Ginger Battered Fried Chicken Strips

I blame Chick Fil A.

I am addicted.

That doesn't mean I go there all the time. I've been there once since they opened.

But if I could, I would eat their chicken strips and dippin' sauce EVERY SINGLE DAY.

That's an addiction.

Luckily I can fight addiction.

(Picture POWER LOOKING MUSCLE QUEEN RUTHY!!!)

So I figured I'd deep fry chicken strips here.... and I had no beer. Usually I make beer batter, but I had lots of ginger ale, and it's got a great snap, so I made Ginger Ale Batter....

I cleaned the breasts.... sliced them into fingers and strips....

And then coated them with seasoned flour:

1/2 cup flour
Montreal Chicken seasoning (sprinkled in)
Salt
Pepper
Garlic
Paprika and/or Cajun Pepper

Toss those chicken strips in the seasoned flour and set aside.

Heat fryer..... I got to 375 for chicken strips.

Make light batter/somewhat thin:

1 cup flour
Sprinkle in:
Cajun Pepper
A hint of nutmeg
Salt
Pepper
1/2 TBSP sugar
Sprinkle of garlic
Paprika for dash of color
16 oz bottle of ginger ale, as needed for consistency

Mix together, add enough of a 16 oz. ginger ale to make a thinnish batter.

Dip chicken strips in batter, then fry until crisp outside, about four minutes.

Serve hot with sauce or on their own!

I deep fry in the garage so I don't make the house smell all greasy.... And these are such a delicious snack, and I MIGHT HAVE kept a pouch of Chick Fil A sauce to try with Ruthy Chicken...

And it was wonderful!!! :)

So life here is farm-crazy.... I had a book release this week, the delightful "Her Cowboy Reunion", a real love story that makes you smile... cry... and sigh right before you smile again.

It released two days ago and I can't wait to see what folks think of this beautiful story and this wonderful Western series... from a gal who loves writing Westerns!

We're planting 800 more mums and asters today, so you know what I'm doing first thing in the morning!

And I got the second coat of gray paint on the porch....

That's looking north....

And now south:

And then there's the project I handed over to Casey, a little reindeer doll up (out of season!)

Great-grandma's reindeer are about twenty years old, I think, and they needed an upgrade so Casey's been sanding them down and we're giving them fresh reindeer paint. :)

Once the reindeer are done, we'll pull out Santa and the sled..... so we can do our fun Christmas display that's come down 4 generations now.

 Lest you think I'm crazy organized, Santa and the reindeer were on last year's schedule... :)

But hey, they'll be high-steppin' out to the front yard with their fresh new look this November!!!

And that's what we've got going here... wishing you all the blessings of a lovely summer... and if you're Down Under, a blessed fall and winter!

And as the chrysanthemums take over the world as we know it....

I bid you adieu from Western New York!

Ruth Logan Herne is doing what she loves best in her big, old farmhouse... hanging with farm stuff, baking cookies, tending cute kids and knowing she's blessed beyond belief to have such choices and opportunities. Write to her at loganherne@gmail.com, friend her on Facebook and/or stop by her website ruthloganherne.com!