Want to try an alternative to the fast food chain's chicken nuggets that our children love so much? After making this once you'll never want the deep fried ones again! This is one of my family's favorites; I hope you'll like it too.

Crunchy Oven Baked Chicken Nuggets

• 1 1/2 cups of Panko bread crumbs (plain bread crumbs will do too)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 black pepper (or none, it's up to your taste)
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 pound chicken tenders
• Canola or vegetable cooking spray
• ketchup, mustard, or barbecue sauce (what ever your kid likes to dip nuggets in)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. On a plate, combine the bread crumbs with the salt and pepper and set aside.

2. Put the mayonnaise into a bowl and set aside. (Use one that will be big enough to hold all the chicken).

3. Cut the chicken tenders into two inch pieces and toss in the mayonnaise.

4. Next, taking one piece of chicken at a time, coat with the bread crumbs. You want to make sure that the chicken is completely covered with the bread crumbs.

5. Place coated chicken nuggets on a baking sheet pan one inch apart. Spray the chicken nuggets with the cooking oil and bake for 15 minutes. Take out one nugget and cut in half to make sure that it's cooked. If not, cook for five more minutes or until the internal temperature reads 165 degrees with a thermometer.

6. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce and side.

* Makes four four-ounce servings

* These can be spiced up for the grown ups, too. After breading enough pieces for the kiddos, add a few splashes of your favorite hot sauce to the marinating chicken before breading for the big folks.

* Other variations include:

•        substituting your favorite creamy dressing for the mayonnaise (must be thick so that the crumbs will stick)    
•        adding 2 tablespoons of finely chopped favorite nut to the bread crumbs