Picky, Picky
Written By Ann Hodgman
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Why your kids won't eat a cotton-pickin' thing — and why it doesn't matter. Plus, two recipes they may find ingestible.
Even when my own little darlings were spitting out food left and right, these recipes still passed the "edible" test.
(Recipes from One Bite Won't Kill You, Houghton Mifflin, 1999. Reprinted by permission.)
Chip Chick
Serves 4
1 1/2 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken breast
1 large egg
1/4 cup milk
1/4 tsp. black pepper
2 (6-oz.) bags potato chips (you won't need them all, but you want a nice deep layer)
Preheat the oven to 400 degress F. Cut the chicken into fingers or nuggets. Beat together the egg, milk, and pepper, and soak the chicken in it while you prepare the chips thus: Open the bags a teeny bit in one corner; then, with a rolling pin or skillet or unopened soda can or whatever you have on hand, crush the chips as fine as you can (kids can complete this job with great enthusiasm) and pour into a shallow baking dish.
A few at a time, flop the chicken fingers around in the potato chips until they're well coated. Put them on a baking sheet (ideally, one that's been covered with parchment paper, for easy cleanup) and bake for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken fingers over and bake for 10 more minutes. (You may have to stick them under the broiler for a minute or two if you want the coating more browned.)
Serve chicken with a dipping sauce, if you want.
What's Good for You
It's lucky that most kids will eat chicken, as poultry is a great source of protein, essential for building muscle and bone. And there's a bonus to the potato chip coating: no need to use additional oil on the baking sheet.
