Sandwiches are one of the great pastimes in my house. I personally love to eat them and could have it every day if I could get away with it. They are quick and easy meals that are perfect for hectic weeknights or just for a lazy weekend dinner. Of course, they are great for lunch any time at all. I had bought a package of chicken tenderloins when they were one sale this past week and was looking for something to do with them, and this turned out to be a fine idea.Michelle had suggested sandwiches, so that’s the way I decided to go with it.

Chicken Tender BLAT (Bacon, Lettuce, Avocado and Tomato)

1 pound chicken tenders

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

1 egg, beaten

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup vegetable oil

6 slices bacon, cooked

4 leaves Romaine lettuce

1 tomato, thinly sliced

1 avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced

4 rolls

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Place the bread crumbs in one shallow bowl, the beaten egg in a separate shallow bowl and the flour in a third bowl. Season the flour with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken tenders in the flour, shaking off any excess. Dip the chicken in the egg, allowing the excess to drip off, then roll the chicken tenders in the panko bread crumbs until well coated, shaking off any excess. Place the chicken on a separate plate and repeat the process until all the chicken is coated in the bread crumbs.

In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until it is shimmering. Add the chicken to the skillet in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan. Allow the chicken to brown on one side before flipping it over, about 4 to 5 minutes. Flip the chicken and brown the second side until the chicken is cooked through completely, about another 4 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and place on a paper towel-lined plate to drain and cover to keep warm while you repeat the process with any remaining chicken.

Once all the chicken is made, you can begin assembling the sandwiches. Place slices of tomato on each roll, followed by pieces of bacon. Then place one or two chicken tenders on the roll, followed by a piece of romaine lettuce and topped with avocado.

You could also put some mayonnaise or other sauce on the sandwiches if you wish. I actually added a little bit of sliced red onion to my sandwich as well and it was great. I served the sandwiches with some of the Alton Brown potato salad that I posted the recipe for yesterday and some homemade cole slaw that I had also made. You can serve these sandwiches hot or cold depending on whatever each person might like to have. it’s certainly easy enough to do for any night of the week and you could even use boneless chicken breasts sliced thinly into strips instead of buying the chicken tenders or use frozen chicken tenders if that is what you like best and eliminate the entire step of breading the chicken.

That’s all I have for today. Tomorrow is Father’s Day so I don’t know if I will get around to doing a post or not. We’ll have to see how the say goes, but I do have some recipes that I used this week that I intend to post, so keep checking back for those. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day, a happy Father’s Day to all of the Dads out there, and enjoy your meal!