Oven-Fried Buttermilk Ranch Chicken

I'm not a huge fan of crab legs. Or chicken wings. Or ribs.

And what do all of these things have in common?

They make me work for it!

I feel like preparing a meal is enough work in and of itself, so having to go the extra mile to eat the darn thing after it's prepared is a pain in the butt. At least in my opinion. Chris, on the other hand, could eat chicken wings until his fingers fell off. He loves them that much.

As part of this whole marriage thing, I know I need to make sacrifices. Making drumsticks for dinner counts, right? I mean it goes against my whole "only-eat-dinner-with-a-fork" thing. So I did it. And I loved it. I mean loooooved it. The chicken was so ranch-y (yes, it's a word) and tender from soaking in the buttermilk mixture overnight. And although they weren't fried, they still came out crispy and crunchy. So we saved some calories and still had a delicious meal! Even though I had to work for it, it was well worth it. Enjoy!

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

Chicken

• 2 cups low-fat buttermilk
• 1 (1 oz.) package dry ranch dressing mix
• 3 1/2 lb. cut drumsticks
• Cooking spray

Breading

• 1 cup Bisquick mix
• 1 (1 oz.) package dry ranch dressing mix  
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/2 tsp. seasoned salt 
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Remove skin from chicken.

In large resealable food-storage plastic bag, mix buttermilk, dressing mix and chicken. Seal bag; turn bag several times to coat chicken. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.

Heat oven to 425°F. Line a 15x10x1-inch pan with aluminum foil and coat with cooking spray. In shallow dish, mix breading ingredients. Remove chicken pieces one at a time from buttermilk mixture. Dip chicken in breading, turning to coat completely; shake off excess. Place chicken, bone side down, in pan. Lightly spray top of chicken with cooking spray.

Bake 45-50 minutes, turning halfway through, or until juice of chicken is clear when thickest piece is cut to bone (170°F for breasts; 180°F for thighs and legs).

Source: Slightly adapted from Pillsbury