, I can bake. But now I'm finally learning how to cook for myself...and not just frozen dinners or cans of soup. I'm making meals that would win the heart (and stomach) of any man. Last night's dinner? Baked chicken seasoned with Sun Dried Tomatoes stuffed with garlic and Romano cheese, atop a bed of whole wheat linguine in a creamy garlic tomato sauce.

(I have to stop taking camera pics of my food and use my Powershot)

To accompany the dish: a salad of spring greens and romaine, red onion, tomato, cucumber & parsley with red wine viniagrette dressing and a miniature loaf of 9-grain bread with butter in between the slices (picture is not actual size,hence it being a mini loaf). Served with a glass of 2002 Bonny Doon Syrah-Sirrah, a bottle I'd been saving for my collection based on the label art.

Well as asthetically pleasing as this meal may have been, the chicken turned out to be slightly dry, not as tender as I would have liked it to be and didn't hold in any of the flavor piled on the outside of it. Besides that the pasta was on the mushy side, there was barely enough sauce for 2 people and the wine was spicy. I've never had Syrah before, so perhaps its supposed to be spicy. But the only thing it really went well with was the bread. So, I got an A for presentation but the rest was more of a learning experience. I may not be a gourmet chef, but I'm getting there.