Nut Crusted Meatless Chicken Tender--Using up what is left in the pantry

Have you ever walked into your pantry and wondered how long certain food has been sitting there?  Well, that was what had happened this past weekend.  As I surveyed our pantry this past weekend before our weekly grocery shopping trip, I noticed that we have several items that are close to the expiration date.  The thought of throwing food away still gives me the pain.  That's why I was determined to find recipes that would help me use up ingredients/food items we found in the pantry.  Since we have some whole wheat saltine crackers and orange marmalade spreadable fruit, I decided to make nut crusted meatless chicken tender for dinner.  I was happy that in 55 minutes (including prepping and cooking), we were ready for dinner.  Please excuse the unclear picture.  I am still learning how to take pictures, but the nut crusted chicken (meatless) was DELICIOUS!  I hope you will enjoy the dish as much as we did.

Nut Crusted Meatless Chicken Tender

Ingredients:

½ cup of toasted mixed raw nuts

¼ cup of crushed whole wheat saltine crackers

½ tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

1tsp of Italian seasoning

½ tsp of dried basil

½ tsp of dried oregano

1/8 tsp ground black pepper

4 tbsp of nonfat Greek yogurt (Options:  applesauce/smart balance butter if you want)

2 tsp of orange marmalade fruit spread

4 Meatless chicken tenders (choose your brand, we used Gardein; Option:  You can use real chicken/turkey/fish, but you will have to adjust the temperature and cooking time)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.
2. Place foil on a baking sheet.
3. Spray a thin layer of canola oil on the foil
4. Place the whole wheat saltine crackers and the nuts in a large zip loc bag and crush the crackers and the nuts [Great way to get some arm exercise!]
5. Add paprika, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, dried basil, dried oregano, and black pepper into the crush nuts and crackers, and mix well
6. Transfer the dry ingredients into a shallow dish to use for coating
7. Mix the Greek yogurt and orange marmalade fruit spread well in a mixing bowl
8. First, coat the meatless chicken with the Greek yogurt and orange marmalade mix (recommend a thin layer)
9. Second, coat the meatless chicken with the dry ingredients
10. Bake the chicken (meatless) for approximately 20-25 minutes or until golden brown*

*Note:  Depending on your oven, you might need more time or less time.

In the picture:  I served it with a mix of brown rice and quinoa and saute vegetables (That's what we have in the fridge and pantry)

You can also serve it with romaine lettuce and other side salads.