Look, I’m not saying that having your kids help with dinner will get them to eat it every night, but I think this recipe is a step toward the never-ending “will they or won’t they eat the dinner I’ve slaved over” conundrum.
Yes, you read the title of this recipe correctly. Last week we stared into our nearly-empty pantry, said a little prayer, then ground up pretzels, coated chicken tenders with them, and served them with a creamy honey mustard yogurt dipping sauce.
I say we did this because I have an entourage.
Now that it’s summer it seems the entire neighborhood is in my kitchen between 4 and 5 pm, asking how they can help with whatever I’m cooking that afternoon. On this particular day they were up for the challenge of the flour-egg-pretzel coating challenge, messy as it was. Bless your heart, kids. And thanks for washing your hands before eagerly jumping in.
I used pretzels for these baked chicken tenders, but let’s say you don’t have any in your pantry but you do have rice crispy cereal or triscuits. I say go for it and watch those kids squeal in delight.
Serve ‘em with some veggies for lunch, dinner, or a mid afternoon snack.
Yay for easy, kid-friendly recipes!
Sometimes I find that getting the kids involved in cooking dinner with me increases my chances of them actually eating what we make. So prepare to get your hands messy and enjoy this kid-friendly dish using ingredients you likely already have around your pantry!
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup white whole wheat flour
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- coarse salt and ground pepper
- 25 pretzel sticks*
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon honey
- *No pretzels on hand? Try 4 cups of low-sugar cereal or crackers.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 475. Place flour in a shallow bowl, and egg in a second one; season both generously with salt and pepper. Pulse pretzels and oil in a food processor until fine crumbs form (or if you're me and impatient larger crumbs work too). Season with salt and pepper; transfer to a third shallow bowl.
- Coat chicken: first in flour, shaking off excess; then with egg, letting excess drip off; and finally in pretzel mixture, pressing to help it adhere. Place on a baking sheet, and bake until light golden brown and cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes, turning over halfway through.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together yogurt, mustard, and honey; season with salt and pepper. Serve tenders and vegetables with creamy honey mustard on the side.
Notes
262 calories per serving, 9 grams of fat, 31 grams protein, 14 grams of carbs, 1 gram of fiber
Recipe inspired by Martha Stewart.
TOTAL: $4.25 or $1.06 per serving based on this spreadsheet where I’ve included where I shop and what I pay for the ingredients I use most.
