Sometimes you feel the need to get a little fancy. To host a dinner party. Or a romantic dinner for two. To light some candles and drink a really good glass of wine. To play some jazz and turn off the TV. This is a menu idea for an occasion just such as that. This is not necessarily your crazy-midweek-pre-volleyball-practice meal. In fact, please DON’T try to make it then! You’ll feel rushed and the experience will suffer. This dish needs the experience. It’s not all that time consuming, but it feels special and I like to imagine you savoring this dish. Humor me.

The sauce is a breeze to prepare and the fish just gets a quick coating before you pan sauté it. Steam some haricots verts (those very skinny green beans – super fancy) and plate the fish on top of a bed of the beans. Lovely. And don’t forget the wine…as if!

Pecan-Crusted Snapper with Lemon Wine Sauce

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Lemon Wine Sauce:

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons Chardonnay

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

pinch of white pepper

Pecan-Crusted Snapper:

1 3/4 cups pecan pieces, finely chopped

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

4 (6 oz.) fresh snapper fillets, skin removed (can substitute cod, sole, trout, or orange roughy)

2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

1. For the sauce: Combine 1 cup of the Chardonnay and all but 1 1/2 teaspoons of the lemon juice in a small saucepan. Boil on high heat until the liquid is reduced in half. Blend the cornstarch and remaining Chardonnay in a small bowl until smooth. Add to the boiling mixture, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Turn off heat. Add butter one tablespoon at a time. Whisk in reserved lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat. Set aside.

2. For the fish: Combine the pecans, cornstarch, salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Coat fish by turning twice in pecan mixture and pressing lightly into fish. Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Place fillets in pan and reduce heat to medium. Cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until fish flakes easily with a fork. Remove from heat.

3. Drizzle lemon wine sauce over each fillet and serve.

For the record, no, I do not always make homemade granola bars for my children. Most of the time they eat Clif Z Bars (chocolate chip preferably) which I buy in bulk at Target. But every now and then I get a wild hair to channel my inner Martha Stewart and do something really domestic. Like making homemade granola bars. (I have also attempted vegan, organic, marshmallow-free, Rice Krispie treats using Alicia Silverstone’s recipe in The Kind Diet – not bad but a little sticky.)

I had to make these because the very idea of baking homemade granola bars on a cold winter’s day  makes me happy. If you can bake cookies you can pull this off – and use any kind of dried fruit your children like – dried cherries are a big hit around here. Just imagine the smiling faces you’ll have at the counter you if you offer up one of these and a big glass of milk or hot cocoa after school. Ah, to be a kid again.

PS – For you email subscribers, Tuesday’s post did not go out by email due to a WordPress glitch…here’s the link so you don’t miss it!

Chewy Fruit and Oatmeal Bars

Makes two dozen bars

Ingredients:

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 (8 oz.) container of vanilla or plain yogurt

2 egg whites, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or equivalent amount of applesauce)

2 tablespoons milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (you can substitute 1/2 – 1 cup whole wheat flour for equal amount of all-purpose flour)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 cups quick cooking oatmeal

1 cup dried mixed fruit, raisins, or cranberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Combine sugars, yogurt, egg whites, oil, milk and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Mix until well combined. In another bowl combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Gently add flour mixture to yogurt mixture and stir to combine. Stir in oats and dried fruit.

2. Spread dough into an ungreased 9 x 13-inch baking dish.

3. Bake 28 to 32 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into bars and store tightly covered.

It finally feels like winter (again) around here. After weeks of spring-like weather, we’re back to the right season. No snow falling gently from the sky to make it worth it either – just cold and wet and dreary conditions. Crock pot weather, if you ask me. Nothing like a big pot of something warm and cozy to make you feel better about the icky view out the window and the bad hair day that ensues. Unfortunately, while extremely convenient, most crock pot concoctions start with high-fat cuts of meat and too many cans of cream-of-something soup. Not this one! This vegetarian chili is hearty and delicious and healthy.

In your quest to save a few minutes in the morning, you may be tempted to skip the sautéing step but promise me you won’t give in to the temptation! Set the alarm for a few minutes earlier and get out that nonstick skillet! Taking the time to sauté the vegetables before adding them to the slow-cooker intensifies their flavor and is key to this recipe’s success. This is a pretty mild chili, not a fire-breathing-dragon variety, so it’s broadly appealing, even to vegetable-eating children (wink).

Stay warm!

Slow-Cooker Vegetarian Chili with Sweet Potatoes

adapted from realsimple.com

serves 4-6

Ingredients:

1 medium red onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon cumin

2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

salt and pepper

1  28-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes

1  15.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed

1  15.5-ounce can kidney beans, rinsed

2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

low-fat sour cream or Greek yogurt, sliced scallions, sliced radishes, and tortilla chips for serving

Directions:

1. In a large nonstick skillet saute onion, bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, cocoa, and cinnamon, in 2 teaspoons of olive oil.

2. In a 4-to-6 quart slow cooker combine sauteed vegetables with the tomatoes (and their juices), beans, sweet potatoes, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and 1 cup of water.

3. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours, until sweet potatoes are tender and the chili has thickened.

4. Serve the chili with sour cream or Greek yogurt, scallions, radishes, and tortilla chips.

Can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.