sprinklefingers

i’m somewhat happy to tell you that my very own child won’t eat macaroni & cheese. not even this macaroni & cheese. additionally, he only just started eating any form of fried chicken. and, i’m pleased to tell you that the ‘fried’ chicken he eats most happily isn’t actually fried at all. and it’s not from a fast food joint. nope. i make it. in my oven. with (pretty much) real ingredients. and i’m about to tell you all about it.

you need:

• 3-4 chicken breasts. tenderloin removed, breasts pounded a bit thinner than they were when you got them, cut into strips 2-3” long.
• 2 eggs
• splash of buttermilk or milk
• natural/organic corn flakes - poured into a plastic bag and crushed with a rolling pin
• salt & pepper - to taste.

1. preheat oven to 350. rub some veg oil all over a sheet tray (just to coat.)
2. rinse the chicken strips and pat them dry with paper towels.
3. in a bowl, whisk together the eggs & buttermilk or milk.
4. pour the crushed corn flakes in another bowl.
5. working one strip at a time, dip them in the egg/buttermilk mixture, then plop them down into the corn flake mixture and toss/press to coat. shake off excess and place on sheet tray. repeat.
6. once all the strips are dipped & coated, sprinkle them with salt & pepper to taste.
7. bake for 20 minutes.

so easy, right? and yes, this recipe/method is as old as time, i know. but my point here isn’t to pretend i came up with the faux fried chicken. not at all. my point is to tell you about FREEZING your strips so that you can enjoy them at a later date - and so you can stop buying processed, frozen, nasty chicken strips for yourself (or your kids.)

after you’ve baked your chicken strips, let them cool. once cool, place the entire sheet tray in your freezer. the next day, remove the strips from the sheet tray and place in freezer-safe bags or containers.

to reheat your chicken fingers do the following:

preheat your oven to 350. bake strips until heated through - about 10 minutes.

alternatively, heat a bit of oil over medium heat. place chicken fingers in oil and lightly pan fry until heated through.

easy. easy, right?