Homemade Baked Onion Rings

The other day I had taste for onion rings, but generally speaking, they are battered and fried.  I came across this recipe from the Food Network.  I didn't want to buy baked potato chips or panko crumbs, so I modified it to make it frugal, delicious, and homemade!  Ben really liked them, even after I told him they were moderately healthy!

Baked Onion Rings 

Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

Cooking spray

4 cups bread crumbs (I used cheap hotdog buns, pulsed in the blender in small batches until large shards)

1 cup buttermilk (I added 1 Tbsp. lemon juice to 1 cup skim)

1/2 cup, plus 2 Tbsp. flour

1/2 tsp. seasoning salt (I used Lawry's)

1/4 tsp. pepper

1-2 large Vidalia onions

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray and set aside.  
• Divide bread crumbs evenly into two separate bowls. (The batter can make the bread crumbs wet and difficult to stick to the onions, so it's nice to have a fresh start halfway through.)  
• In a third bowl, combine buttermilk, 2 T. flour, seasoning salt, and pepper.  
• Slice onions into 1/2" slices, using only large whole rings.  I ended up with 13 rings. Chop the rest up and throw into the freezer to use later.  
• Place the onion rings in a large bowl and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup flour, mixing carefully to completely coat the rings.  
• Dip the rings individually in the buttermilk mixture, then into the bread crumbs.  Place on the greased cookie sheet.  
• Before baking, spray the entire pan with another coat of cooking spray.  
• Bake for 20 minutes or until coating is crisp and medium brown, turning over halfway.