It was a Cooking Light kind of day

Every once in a while I sit down with my recently-delivered Cooking Light magazines, and go through them to see what I might like to fix. I found a lot of recipes from the October and December issues (was there a November one?), and tried three of them. I'm always looking for good ways to fix fish - since A) it's good for you and B) Don often brings back fish from the ocean or Lake Mead. This recipe was simple, quick, and tasty. The fish itself was prepared as I often prepare it, but with the added touch of sprinkling it with garlic powder before it was breaded. The rémoulade was rich - I LOVED it. You have to be careful how much you use, because you could easily use too much. The recipe said it made enough for 2, but I cooked up 3 fillets and still had a little sauce left over. It reminded me of a tartar sauce, but I thought it was better.

Pan-fried Fish with Rémoulade

adapted from Cooking Light
Sauce:
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons reduced-fat mayonnaise
1 teaspoon chopped capers
1 teaspoon whole-grain Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Fish:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
2 (6-ounce) skinless halibut fillets
(I used 3 mahi mahi fillets)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (I substituted garlic salt for the salt and garlic powder)
* 1 tablespoon canola oil
* 2 lemon wedges
1. To prepare sauce, combine the first 6 ingredients.
2. Place flour in a shallow dish. Place panko in another shallow dish. Place egg white in another shallow dish.
3. Sprinkle fish evenly with salt and garlic powder. Working with 1 fillet at a time, dredge fish in flour, shaking off excess. Dip fish into egg white, allowing excess to drip off. Coat fish completely with panko, pressing lightly. Set aside. Repeat procedure with remaining fish, flour, egg white, and panko.
4. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add fish to pan; reduce heat to medium, and cook 4 minutes on each side or until browned and fish flakes easily when tested with a fork or until desired degree of doneness. Serve with sauce and lemon wedges.

In addition to a salad, I fixed this dish with the fish:

Eastham Turnip-Potato Gratin

adapted from Cooking Light

1 ¼ pounds medium turnips (about 2, the size of baseballs), peeled and cut into (1/8-inch-thick) slices
Cooking spray
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
¾ pound baking potato, peeled and cut into (1/8-inch-thick) slices
¾ cup (3 ounces) grated Gruyère cheese, divided
¾ cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1. Place turnips in saucepan; cover with water. Bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer 15 minutes or until tender. Drain; pat dry.
2. Preheat oven to 350°.
3. Arrange one third of turnips in a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with one third of salt and one third of pepper. Arrange half of potato over turnip. Sprinkle 6 tablespoons cheese evenly over potato. Arrange one third turnip over cheese; sprinkle with one third of salt and one third of pepper. Arrange remaining potato over turnip. Arrange remaining turnip over potato; sprinkle with remaining salt and remaining pepper. Pour broth over vegetables. Cover with foil, pressing foil down onto turnip slices. Bake at 350° for 1 hour.
4. Preheat broiler.
5. Uncover turnips; sprinkle with the remaining 6 tablespoons cheese. Broil 8 minutes or until lightly browned.

Notes:
While the recipe calls for broiling, I just added the cheese and continued cooking another 10 minutes. I also had to drain off some liquid before I added the cheese topping.


Dessert was a dish that somehow made its way into Cooking Light, but definitely wasn't light. It was a makeover, and I suppose that since they reduced the calories somewhat from the original, it qualified to be in the magazine. But ONE SLICE (which was ONE-TWELFTH of the cake) was 52 grams of carbs. Hmmm. I think next time I'll make it (and there will be a next time), I'm going to omit the sugary topping and add the coconut to the cake batter.




Sticky Date and Coconut Cake
adapted from Cooking Light

Cake:
1 cup chopped pitted dates
1 cup water
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons butter
Dash of salt
6.75 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Cooking spray

Topping:
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup flaked sweetened coconut
2 1/2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons fat-free milk

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. To prepare cake, combine first 5 ingredients in a small saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, and let stand 10 minutes or until dates are tender.
3. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Stir in date mixture, granulated sugar, vanilla, and egg until well combined. Pour batter into a 9-inch springform pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes.
4. To prepare topping, combine brown sugar and remaining ingredients in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 1 minute. Pour brown sugar mixture over cake; bake at 350° for an additional 13 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 5 minutes on a wire rack. Run a knife around outside edge. Cool completely on a wire rack.