whoo!

we totally got snow. snow in the middle of october! it was snowy enough that by the time i got off work i had to scrape my car down and got to bitch about how cold my hands were. i can't wait to get my mittens out and enjoy it. today's snow was pretty melty, and not much stuck, but it was still fun. for whatever reason, drinking coffee on days like today is quite possibly the best thing ever. the other best thing about today was the recipe for chicken fingers my sister sort of gave me. i say "sort of" because it was more of a suggestion and it led to this recipe. it is approximate and needs some work, but it is basically as follows:

• get a package of chicken tenders, or cut up some skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• breadcrumbs
• buttermilk
• honey
• salt and pepper and herbs you like
• cooking spray like pam.
• baking sheet and cookie cooling rack
  

soak the tenders in buttermilk to cover overnight. add about a tablespoon of honey per cup to the buttermilk mixture. let is soak long and hard, friends. the next night, heat your oven to 475 degrees. yes, i know this is hot. while the oven is heating, get your breadcrumbs ready. i used plain ones in a can because i had them in the house. you could use seasoned ones, or even panko, which i am going to use next time because i think that would rock. season up your crumbs with your favorite herbs and some salt and pepper if you are using plain, and lay it out in an empty pie pan or something equally as shallow. place the cookie cooling rack on the baking sheet, and spray with pam. this is the secret cool part of the recipe because the cooling rack keeps the tenders from getting all soggy on the bottom in the oven. the next part is gross; fish out the tenders from their buttermilky-salmonella-soup, and dredge in the crumbs. coat! coat well! place on cooling rack. the tenders won't shrink much while cooking, thanks to the juicy powers of buttermilk (which smells kind of gross, but i can assure you it tastes good with the chicken and makes for the moistest, most tender white meat in the world, and this is coming from a girl who hates white meat and usually sticks to dark). bake in the oven for 12 minutes, or a bit longer if you want them to crisp up some more. let them cool for a couple of minutes before you remove them from the cooling rack; you want the crust to seal.

easy as pie. serve with delicious dipping things, cut up and throw on a salad,or use the leftovers in sandwiches. if you use a low-fi buttermilk this is actually a pretty low-fat, lower in carbs, high in protein good thing, which will make you feel better about using high-fi ranch or bluecheese. i think the next time i make them i'm going to try using panko and sesame seeds, for a little extra crunch, and then maybe make a gingery teriyaki dipping sauce. i'm no alton brown, but these were delicious.