Tangy Chicken Tenders

Anyone ever get the chicken tenders from Cracker Barrel and think Oh My Goodness these are so wonderful? I wonder what they put on these things!? Well when I was searching, yeap you got it, Pinterest a few weeks ago I saw a recipe from the blog 'Southern Plate' that claimed to be a copycat of CB's Grilled Chicken Tenders without a grill. The picture was so appealing I decided I would give it a try and boy am I glad I did. While this recipe took me a solid hour - hour ten it wasn't a lot of work, a stir here and there, and the results were tasty - not as carmelized as the original picture (I think I had my heat too low to begin) but well worth the effort.



Tangy Chicken Tenders: Serves 4

2lbs Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
1C Kraft Fat Free Zesty Italian Dressing
1TB Honey
2tsp Lime Juice

At least an hour before you want to start cooking you will need to marinate the chicken. I bought chicken breasts so I sliced into even size chunks - knowing that I was going to cook this for an hour or so I knew I did not want small pieces of chicken. You can also buy pre cut chicken tenders that need no trimming. Either in a large bowl or in a zip lock bag place the chicken and mix the dressing, honey and lime juice together and pour over the chicken. Let this sit for at least an hour and up to 12 hours.

Okay time to cook! in a large saute pan or a dutch oven (wahoo I got to use my Christmas present again!) place the chicken and all of the marinade in the pan/pot over medium heat and give it a stir/toss once every 10 minutes. Don't worry I know it looks like a lot of sauce but it will reduce to almost nothing by the time you are done. The sauce will begin to simmer - this is okay, don't be afraid of it - I was and I turned it down which caused me to cook my chicken longer than an hour and I believe it not to have as much caramelization as the picture on Southern Plate. After about 40 minutes you will notice that the sauce is thickening and starting to disappear, you will want to stay near your pot now and stir every few minutes so nothing burns. Once the sauce has evaporated turn the heat off give the chicken one last spin around the pot and serve & enjoy!

This is great by itself but would also be wonderful on a salad or in a wrap.

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WW: 7 Points Plus / serving