Homemade Mozzarella Sticks

It's been freezing in Minnesota this week.  We're talking highs of -4° F with wind chills of -20s to -30s F. What do Minnesotans do when it is this cold out (besides act normal, because hey, it's Minnesota and this is nothing new)?  We eat.  We eat fatty, carb loaded foods, and we love it!*tee hee hee...Lindsi is hijacking this post...ohmigosh that sounds AMAZING!*

Yesterday Tottie and I made homemade mozzarella sticks for our snack.  They were warm, hearty, and most of all, super yummy!  Oh, did I mention they are easy-peasy to make too?

Ingredients:

• 4 string cheese sticks
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp milk
• 1/2 cup Italian style Panko bread crumbs 
• Or 1/2 cup plain Panko bread crumbs plus 1/2 to 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Things you'll need:

• 3 bowls
• greased cookie sheet
• oven 
• pancake turner

Start by preheating your oven to 400°.
Next cut the cheese sticks in half and put them in the freezer while you prep the rest.

Line up your bowls to make an assembly line.
In the first bowl put the flour.
In the second bowl combine the egg and milk.
In the third combine the bread crumbs and garlic powder.




Now take the cheese sticks out of the freezer and make sure they are nice and cold.
Start by coating one cheese stick with flour.
Then coat it in the egg mixture.
Finally, coat it with the bread crumb mixture and put it on your cookie sheet.





Bake your mozzarella sticks in the oven for 4-5 minutes, flip them and bake again for another 4-5 minutes.  Obviously if the sticks start to look brown or the cheese melts galore before the total 8-10 minutes is done, take them out--they're done!

FYI: This is what happens when you forget to put the cheese sticks in the freezer and they are not super cold when you bake them.  The cheese spills out all over the place.  The mozzarella sticks taste just as good, they're just not as pretty :) Does your family love mozzarella sticks?