Darren LeBlanc

I made a dinner tonight that is potentially going to overthrow chicken marsala as my favorite meal to cook: Bruschetta Tilapia I got the idea from a similar dish I had at Bonefish Willies in Melbourne FL.

Here’s the plan.

• - 2 tilapia filets
• - a handful of fresh basil leaves (more wont hurt)
• - extra virgin olive oil
• - 2-3 fresh firm plum tomatoes (or any…plum just has less juice and seeds)
• - 3-4 cloves garlic pressed
• - 1 cup Parmesan cheese
• - 1/2 cup mozzarella (completely optional)

1. Set the oven to 350…you are gonna be ready to go by the time it preheats!
2. Chop the basil finely (or use a food processor) and add a little oil (think Pesto!)
3. Chop your tomatoes in a bowl and add the pressed garlic with a teaspon or so of oil
4. Place your fish in an oven safe dish and completely cover each filet with the chopped basil, then top with tomato mixture
5. Bake on 350 for 20 minutes
6. Remove form oven and sprinkle on the Parmesan cheese generously to cover the whole fish. Top with mozzarella (if you have the urge – but the parmesan is just fine on its own).
7. Continue to bake about 5 minutes till the cheese is melted.

Thats it. If you really want to tickle your taste buds, use Parmigiano-Reggiano and fresh Mozzarella.

So for those of you who are waiting for updates on Misty….
Today was a better day! The decadron has helped misty’s speech to come back to a level where we can communicate again. In fact, she is getting out about 60% of her sentences without problems. Her hand also has some feeling back and she has a bit of strength in it. Today has taken a big step up emotionally for her. Really, its significantly better than this weekend. The decadron has some side effects that she doesn’t like, but overall I’d have to say we are doing better.

Tomorrow we meet with our neuro-oncologist to discuss recent changes. Also tomorrow her scans are being reviewed by our neuro-surgeon and the brain tumor board at Columbia in NYC. We have about 3 weeks till the next MRI to see if the new chemo is working.

Also, I really need to say thanks for all the prayers and words of encouragement. Misty is trying really hard to keep her faith alive…and the cards and emails (i read them to her) from all of you are a great support. So thanks…