Honey Mustard Pretzel Crusted Chicken Tenders

This recipe has so much flavor!  The marinade is sweet and tangy, and the pretzel crust is crunchy and salty.  The prep makes three meal kits.  Then when thawed and ready to bake you pull the tenders out of the marinade and dip the chicken tenders in crushed pretzels.  Bake them up and voila!  Better than take out!  This one will wow the kids and dazzle the spouse. 

Ingredients:

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts        9.59
6 oz Dijon mustard                                   .75
12 oz honey                                            2.82
16 oz bag pretzels                                   4.25
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp black pepper

For these meal kits you will also need six gallon freezer bags, three press to seal sandwich bags and three 1/2 cup containers with lids. 

Directions:

Cut each chicken breast into 1 inch wide strips.  Place two cut up breasts into each gallon press and seal bag.

In a small mixing bowl pour in 6 oz of Dijon mustard, 12 oz honey, one tsp of paprika and 1 tsp black pepper.  Stir well.  This will make about 1 1/2 cups of honey mustard sauce.  Pour 1/4 cup of the honey mustard into 3 small containers and cover.  This will become the dipping sauce after the chicken tenders are cooked.  Take the remainder of the honey mustard sauce and pour one third of the sauce into each of the gallon bags over the chicken strips.  Seal and squeeze to mix.

Now we make the breading.  I use a small food chopper to crush up the 16 oz bag of pretzels in batches.  You can use a food processor or the pulse option on your blender.  If you would like to go low tech then a bag and a rolling pin will do nicely.  Just seal the bag and whack away! 

Divide the crushed pretzels into three press to seal sandwich bags. 

Using three new gallon bags place one sealed bag of chicken with marinade, one container of honey mustard dipping sauce and one sandwich bag full of crushed pretzels.  Label with the name of the meal and place one scrap of paper inside with cooking directions.

These are your meal kits.  I put one in the fridge for tonight and two in the freezer for later.   Please thaw two days in the fridge before baking. 

Baking day Directions! 

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Make sure your chicken has had two days to thaw in the fridge if you are making a meal from a freezer meal kit.  Pour the crushed pretzels onto a plate.  Open the gallon bag with the marinated chicken.  Use a fork to lift out one chicken tender at a time.  Put the chicken on top of the crushed pretzel.  Press down on the chicken with the fork to get a lot of the pretzels to adhere to the chicken.  Flip the tender over with the fork to coat the other side.

Place a cooling rack on top of a large baking sheet.  Lay the coated chicken tenders on the cooling rack.

 Bake in the center of your oven for 15 minutes.  Carefully remove the chicken from the racks with tongs and serve hot with a spoonful of honey mustard dipping sauce from your meal kit. 

This meal is fantastic.  I think your family is going to love it as much as my family does.  I was able to make three meal kits for $5.80 each.  That's cheaper and more flavorful than a bucket of chicken!

Enjoy!

Christie aka Keeza

More to come!

Hello Blog Friends!

I am so sorry that I have not posted any new recipes in many months.  When we are not grilling out on the deck I am working on several recipes.  Before I can post any recipes to my blog all my recipes have been tested, adjusted, frozen, thawed, tasted and adjusted again.  I don't want to post a freezer meal that wont deliver! 

I am excited to be a guest blogger on the Freezer Meals for Us blog in September.  I have developed four recipes that I have found, modified, tested, frozen, thawed and liked.  I am very close to having them photographed and posted.  They are...

Honey Mustard Pretzel Crusted Chicken Tenders

Pizza Lasagna

Southwest Chicken with Black Bean and Corn Relish

Easy Peasy Pesto

Not one recipe contains a cream of something soup!  So many people think that freezer meals are high in calories and low in flavor.  I am here to say that not every meal is heavy in cream, butter and salt.  They are just home cooked meals that are doubled and portioned out for future meals.  Then my family eats meals made from scratch while I am at work and not a bag of greasy fries from the local drive through. 

Here are a few sneak peak pictures.

Stay tuned!  Thank you for your support. 

Christie aka Keeza

Tater Tot Casserole

Now that warmer weather is here we’ve been grilling outside a lot.  But on those rainy busy day care days my husband needs something he can bake while I’m at work.  I decided to make a real classic this week because we recently got an eighth of a cow from the local butcher.  Now we have a freezer full of fresh steaks and ground beef and I’m excited to make some tasty dinners!  This one is a big hit with little kids.  It’s an easy way to hide vegetables and they can help line up the tater tots on top.

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef                        7.50

1 medium or 2 small onions        .50

16 oz frozen mixed veggies       1.00

2 cans reduced fat                      3.50

      Cream of mushroom soup

1 Tbsp beef base                           .25

1 Tbsp steak seasoning                .25

32 oz frozen tater tots                2.59

Salt, Pepper and all purpose seasoning to taste

Directions:

In a medium sauce pan brown the ground beef with 1 Tbsp of steak seasoning.  Drain and set aside.  Chop the onion and sauté in the pan until just starting to get tender.  Add the beef back to the pan and stir well.

 Stir in 16 oz of your favorite frozen vegetable.  I like the mixed vegetables because they add a lot of color and variety.  Green beans, mushrooms, edamame or lima beans would work great in this casserole.

Add 1 Tbsp of beef base, ¼ cup of water and two cans of reduced fat cream of mushroom soup to the pan.  Stir well.  Give the beef mixture a taste and add salt, pepper and all purpose seasoning to your preference. 

Pour half your meat mixture into two 8x8” pans or one 9x13” pan.

  Top with tater tots.  I like to put mine in neat rows.   This would be a great time to let your little ones help.  So gather your tots and bust out the taters! 

Cover your pans with foil and label. 

I recommend baking covered at 375 degrees for 30 minutes to warm through.  Then remove the foil and bake at 400 degrees for 5-10 minutes until the tater tots are a nice golden brown.  This will create a great crunch and contrast to your dish.   I put one in the fridge for my husband to bake tomorrow and one in the freezer to use in a few weeks.  When you are ready to bake the frozen casserole, please thaw in the fridge for two days before baking. 

I was able to make two dinners for $7.80 each.  This recipe doubles easily for making bigger batches or two 9x13” pans. 

If you have picky eaters, or know a mom with a new baby, this casserole is a winner! 

Enjoy!
Christie aka Keeza