low-carb eating ~ skinny buffalo chicken strips

Two words.

Football.  Playoffs. 

Our family, and probably the majority of those living in the state of Tennessee, are super-excited and gearing up for the big playoff game this afternoon.  It has been a minute since our team has been in this position, and the four of us are looking so forward to hanging with some of our closest friends and cheering them on!  If your family is also doing the same, you might find this recipe one to take along!

I have had the best time cooking lately, trying several new ideas from here and there.  Some have kept the carbs low, some have not.  All have been wonderful.

For New Year's Eve, I was craving buffalo sauce over some kind of chicken and went on a hunt for a low-carb version of the infamous appetizer.  I was ecstatic with the outcome of this recipe and even more happy with the blue cheese dressing I paired with it.  If you are looking for something meaty and full of that tangy, spicy sauce that traditionally douses wings, you will LOVE this!  To help it go further, I cut the tenders in half, and this made a really nice platter of true finger-food.

Stay tuned to the blog for some of the other tested recipes I mentioned earlier.  Our New Year's meal was one of my favorites ever, we recently had some unbelievable sourdough bread, and you'll really want to warm up with the tomato-mushroom soup I found!  Promise. 

Skinny Buffalo Chicken Strips

printable recipe

• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp oil, divided
• approx. 2 lbs chicken tenderloin
• 1/2 cup Frank's Hot sauce

1.  In a small bowl, mix together garlic powder through salt.

2.  Cut tenders in half (optional) and drizzle with 1 tsp oil.  Make sure strips are coated.

3.  Coat strips with garlic powder mixture, using hands for best coverage.  If time, cover and let "marinate" in fridge for a couple of hours, although this isn't mandatory.  It just helps soak up flavor.

4.  Heat remaining oil in a non-stick skillet and brown strips, a few at a time, about 3-4 minutes, turning frequently (if using split tenders, or allowing to brown on one side before turning, if full tenders).  

5.  Place tenders in bowl as they finish cooking, and pour hot sauce over all, tossing to cook.

6.  Serve with celery sticks and blue cheese dressing.

For the dressing
printable recipe

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup blue cheese
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 2 tbsp sour cream
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp Worcestershire
• 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
• freshly ground pepper to taste

1.  In a medium bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, 1/4 cup blue cheese, half and half, sour cream, lemon juice, Worcestershire and salt until smooth.  

2.  Gently stir in remaining blue cheese and season to taste with pepper.

3.  Store in refrigerator up to three days.

Buffalo Strips recipe slightly adapted from SkinnyTaste.  Dressing from Food Network.