Baked Dijon Chicken Fingers with Honey Dijon Cream ~health kick~

It's time for a brand new healthy-ish recipe that's super easy to make and also delicious and kind of decadent at the same time. 

Sound good?  Thought so. 

I'm always seeing people bake chicken fingers in one way or another, and I've never done it.  I've never made fried chicken fingers either, but I'd been thinking about trying the baked version for awhile AND THEN my dad told me he had Dijon mustard from his last trip to France so....it was on. 

Instead of using an egg breading, this ONLY uses mustard and panko, which makes the dish super fast and way lighter than some fried OR baked breading methods. 

ALSO. Out-of-this-world sauce for dipping?  It's like kid food for people with fully-developed taste buds.  

Let's do it. 

For the chicken, you'll need....chicken...duh....mustard, panko, salt, and cooking spray.  Super duper simple!  If you have chicken tenderloin pieces that's great, but often whole boneless skinless breasts are WAY cheaper, and you can use this fancy knew thing called a KNIFE to cut them into strips like an adult. 

I should point out that your Dijon can come from Walmart, or anywhere between Walmart and France.  Don't stress, this will be delicious either way.  Before we get all chickeny, preheat the oven to 450F and place a baking rack inside a sheet pan.  Pour some panko bread crumbs into a flat dish, too.  Spray the rack, and we're ready to get to work on the chicken!

First, place a big glob of mustard into a large bowl.  

Then, if needed, cut the chicken into 2-inch or so strips.  They don't have to be even, just roughly the same size. 

Toss the chicken in the bowl with the mustard...

....and stir it around to coat all the chicken with all the mustard.  

Now, onto breading!  Roll each piece of chicken in the panko, pressing as you go to be sure as much panko as possible adheres to the chicken. 

Place the chicken on the prepared baking rack.  After all the chicken is breaded, wash your effing hands.  Gross. 

Now, spray the chicken all over with cooking spray. 

Sprinkle the chicken lightly with salt, and we're ready to bake!

Bake the chicken for 8 minutes or so on the first side, then remove it from the oven when the crust starts to brown lightly.  Flip the chicken gently with tongs, spray the other side with cooking spray, and bake 5-8 more minutes until the crust is crispy and the chicken is cooked through. 

If your chicken isn't very brown or you feel that the coating is to soft, you can broil the chicken for 1-2 minutes on each side after cooking to firm up the crust - this will depend on your oven.  

While the chicken bakes, I make the sauce.  You need mustard, mayo, cream, honey, and garlic.  

Mince the garlic first - you only need one small clove. 

Combine all the ingredients in a dish...

...and stir.  Duh.  Taste, and add a bit of salt if you'd like.  This isn't a very honey-ish honey mustard, so add more honey if you like a sweeter sauce!

Serve the chicken with the sauce for dipping or drizzling. 

YUM.  This is a REALLY nice take on chicken fingers and honey mustard - comforting flavors but slightly jazzed up. 

AND, no guilt from frying!  That's always a positive. 

Don't worry about the chicken being too mustardy, either - it's not.  The mustard kind of seeps into the chicken and flavors it slightly, but there isn't an overwhelming mustard flavor to the chicken itself.  

Enjoy these!  They're fun weeknight food for big or little kids. 

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Shared with Weekend Potluck, hosted by these fun blogs:

• The Better Baker ~ Marsha
• Frugal Family Favorites ~ Tabitha
• 4 Little Fergusons~ Tonya
• The Country Cook~ Brandie
• Sunflower Supper Club ~ Kim & Julie