I found this chicken finger recipe in the Weight Watchers Cook It Quick cook book.   When you flip through a new cook book how do you decide which ones you will try and which ones you will pass on? There are lots of things I consider when deciding if I will try a recipe out or not, so I usually only end up cooking 10-15 recipes in each cookbook I own, and ignore the rest. I have a solution for that that I will tell you at another time. For now, I will share a few of the things I think about when I am flipping through a cook book.

THINGS ALISHA LOOKS FOR WHEN GOING THROUGH A COOK BOOK RIGHT NOW:

1. I want something that is relatively easy to make.

If I am slaving for more than an hour over a recipe it better be really good, or something I can use as leftovers later. You can make these chicken tenders is less than a half hour from start to finish.

2. I want something I think my husband and kids will at least TRY to eat!

Granted, there are plenty of times I make a new recipe and my kids come to the table shaking their heads, saying, “No, I am not eating this!” and after they try it they are okay with it (or not), but I try to care at least a little about what they like and don’t like. This recipe is chicken tenders. What kid won’t eat a chicken tender?

3. I want something that doesn’t require a ton of ingredients I don’t already have.

I especially do not appreciate recipes that have some random ingredient in them that I will use once and it will sit in my cupboard for months because it’s something I never use. Almost all of these ingredients are already in your house, more than likely. Wheat germ is the one ingredient you may have to go out and buy. If you are looking for another use for that wheat germ you might want to try our better burgers.

4. I want something that works well with the kind of diet plan I am on.

This next one pertains to this particular time in my life: I want to know that this recipe isn’t going to totally throw off my efforts to lose weight and get healthier as I continue on in my WW journey. This recipe comes from a Weight Watcher cook book and the WW Points+ are clearly labeled one each recipe in their cook books. One serving of this entree is worth 5 Points+.

5. I want something that isn’t a heart attack waiting to happen.

Recently I also learned that my blood pressure shot up out of nowhere and I went into “I don’t want to die!” mode and started getting really serious about considering sodium in the foods I eat. This recipe is good for anyone trying to find heart friendly, low sodium meal ideas with just 374 mg of sodium in each serving.

So, there you have it! Please take a second to drop us a comment and share one or two things you look for when you are deciding what recipes to try in a cook book. We would LOVE to know!

Okay, now on to our recipe..

Ingredients:

1 cup wheat germ
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 egg whites
1 pound skinless chicken tenders

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a shallow dish, mix the wheat germ, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt, and cayenne. In another shallow dish, whisk the egg whites with 2 Tbsp. water.

3. Dip the chicken into the egg white mixture, then into the wheat germ mixture. Dip and coat the chicken again in the remaining egg white and wheat germ mixtures.

Transfer to the baking sheet. Bake until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!