‘Fried’ Mozzarella Sticks

Ingredients

Olive oil cooking spray

1 spray(s), (5 one second sprays), enough to coat baking sheet and cheese sticks

Canned tomato sauce

8 oz

Ground oregano

2 tsp(s)

Whole wheat bread

2 slice(s), torn

Dried thyme

1 tsp(s)

Part-skim mozzarella cheese

8 oz, cut into 8 finger-like strips

Honey mustard 2 tbsp

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. In a small saucepan, combine tomato sauce and 1 teaspoon of oregano; set pan over low heat and simmer 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine bread, remaining teaspoon of oregano and thyme; process until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Place crumbs in a shallow bowl. (Tip: Use the ends of the loaf of bread for the bread crumbs since those slices are often uneaten.)
4. Coat cheese sticks with honey mustard. Transfer cheese to bread-crumb mixture and turn to coat. Arrange cheese on prepared baking sheet and lightly coat with cooking spray.
5. Bake until golden brown, about 4 to 5 minutes. Serve with tomato sauce on the side. Yields 2 cheese sticks and about 1/4 cup of sauce per serving.