Baked and Breaded Chicken Tenders

A fast, easy and healthy dinner your whole family will love.

Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside – these Baked and Breaded Chicken Fingers are going to become your go-to dinner. They’re made with real ingredients and still kid and husband approved. All you need is 20 minutes to whip up these classic almond flour-crusted tenders, making them the perfect weeknight dinner. 😋

Hello there! 🙂 I took a little blog vacation last week, but I’m baaack! For my lack of blog presence, I’ve been trying to share more on insta stories, so check out the highlights on my feed for some meal and workout videos.

Today’s post is all about dem chickens (tenders!) Please tell me you’ve seen that video. If not, you don’t get the joke. lol anyway… 🙄 When I was younger, my go-to meal at any restaurant was chicken fingers. With ranch dressing. Always. And I’m pretty sure it wasn’t until I was in college (a.k.a. when I was diagnosed with Celiacs) that I started to get something different.

Chicken tenders are such a staple. Kids love them, adults love them. They are a staple. Buuuttt they aren’t the healthiest thing to pick on the menu, so I thought I’d take a stab at lightening them up!

There’s no good substitute for deep frying something, but I think these baked chicken tenders give any restaurant a run for their money. Or at the very least save you some cash and calories!

(side note – does anybody have an air fryer? If so, what do you use it for? I’m thinking about registering for one!)

These tenders are crispy and juicy – the best combination out there!

I’m not going to lie, I was a little worried about using just almond flour as the base, but it turned out surprisingly well. 🙂

And the best part is that they are gluten free, keto-and paleo-friendly! Can I get a woot woot! 🙋🏽‍♀️

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Chicken tenderloins or chicken breast
• Almond flour
• Paprika
• Garlic powder
• Salt/pepper
• Eggs

5 simple ingredients you probably already have in your pantry (and if not, you should!)

Oh and we can’t forget the dressing! I used Bolthouse Ranch (because, duh!), but the Honey Mustard would be really good too! And of course, ketchup and BBQ are always an option too.

These Chicken Tenders are so easy. There’s only 3 steps:

1. Coat a baking sheet with LOTS of cooking spray. This might be the most important step because if you don’t have enough the tenders will stick to the sheet and the coating will get pulled off, which is a total bummer.
2. Lather each chicken tender in whisked eggs so they are fully coated and then dip the chicken into the almond flour mixture, so that each side is covered. The more the merrier.
3. Last step, put the chicken tenders on the baking sheet and put it in the oven for 15 minutes – flipping the tenders half way through. (my tip to you is to spray the baking sheet again before turning over, to guarantee the tenders don’t stick.)

Once they are done cooking, pick your sauce and dive in!

It’s time to turn on those ovens and get to cooking! I promise everyone in your house will be requesting these healthy chicken tenders again and again.

Baked and Breaded Chicken Tenders

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Serves: 10

Ingredients

• • 1 pkg or 2 lbs chicken tenderloins or chicken breast, cut into strips
• • 1 cup almond flour
• • 1 teaspoon paprika
• • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• • ¼ teaspoon salt & pepper
• • 2 eggs
• Dressing
• You choose between:
• • Bolthouse Ranch Dressing
• • Bolthouse Honey Mustard
• • BBQ
• • Ketchup

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and thoroughly coat baking sheet with cooking spray. ** this is the most important step.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together 2 eggs. In another small bowl (or pie pan) mix together 1 cup almond flour, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder and ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper.
3. Coat each chicken tender in egg mixture and then lather in flour mixture – fully coating the tenderloin, so that each side is covered.
4. Place each chicken tender on the baking sheet and put in oven for 15 minutes - flipping the tenders half way through (~7 - 8 minutes). **spray the baking sheet again before turning over, to guarantee the tenders don’t stick.
5. Enjoy!

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