Cornflake-Crusted Baked Chicken

Cornflakes are versatile, but they must be the least exciting cold cereal.  In December, I made Rhubarb Jam Bar Cookies.  The recipe used a few cups of cornflakes.  I still have that box of cornflakes.

I used that box of cornflakes to make these cornflake encrusted chicken fingers.  I still have a few cups of cornflakes left.  They may be getting a little stale.  I imagine cornflakes have a long shelf-life, but I must admit I have never looked at the box's expiration date.

Cornflakes were invented in 1894 by Dr. John Harvey Kellogg.  He created them for patients at a sanitarium in Michigan.  Dr. Kellogg believed that food should be bland because sweet or spicy foods stir up peoples' passions. 

Despite being bland, cornflakes were popular with the patients.  Dr. Kellogg's brother Will Keith created Kellogg Company to distribute cornflakes to the wider public.  Will Keith Kellogg added sugar to the cornflakes to make them more palatable, which caused friction between the two brothers.  

Cornflakes were patented in 1896.  In 1928, the company started manufacturing Rice Krispies.   I'm going to share one last piece of cornflake trivia.  The Kellogg's rooster is named Cornelius and is nicknamed Corny.  I never knew.  What a surprising world we live in.

The baked chicken recipe game from Martha Stewart.  The recipe calls for boneless thighs and drumsticks.  I used chicken breasts because that's what I had on hand. 

The ingredients are 8 chicken breasts, salt, pepper, 1 large egg, 2 cups crushed cornflakes, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper.

I whisked together the egg and a tablespoon of water.

In another bowl, I added the crushed cornflakes, oil, cayenne, and a teaspoon of salt.

I dried off the chicken breasts

I sprinkled each side of the chicken with salt and pepper.

I coated the chicken in the egg and then rolled it in the crushed cornflakes mixture.

I laid the coated chicken  on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

I repeated the process until all the chicken was coated.

I baked the chicken for 25 minutes at 400 degrees.

The texture of the crusty exterior was fantastic.  It was crunchy and crisp.

The crust became golden and brown in the oven.

The chicken was tender and moist.  Sometimes chicken can become dry, but this chicken was excellent.

 The flavor was a little bland.  There was a little kick from the cayenne, but it was very subtle.

I ended up eating these with hot sauce because they were not especially flavorful.

 A honey mustard dip would have been a delicious accompaniment too.

Overall, this was a good recipe, but it wasn't stellar.   The texture was spot on, but the flavor left a little to be desired.