Welcome to Ethan Stowell�s New Italian Kitchen--not so much a place as a philosophy. Here food isn�t formal or fussy, just focused, with recipes that honor Italian tradition while celebrating the best ingredients the Pacific Northwest has to offer. We�re talking about a generous bowl of steaming handmade pasta--served with two forks for you and a friend. Or perhaps an impeccably fresh crudo, crunchy cucumber and tangy radish accenting impossibly sweet spot prawns. Next up are the jewel tones of a beet salad with lush, homemade ricotta, or maybe a tangle of white beans and clams spiked with Goat Horn pepper--finished off with a whole roasted fish that begs to be sucked off the bones. Oh, some cheese, a gooseberry compote complementing your Robiola, or the bittersweet surprise of Campari sorbet. This layered approach is a hallmark of Ethan�s restaurants, and in his New Italian Kitchen, he offers home cooks a tantalizing roadmap for re-creating this style of eating. Prepare a feast simply by combining the lighter dishes found in �Nibbles and Bits��from Sardine Crudo with Celery Hearts, Pine Nuts, and Lemon to Crispy Young Favas with Green Garlic Mayonnaise�or adding recipes with complex flavors for a more sophisticated meal. Try the luscious Corn and Chanterelle Soup from �The Measure of a Cook;� or the Cavatelli with Cuttlefish, Spring Onion, and Lemon from �Wheat�s Highest Calling.� Up the ante with a stunning Duck Leg Farrotto with Pearl Onions and Bloomsdale Spinach from �Starches to Grow On,� or choose one of the �Beasties of the Land,� like Skillet-Roasted Rabbit with Pancetta-Basted Fingerlings. Each combination will nudge you and your guests in new, unexpected, and unforgettable directions. Every page of Ethan Stowell�s New Italian Kitchen captures the enthusiasm, humor, and imagination that make cooking one of life�s best and most satisfying adventures. It�s got to be good--but it�s also got to be fun.