LUNCH | DINNER: Gluten-free bread-less “breaded” Chicken Strips & Sweet-Potato Fries

My Kindergartner has been a trouper coming off of gluten, sugar, dairy, and corn. I didn’t realize how much he relied on foods that had a higher insulin response until I changed what we ate. So I made tonight’s dinner with my littles in mind. As I stared at my chicken thawing out on the counter I wondered, “What should I do with this chicken tonight?” And then I thought, something “breaded” but not breaded as a treat for the kids.

Tip: When I make almond milk, I take the left over almond bits and dry them on a sheet rack on a piece of parchment paper for several days. When the almond bits are good and dry, I run them thru my Cuisanart to make “flour” out of my almonds and then I store it in an airtight container for such an occasion as this. I share all that, not to burden you with more tasks, but to help you realize how when you make almond milk, you can also use the bits that are not utilized in almond milk for other things — like this great lunch or dinner! If you are short on time, a package of almond flour works perfectly fine, too!

I like to cut the chicken into strips when it is still slightly frozen in the center. It holds it shape and you just slice right thru it easy peasy. Try and cut your chicken fingers into equally-sized strips so they will cook uniformly. The sweet potato fries were from the freezer section at our grocery store and took about the same time it took to cook the chicken strips. If you don’t want your chicken strips a yellow-tinge, just skip the tumeric in your coating mix. I added it, because I like to sneak in beneficial herbs, spices (and even some iodine with the kelp) where possible. Every little bit helps as you change your life for the better, one bite at a time.

— Erin

PS: Here’s my son’s seal of approval …

Gluten Free Breaded-but-without-bread Chicken Strips

Servings: 5-7
Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: easy
Print

INGREDIENTS:
Coating Mix:
• 2 c almond flour
• 1 c. grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1 TBSP garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 TBSP kelp granules
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp turmeric (optional)
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 TBSP ground flax
• 2 TBSP freshly chopped parsley

Note: If you want to make this dairy-free, just skip the parmesan cheese and add a 1/2 cup of almond flour.

Main Ingredient:
• 7 pcs Chicken breasts, skinless (frozen)

Egg Bath:
• 2 Eggs

Other kitchen tools:
• Bowl for egg bath
• Larger bowl for coating mix
• Cookie sheet
• Parchment baking paper
• Tongs

DIRECTIONS:
1. You’ll want to cut your chicken into strips when it is thawed on the outside and still slightly frozen (not rock solid but partly thawed) in the center. It will cut easily and clean thru. Try and keep pieces uniform in size so that they cook at equal rates.

2. Take 2 eggs and whip them in a bowl and set aside.

3. In another larger bowl, combine all the ingredients for the coating mix and combine well with a whisk until everything looks incorporated.

4. Finally, take your cooking sheet and line it with parchment paper.

5. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

6. Create an assembly line order, left to right, with your chicken strips near your egg bath. Your coating mix next to the egg bath. And finally, your cookie sheet lined with parchment paper next to the coating mix.

7. Using a set on tongs, pick up several strips of cut raw chicken and put them into the egg bath. One-by-one, coat each piece of raw chicken with raw egg and transfer into the coating mix. Coat entire strip of chicken and using the tongs, transfer the coated chicken to the cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Continue process, leaving space between each chicken finger until cookie sheet is full.

8. Place in heated oven and set timer for 20-25 minutes or until fully cooked.