Pan fried Perch Po' Boys

The question I get asked almost immediately after I tell people my boyfriend is a chef is "Does he cook for you?". He does.....on occasion. He usually works 80 hour weeks and barely has enough energy to make Chef Boyardee. But today was a rare day that he had off so here is what he made me for lunch - Pan fried perch Po' Boy sandwiches. This is my favorite preparation for fish, pan fried with panko breadcrumbs!




DJ's Po' Boy Bangers
2 cups Panko Breadcrumbs
2 cups Cornmeal
Salt
Pepper
1 tbsp. Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 lb perch fillets de-boned
Shredded cheddar cheese
Romaine lettuce
Hogie Rolls
Tartar Sauce
Bread and Butter Pickles

1. Combine Old Bay, breadcrumbs, cornmeal, salt and pepper in a bowl.
2. Lightly salt and pepper perch fillets.
3. In a medium saute pan, heat 1/2 vegetable oil on medium heat.
4. Lightly toss perch in breadcrumbs mixture, coating both sides and pressing down to make sure it sticks.
5. Carefully lay the fish in the pan. Cook 3-4 minutes until golden brown. Flip and cook other side 2-3 minutes.
6. With tongs, gently take out perch. Place on baking sheet and bake for 4 minutes at 350°.
7. Assemble sandwiches with fresh romaine, cheddar, tartar sauce and pickles (the pickles are for, as iron chefs would say, acidity).

Christmas is not cooperating this year!

This is my third Christmas living in this apartment and my third real tree that Danny has gotten and set up for me while I was at work. This year, the tree lasted a day and decided to fall right when Danny walked in the door at 6pm! The tip even broke off! The tree is back up with the tip ducktaped in, but I haven't had time to RE-decorate it yet.

On a happier note, here is my Meatbally Pooper. He hates wearing any type of clothing. Note the spit mark where he tried to bite the scarf off!

Columbus!

On Saturday I was asked to go to Columbus with my friend J and her friend to go shopping and see BODIES...The Exhibition. I lived in Columbus for 4 years in college and was so excited to go back for a visit! Unfortunately we only had time to go to the suburb where the mall and exhibit was and not get into downtown where I lived and went to school. I'll save that for next time I guess!

Onto the pics!

The Apple Store. The computer nerd in me had to take a picture of giant nutcrackers with ipods!


Lunch was at Cosi, a bistro famous for homemade flatbreads and salads. I had the Signature Salad which was mixed greens tossed with red grapes, pears, pistachios, dried cranberries, gorgonzola and tossed with shallot sherry vinaigrette. I was so happy eating that salad, I could have turned around and driven two hours home and would have been satisfied.


Ruehl No. 925. This store is owned by Abercrombie and Fitch geared toward the 25-35 year old crowd. The storefront is decorated like a brownstone in Greenwich Village, NY and the rooms with the clothing are set up like a cool, modern loft. Having just visited NY for the first time this year, I was really excited to check this place out. I found two shirts to buy and I actually got lost in the store trying to find the register! When I found it, there was no line and they had bar stools set up so you can take a rest while paying. The best part is when you get home, the shirts smell like cologne! Abercrombie really gets it right with store ambiance and I'm glad this store exists because I can't fit into Abercrombie clothes anymore.

I also did really good at The Limited buying two shirts for $22 thanks to a 25% off sale they were having throughout the whole store and a extra 30% off coupon I found online. I was very suprised since I usually find nothing I like there.

The extreme shopping turned educational with BODIES...The Exhibition across the street. I don't think it was worth $20, but it did give me a new perspective on how I should be exercising and taking care of myself in regards to the food I put in my body. We ended the night with dinner at McCormick and Schmick's where I had pecan crusted catfish with a marmalade sauce. No pictures because we had to bust into the bar with no reservation and were starved! I definately want to go back soon!

Christmas Blurbs

• Finished my Christmas Cards. I don't know why but it's taking me forever for me to feel "Christmasy" this year. After writing out 16 cards, I feel much more in the spirit. I HAD to buy the dorky Christmas sweater stamps to go along with them!


• Watched the Top Chef Christmas Special. This was a pleasant suprise to see some of my favorite chefs come back to compete. I thought it was genius to have the chefs prepare 3 courses and eliminate 2 chefs after each course, leaving some chefs with dishes that they weren't able to use. The addition of the on-the-fly dish encouraged the chefs to pick and choose from the eliminated which created even more tension.

• Kind of Christmas related because I always make my doctor's appointments around Christmas. I filled out the rebate form I got from the eye doctor to get $30.00 back for ordering a 6 month supply of contacts. While doing this, I kept staring at the bag they put all my receipts and rebate in. This bag just annoys me.


Get it? It's googly EYES because it's an EYE doctor. ha ha.........no.

Bye Bye Bianca!

I'm very pleased to see this little brat get kicked off this week's ANTM! She is bad at posing, has a mean face and a cocky attitude. It was good TV when they shaved her head though, I always enjoy a good tear-filled head shaving. To give her any sort of credit, she IS only 18 and still has an enormous amount of growing up to do. I know when I was 18 I was extremely shy, starving myself, and scared to go to college 2 hours away. Definately not the case now! The three girls that are left are on even ground on terms of looks, obeying photographers, etc. The judges are going to really have to split hairs to determine the winner.

Giant Eagle Secret Spy!!!

I was bored yesterday so I decided to register at Giant Eagle's website, the midwest's huge grocery store chain. While playing around on the site, I found out you can see how much money you are eligible to get off your gas via their fuel perks program. Cool. Then, I click on another tab called Shopping History. There is a list of all the shopping purchases I made for the last 4 months. No big deal, right? Well Danny and I share a Giant Eagle card partly because of his laziness to sign up and partly so we can get a bigger fuel perks discount. So now I can spy on what he buys!!!!!!! Muhahahaha!!!!! I found out he mostly buys Gatorade and Red Bull, but I also discovered some reacurring themes. Reese Sticks? Those fattening fried cherry pies? Bad, bad Danny!

Blog Love 2

A shout-out to all the people with blogs I sent my blog link to:
suffix.abuse - That amazing picture of sushi is making me crave spicy tuna rolls right now!
Anodyne Design - Shannon describes her Etsy shop as something that soothes, calms, or comforts and her blog conveys that soothing feeling too! Beautiful handbags.
The Quilterhood - and her puppies Buddy & Beulah.
mona millefiori - Love your new logo, very pretty!
nicole20 - I wish you the best for your newborn and you are in my prayers.

And also the blogs that were sent to me!
Toilet Roll Art - love, love, love the shoes you posted!
Kentucky Girl - I also share your love (opps I mean hate) for shopping.
Tina Lynn - thanks for introducing me to live journal! Cute cherry blossoms!
Mirawyn Crafts - I've always wanted to do ATC's and just never do them. Maybe your blog will inspire me.