A few months ago my sister and I were hanging out in her living room, drinking red wine and chit-chatting as dinner was simmering on the stovetop, our husbands played Madden, and our dogs, Tide and Millie, wrestled around throughout the rest of the house. We had the following conversation:

Julie: Ya know, Millie’s feet smell like Fritos.

Me: Huh?

Julie: Yeah, they smell like the chips, Fritos. I actually googled it and when you start to type ‘my dogs feet smell like’ into the search bar, ‘doritos,’ ‘popcorn,’ and ‘fritos’ all pop up as recommendations. So, evidently this is common for dogs. Everything I read online says it’s because of all the corn that’s processed in dog food. The smell comes out their feet.

Me: Really??

Julie: Yeah, me and Joe started calling her “Frito Foot.” It’s kind of her new nickname.

Me: Hmm. I wonder in Tide’s feet smell like Fritos. [I call him over and sniff his feet] No, they just smell like mud. And wood.

Julie: Tide smells like low tide.

She has brought this to my attention one million times.

And ok, I admit, Tide smells like low tide. It’s only because, for the life of me, I can not figure out how to stop the Chesapeake Bay Retriever from doing this every time I let him out:

Anyway, I completely forgot about this conversation we had. Then, a couple nights ago I was sleeping… dreaming. In my dream I was at work, standing in front of a vending machine. I made my selection, punched a few buttons, and watched a bag of Fritos fall to the bottom. I snatched it up and ate the whole bag. Then, I bought and ate another whole bag. And another. It was crispy, salty, fried corn goodness. I started to wake up and my immediate thought was Pffew, 480 calories thank God it was only a dream! Then, I opened my eyes further to find Tide’s front paw on my pillow, 2 inches from my nose. I sniffed and what do you know! Fritos! Thank you, Tide, for making my dreams delicious and Millie for inspiring this recipe.

I know you are probably thinking my sis and I are crazy, but before you judge, try these Frito Baked Chicken Strips.

Recipe

2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/4 c. flour

1 egg

1 T. honey mustard

1 c. crushed Fritos

S&P

Cut chicken breasts into 1 inch thick strips (each large breast makes about 4 strips.) Line up 3 small bowls. In the first bowl combine flour, salt, and pepper. In the second beat egg and honey mustard. And, in the third put the crushed Fritos. Dredge each chicken strip in the flour, then coat with the egg mixture, and finally encrust with the Fritos. Place the chicken strips on a baking sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 350 for about 10-15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.