Oven Fried Chicken

Skill Level: Easy
Sticker Shock: $$$$
Taste: ★★★★

I have tried a lot of oven fried chicken recipes over the years, and I've always been disappointed in some way. Most of the time, I am disappointed with the breading. It always seems to either get soggy, or it falls off–sometimes I'm lucky enough for both things to happen. A lot of the oven fried chicken recipes I've tried are also kind of bland.

This recipe stood up well to both the breading and flavor challenges. It actually came out crispy, and the seasonings seemed to be just right. Did it taste just like the Colonel's? No, of course not; nobody compares to the Colonel, but it is a tasty, lower-fat, comfort food that I'll be making again and again I'm sure.

I used chicken tenderloins, so they turned out more like chicken fingers. This pleased my 18-month-old and 2-year-old, and they enjoyed dipping theirs in ranch dressing. I made some homemade buffalo sauce for the adults. ;-)

Ingredients:

cooking spray
1 1/2 cups corn flakes cereal , made into crumbs
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 eggs
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (optional)
2 Tablespoons white all purpose flour
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (4, 4-oz, breasts)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a shallow baking pan with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, combine cornflake crumbs, thyme, garlic salt, and onion powder.

In a separate bowl lightly beat egg and egg whites. Add hot pepper sauce and mix well.

Place flour in a separate container.

Dip each side of chicken breast in the flour, then egg mixture, then in cornflake mixture.

Place chicken breasts in baking pan. Spray chicken lightly with cooking spray and bake 30-35 minutes, until juices run clear.

Nutrition information: Servings Per Recipe: 4 Amount Per Serving: Calories: 224.6, Total Fat: 3g, Sodium: 331.7mg, Total Carbs: 13.8g, Dietary Fiber: 0.5g, Protein: 34.2g

Apricot Sticky Drumsticks

Skill Level: Easy

Sticker Shock: $$$$

Taste: ★★★★

I am not a huge fan of dark meat chicken. If you were here, my husband would feel obligated to tell you a mildly humorous story about me and dark meat chicken. Anyway, I'm even less fond of removing the skin from chicken—not because I prefer to eat the skin, but because it is gross and icky to touch chicken skin! But, I took one for the team, and I'm glad I did. This was very tasty! In fact, for the first time in a long time (or maybe ever), I actually finished eating before my husband did. My only real complaint, gross and icky skin aside, was the cleanup. My jelly roll pan may never be the same again. I will definitely be lining it with something the next time.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup apricot preserves

1/4 cup low sodium teriyaki sauce

1 Tablespoon packed dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 teaspoon cider vinegar

1/4 teaspoon salt

12 raw chicken drumsticks, skin removed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F

In a large bowl, whisk the apricot preserves, teriyaki sauce, brown sugar, cornstarch, vinegar, and salt until well blended. Add chicken and toss to coat well.

Spoon sauce coated chicken into a 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 inch jelly roll pan, bake for 15 minutes.

Remove jelly roll pan and brush chicken with sauce.

Continue baking chicken, basting every five minutes until cooked thoroughly, about 20 more minutes.

Remove chicken from oven, brush with remaining sauce, and let cool in pan for 10 minutes before serving.

Nutrition information: Servings Per Recipe: 6; Amount Per Serving: Calories: 447.8, Total Fat: 19.7g, Sodium: 456.7mg, Total Carbs: 21g, Dietary Fiber: 0g, Protein: 43.7g