Chicago Photos...

These are a couple of the photos I took in downtown Chicago over St Patty's weekend. They're not 'all-that', but pretty cool. Something new to add to the blog anyways! Notice the green dye in the Chicago River?

Sushi, Sushi, Sushi!!!

I can't get it out of my head! Lately, I've had a crazy craving for sushi. I never really ate it until fairly recently and had it for the first time when I was 21 in Vegas at a sushi bar, then again on a Cruise Ship when I was 23. A few months ago, I ordered Seared Ahi Tuna Steak from P.F. Changs and I was hooked! On Sushi that is!

My craving led me to the grocery store (which now has a sushi bar inside) and I bought a sushi platter and took it home and ate the whole thing. Now, that may sound like a lot, but it wasn't THAT much. I wanted another one when I was done. Now, when I watch the Discovery channel and see large fish, I want to take a bite out of them!!!

So far, I've had salmon and eel, but haven't tried anything else. I love soy sauce and any Japanese roll with sushi in it. Also, when I went to the store, I bought two frozen tuna steaks to try seared tuna on my own. Has anyone else made sushi at home before? Sheila, have you tried it? I want some tips on what I can do with salmon filets or something else that I can buy and is sushi-safe. My local grocer is really good and gets fresh fish regularly.

Anyways, I thought I would share my wild craving with everyone. Please tell me about your sushi experiences, what you liked, didn't like, or any tips you can give me! I'm new to the sushi world, to teach me a bit and give me suggestions. =)

This was the sushi plate I devoured in minutes...

New Recipe - Eggplant Parmesan

I tried a new recipe last night...eggplant parmesan. I've never done anything with eggplant before, but the dinner came out great! I even had to take a picture of it. If you'd like to try something new, give it a shot. It took about 3-4 hours from start to finish. I made up some of the recipe myself, but I'll give it to you and wish you the best if you decide to try it yourself...

This recipe serves 2-4 people.

INGREDIENTS:

1 eggplant (medium size)

Bread Crumbs

Flour

Salt
Basil, Oregano, Parsley

2 Eggs

Chicken (optional)

Noodles (optional)

Parmesan Cheese

Mozzarella Cheese

DIRECTIONS:

- Skin eggplant completely. Cut long-ways into 1/3 inch slices.

- Get a bowl and make a mix of flour and salt (about 4/5 flour and 1/5 salt)

- Dip and press the sliced eggplants into the powdery mix. This will extract the bitter juices from the eggplant. Lay out eggplant on a papertowel to begin the draining process. The eggplant should go through this process for 1-2 hours. Keep adding flour to eggplant as the juice soaks into the flour already on the slices.

- After 1-2 hours, rinse eggplant under warm water to remove flour and salt.

- Get a bowl and make a mix of flour, bread crumbs, and ground herbs listed above (no salt)

- Get a bowl and mix two eggs (or three if necessary)

- Dip eggplant into breading FIRST, then into egg, then back into the breading. Place into frying pan with vegetable oil for a quick simmer. I only fried mine until they began to crisp and turns a very light tan (not too brown)

- Cook 1/2 lb of chicken in a frying pan, cooking all the way through, but not over cooking.

- boil and prepare 1 cup of noodles (penne preferably)

When the ingredients are done, place a layer of eggplant at the bottom of the pan evenly. On top, spread tomato sauce (I used Classico 4-cheese). Add shredded chicked to your desire. Put grated parmesan cheese and shredded mozzarella cheese on top. Add another layer of eggplant. Again, add sauce, and more chicken if desired. I also added penne noodles here. Put parmesan and mozzarella cheese on top. Add last layer of eggplant. On top, add sauce, parmesian cheese and top it evenly and generously with mozzarella cheese.

Cook at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Wha-laa! You're done!