Montauk Pioneer - January 16, 2009 -

The New Year is always an inspiring time for me. It's full fresh starts and endless opportunities. It's a time when I like to reflect on the past, but more importantly look at the future and what I'd like it to hold for me. I'm not one to preach about resolutions and keeping them and all of that business, basically because I'm a bit skeptical of it all, and I am certainly speaking from experience. Resolutions, for me, just never work. So instead of making some dull vow to eat less and exercise more, I let good food and fresh ingredients inspire my body and my mind to eat healthy, helping me feel good from the inside out.

It always surprises me at how easy it is to eat healthy. A lot of it has to do with portion control, but the ingredients you choose to cook with factor in heavily as well. Fresh food is always the best to work with, none of that pre-packaged, processed stuff - at least not all of the time (all things in moderation, yes?)

Take soups for example. It's winter, and we're all craving and eating a hearty bowl of soup or stew. Ditch the canned stuff - it's loaded with preservatives and sodium, stuff your body really doesn't need. Make your own stew, customized to your liking, using fresh vegetables and lean meats.

And definitely skip the temptations of fast food while you're in healthy eating mode. It's a death trap for any sort of "diet." Instead, take the flavors and textures that you like from your favorite indulgence, and find a way to make it more figure friendly. Take my Panko Crusted Chicken Tenders, for example. I'm a chicken nugget junkie, but they don't play nice with my figure, so I came up with this healthy alternative, and between you and me, it tastes like I covered my chicken with potato chips and fried it in fatty oil. The best part is, I didn't, and there will be no guilty feelings after this meal.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Set up your breading station by pouring your flour and panko bread crumbs into shallow plates. Add parsley, parmesan, salt and pepper to the bread crumbs and combine with your fingers.

In a deep bowl, combine eggs, milk, salt and pepper and mix until smooth. To bread your tenderloins, dip each one into your flour, covering completely and shaking off the excess. Submerge into egg mixture, and carefully place into bread crumb mixture, and coat completely, pressing the breadcrumbs onto the chicken lightly, being sure that the mixture adheres to the chicken. Repeat until finished.

Place chicken on a sheet pan with parchment paper or a silpat to ensure that the chicken does not stick. Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes, then turn chicken and cook for another 10 minutes, until chicken is golden brown and crunchy.

Combine Dijon, lemon juice and zest, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Slowly drizzle in olive oil, whisking constantly to form an emulsion. Pour over greens and mix lightly to coat. Serve chicken over salad for a satisfying and delicious meal - that's good for you!