Picnic Oven-Fried Chicken

All of the men/boys in my family loved fried chicken. I can't stand it for a variety of reasons.

1. I worked at a deli when I was in college where we fried chicken all day long. The smell of the oil and having to clean those fryers was enough to turn my stomach.

2. Fried chicken is typically pretty unhealthy.

3. I'm not a fan of having to eat around bones...I almost always cook meat with bones until the meat falls off the bones on their own.

I've had a few "oven-fried" chickens before and they were okay, but nothing to write home about. But I saw this recipe in the latest issue of my Eating Well magazine and thought it was worth a try. And it sure was. Crunchy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside, this chicken just about wiped away all my bad memories of fried chicken, and my kiddos LOVED it! Andy has yet to try it, but I know my husband and he'll be a fan as well.

Picnic Oven-Fried Chicken
Ingredients:

1 cup buttermilk
2 tbs Dijon mustard
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp hot sauce
4 lbs whole chicken legs, skin removed, trimmed and cut into thighs and drumsticks
1 cup whole-wheat flour
4 tbs sesame seeds
1 tbs paprika
2 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
Cooking spray or olive or canola oil

**I must admit, I did not remove the skin...merely because I didn't see that I was supposed to...I'm eager to try it next time without the skin, but the skin this time was DELIGHTFUL!

1. Whisk buttermilk, mustard, garlic and hot sauce in a shallow glass dish until well blended. Add chicken and turn to coat. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or for up to 8 hours. (I did mine for 8 hours.)

2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil. Coat a wire rack with cooking spray and set it on the baking sheet.

3. Combine flour, sesame seeds, paprika, thyme, baking powder, salt and pepper in a sealable bag. Tapping off excess marinade, place one or two pieces of chicken at a time in the bag and shake. Tap off excess flour; place the chicken on the prepared rack and coat with cooking spray (or brush lightly with oil).

4. Bake chicken until golden brown and no longer pink in the center, 40-50 minutes.