What's for lunch? Chicken legs your way

It seemed almost too good to be true.

A 3.5-pound pack of store-brand chicken drumsticks for $5.32? That's not even 40 cents per leg since there were 14 under wraps. What a bargain for a workday or school lunch that's screaming for a break from sandwiches and salads.

And noshing a drumstick at lunch makes you feel like you're on a picnic. Okay, that's sort of stretching it. Still, when faced with another day of turkey and American on wheat and a bag of chips, a drumstick baked with flaming hot Buffalo coating or a crunchy-cheesy crust sounds delicious.

It's simple to dream up flavorful coatings. Peruse the various snacks and crackers at the grocery store: French fried onions, potato straws, cereals, flavored pretzels and many varieties of chips (think barbecue!) can be pounded and pulverized to make a coating mix. That will add a few more pennies to the cost, but not enough to justify blowing your budget by sneaking out for lunch.

Keep them more healthful by looking for baked low-salt or whole-grain snacks.

I crushed the ingredients and mixed them with seasonings in a food processor, but a sealable bag and a kitchen mallet (or heavy skillet or rolling pin) work just as well. You'll need about 3 cups of coating for 10 legs. Toss out what you don't use since the raw chicken has been in contact with it.

For children, make sure they are old enough to eat chicken on the bone unsupervised before sending the drumsticks to school. The chicken should be packed in an insulated lunch box with ice packs. The same is true for adults who work in places that do not have refrigerators.

Bake the drumsticks the night before, cool and store in the refrigerator until lunch-box packing time.

Below are some ideas to get you started. Brand names are mentioned where it might make a difference.

Janet K. Keeler can be reached at jkeeler@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8586.