Almond/Pistachio-Crusted Chicken

I adapted this from here. The almond butter marinade helps the chicken retain flavor and juiciness, and the nuts add great flavor and texture.

Ingredients:
1.5 lb chicken tenders
1 lb chicken thighs
1/2 cup creamy almond butter
2 T soy sauce
2 T honey
1 T grated lemon rind
1 T fresh lemon juice
1/2 c roasted unsalted almonds
1/4 c roasted unsalted pistachios
1/2 c almond meal (ground almonds) (original recipe called for breadcrumbs)
2-3 cloves garlic
1 t salt
1/4 t ground red pepper

Instructions:

• Combine almond butter and next 4 ingredients in a bowl. Microwave a little to mix. This will be used to coat the chicken, so if it seems too thick, add just enough water (on the order of 1 tsp) to thin it.
• Put chicken pieces in a large ziplock bag with the sauce; make sure each piece is coated. Refrigerate for 30 min.
• Combine the nuts and garlic in a food processor; process until the nuts are the desired size for coating the chicken (maybe 1/4 cm diameter). (Don't process too much as you'll lose the nutty texture, but don't leave the pieces so big that they'll fall off.) Mix in the rest of the ingredients.
• Preheat oven to 375.  Line baking pans with aluminum foil and place lightly greased wire racks on top. 
• Dip chicken pieces in nut mixture and place on the wire racks.
• Bake until cooked through; 25-30 min.

P.S. Some delicious substitutions I've tried: extra-firm tofu in place of chicken, and toasted pecans, or of course peanuts, for the almonds and pistachios.