Homemade Chicken Nuggets

My kids are extremely picky eaters!  Well, Miss M is anyway.  Little Guy isn’t nearly as picky as she is, though he thinks it’s “cool” to be like her and say he doesn’t like things that he’ll typically eat.

I rarely buy chicken nuggets to eat at home.  I’m too cheap.  But I rarely take the time to make something elaborate for lunch either.

Today, however, the kids were antsy and I thought an engaging activity was in order!  What better than an activity that also provides lunch?

What you need:

• 3-4 chicken tenders, thawed and cut into small pieces


• about 1/2 cup flour


• seasonings of choice


• 1 egg, beaten


• about 1/2 cup Ritz cracker crumbs

Miss M decided on our seasonings: salt, pepper, and garlic powder; I used about 1 t. each.  I would have used a combo of cracker crumbs and crushed corn flakes if I’d had any!  Next time I might add some corn meal in with the crackers, yum!  (Incidentally, store brand “Ritz” crackers are *not* the same as the real thing!  Just so ya know.)

Then I dared to let my 5- and 2-year-olds handle raw meat and eggs.  Not something I typically do!  You can bet I watched them like a hawk and squawked just as loud should a finger so much as move toward a mouth!  Thankfully, neither of them were very “mouthy” as babies and there was no incident.

And yes, I use my round cake pan quite a lot for things other than cake!  It makes phenomenal cinnamon rolls, but I digress…  I threw our homemade nuggets in the oven at 450 degrees for 20-25 minutes with some French fries.  Serve it up with some apple sauce and cottage cheese; and guess what!  They ate it!

Even Miss M gave it two thumbs up!

Hamburger soup

A simple, satisfying soup for chilly weather!

1 lb. ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

3 medium potatoes, cubed

4-6 cups water or beef broth

1 can of green beans

salt and pepper to taste

sour cream for garnish, optional

Add ground beef and onion to a stockpot and brown together, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.  (If in doubt, use less than you think you'll need. You can always add more later!)  Add potatoes and saute with meat until slightly soft.  Add water and green beans.  Allow to simmer half an hour or more.  Adjust seasonings.  Garnish with sour cream.

Serve with Easy Peasy Breadsticks for the perfect comfort food!