Something happens to me during the dark days of winter leading up to Christmas. I lose all perspective about eating healthy, and just want to curl up on the couch and watch television. I suspect the lack of sunlight leaves me feeling sluggish. And I know that the holidays, while meant to be festive, often leave me feeling a little blue. And so just how does one resist the urge to head straight to KFC for some (horrible for you) comfort food?Here’s how: make this oven “fried” chicken tonight. The secret to its crunchy goodness is the breading, which is actually made from coarse bread crumbs that I make from scratch with leftover chunks of very crusty whole grain bread. Just cut up leftover bread into chunks and let dry completely at room temperature, then pulse in a food processor until coarsely ground. For extra flavor and to tenderize the chicken, I marinated the chicken for a couple of hours in some buttermilk with spices added to it. When you are ready to cook the chicken, just shake off excess buttermilk (but do NOT pat dry) and then coat the chicken pieces in breadcrumbs, sprinkle with a bit of sea salt, spray them with some cooking spray, and bake for 45 minutes.Heaven, I’m telling you! And by the way – if you’re entertaining a crowd this holiday season, you can prep a huge batch of this the day before, lay all of the pieces of chicken on baking sheets in the refrigerator, then just cook them off for your guests. To reheat, place the chicken in a hot oven for 15 minutes or so, as microwaving will leave the crust soggy. If you need a little comforting, I’m here for you!
- 1 cup low fat buttermilk
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 small roasting chicken, cut into parts ( or 2 breasts and 2 leg quarters, skin on or off as desired)
- 2 cups coarsely ground dry bread crumbs
- Salt and pepper
- Combine the buttermilk with the paprika, garlic, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl and stir together. Add the chicken pieces, turning to coat evenly, and then refrigerate for 2 hours.
- Shake excess buttermilk from the chicken pieces and then coat each piece evenly with breadcrumbs. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and lay the coated pieces on the pan. Sprinkle lightly with salt, and then bake at 350 degrees until cooked through, about 45 minutes.
- (NOTE: If you want your chicken pieces nice and crispy all over, cook them on a wire rack set over the baking sheet instead of putting the chicken directly on the baking sheet!)