Low Carb Chicken Fingers with a Kale & Pancetta Side Dish

It has been a busy summer with lots of travel (Africa, Maine, Tahoe, Fiji, Las Vegas, Santa Barbara) but we are happy to get back to posting!  This dinner is going along with our low carb theme and a super easy dish to prepare.  Great for the whole family!

Ingredients:​

Chicken Fingers:

• 4 Chicken breasts (or chicken tenders)
• 3/4 cup Mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 cup Almond Flour
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 3 Tbsp Fresh oregano
• Herbs - salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, garlic powder, Italian seasoning

Pancetta Kale

• 1 package of chopped kale
• 1 packaged of chopped pancetta
• 1/2 onion
• 1 bunch green onions
• 1/2 cup Sherry
• 2 Tbsp heavy cream
• 2 Tbsp parmesan cheese 

Mix the mayonnaise and mustard in one bowl.  We added a little chopped fresh oregano to this mix too.  In another bowl, add the almond flour, parmesan cheese, fresh oregano, and herbs.  Looks like real breadcrumbs, doesn't it??  The herbs that I used are really my go-to herbs.  They can brighten up any dish.  I always make sure to buy more garlic powder when I am at the store as I seem to go through that one that most.

Cut the chicken into strips and first place in the mayo mixture then dip into the "breadcrumb" mixture.  Place on a baking sheet.

The mayo mixture will act as a binding agent and help the almond flour mixture brown up nicely.  And mayo is always a fun secret ingredient to any dish!

Bake the chicken at 400 degrees for 23-25 minutes, until golden brown and cooked fully through.

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While the chicken is baking in the oven, place pancetta in a large frying pan (no oil needed at this point) and let the pancetta brown.  Then add the onions.  This is also a great time to get a sip of your wine that you will surely be cooking with.

Add handfuls of the kale - keep adding as this will wilt down quickly.

Once the kale has wilted, add 2 Tbsp of cream and grated parmesan cheese to finish.  Plate with the chicken fingers.  For the chicken fingers, we used Woody's BBQ sauce (low carb BBQ sauce) and ranch.  I'm thinking of trying to pan fry the chicken next time to get more crisp on the outside, or even broiling the chicken.  Regardless, it is a delicious dish that I think you will really like!  Of course we had it with some Chardonnay.  Enjoy!!!