Whole wheat Panko Crusted Fish Sticks for a Busy Fall

Welcome to fall and back to school "fall madness". I got the perfect dinner for you with 3 options to change it up. 

Fall is a really busy season for most families. And walking through the grocery store seems to be a challenge to find things for meals that fit the new time restraints as well as trying to be healthy enough to provide support for all those activities. My family is right there too. We are fully immersed in the new 2018 crazy busy fall season of homeschooling for the 1st time, work, fall sports, travel, football (my fav pro sport - Go Seattle Seahawks!), family time, plus time for exercise, and normal life stuff like reading, breathing, sleeping, and stuff. Fall is always my busiest season and BUT my favorite season. All my favorite veggies are here. All my favorite flavors are here. In AZ it is also grilling/bbq season - gotta love that. In upstate New York it is apple season and apple cider everything is everywhere. 

So while grabbing frozen veggies at the store, those tempting-looking premade options, have been calling my name. Crazy right?! I must be tired but the packaging makes everything look so good. Or maybe its just me.....I was lost in thought when my oldest caught me looking at fish sticks - you know the kind in the box. They sort of taste like grease, salt, and cardboard. I loved them when I was in jr and high school. 

"Mom, are you going to buy us fish sticks?" My oldest sounded amused. He knows me pretty well. 
"Ummmm no I was just ummm thinking". Then I shook my head clear of where ever it went and grabbed some plain frozen fish fillets. The coffee had clearly worn off. I have a recipe for that. A recipe thankfully that I have made several times in several different ways. Those recipes are hard to screw up and important when the caffeine is running low. 

This is the recipe I pulled out when I got home. Even on a busy night we can cook something healthy, kid-approved. After fighting through a day of homeschooling, getting kids in and out of activities, and the gym - the last thing I want to do is fight to get them to eat dinner. We've had some serious food issues with my youngest. Seriously. They taste SO much better than the store, college survival stuff the frozen section at the store is trying to sell you. No cardboard taste I promise!

Whole Wheat Panko Crusted Fish Sticks

Prep time: 5 minutes

Baking time: approx 10-15 minutes 

Makes approx 12-16 fish sticks depending on the size of fillets

1 Tb milk (eyeball it- 1 splash) 

1 egg, lightly mixed in a medium size bowl with a small sprinkle of salt and pepper

1 cup of whole wheat panko in a medium bowl with a sprinkle of salt and pepper *

4 fish fillets (any white firm fish will do) like tilapia cod or halibut  - cut into strips 

Cornstarch in a 3rd bowl with also a sprinkle of salt and pepper 

nonstick cooking oil 

Foil

lemon juice/lemon whole fruit for zest or for wedges to squeeze on the fish

*used one of my fav mixes orange pepper seasoning instead of regular pepper - use what you have. Onion or garlic powder would also taste great on this 1/2 tsp each I just didn't this time. 

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
2. Line your baking sheet with foil for easy cleanup and spray it with the nonstick stuff. I wanted really crispy fish so I spread mine out onto 2 baking sheets to make sure the fish didn't steam
3. While your oven is preheating, pat your fish dry with a paper towel. I know you're just about to dip into a wet egg but just trust me. 
4. Start the breading process - a bit messy but you want to dip the fish into the egg briefly and then into the cornstarch and then back into the egg and then into the panko mix. Press the panko on if you are running out of egg or if its not sticking well. Set it on the pan and start over. You can also do this in advance a couple hours if you have a little one that takes a nap in the afternoon! I haven't tried making it ahead and freezing it but I think that would probably work well if you were starting with fresh fish. You would just increase the baking time. I thought it was a good idea to only use one of my hands to do the egg part but by half way through I was rushing and both my hands were messy. Oh well. Still tasted good and that's what soap is for, right? I mean I only have so much time before my toddler gets into another mess. This recipe is hard to mess up. (This would also be a good thing for an older elementary age kiddo to - start them cooking early! Besides they are more likely to eat stuff they make just plain out of pride of helping and you could name the recipe after them. I don't mind...wink) Any trick a parent can do to help a child get good food inside seem like fair game. 
5. Bake the fish sticks until they are golden brown and crispy about 10-15 minutes. I turned the fish on my first pan over half way through and rotated my pans (my oven has really uneven cooking - hot spots). But couldn't flip the fish on my 2nd pan as my toddler needed help.... yeah and everything turned out great. Its not fast food but its fast food with a healthy twist. 
6. Serve and eat plain or with sauce like ketchup or tarter sauce. For a healthy adult twist squeeze some lemon juice on the baked fish sticks or add lemon zest to the panko before you bake. 

Other Options

1. You can also grab a couple on put them on hamburger buns (like my picture) with cheese, spring mix or shredded crunchy lettuce, tarter and tomato if you like tomatoes to make fish fillets. 
2. Sliders are also a fun option and use only 1 fish fillet for kids and much easier for smaller hands to hold. Pick out whole wheat dinner rolls and use only half slice of cheese and slightly press down on them to make them easier for small mouths.  
3. Make them spicy - kick it up with a spicy mayo, peppered bacon and or pepperjack cheese or just monterey jack cheese and thin slices of red onion. 

So there you are.....3 options for a quick dinner for those busy fall-ish nights. Bring on those sports practices and games, homework filled tables, library books, pencil shavings, and even spilled milk from the toddler trying to drink like a big boy. We got this! Skip the frozen food isle. Its not as good as it looks. This is. 

Stephanie