remember little caesar's? i haven't seen one of those, let alone eaten at one in ages. out driving one night, we came across one. a few days later, we gave them a call... bad experience, no wonder they're far and few between. either way, i found this recipe for their crazy bread on the internet, over at copycat or top secret recipes... anyway, i tried them tonight... not too bad. despite the fact that i didn't have the exact ingredients entirely, they turned out to taste pretty similar. i've also listed the pizza sauce to accompany the bread, but didn't make it.

little caesar's crazy bread

1 (10-oz.) tube pillsbury pizza dough
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon garlic salt
grated parmesan cheese for topping

Preheat oven to 425ºF. Unroll dough on a cutting board. Position it lengthwise (longer from left to right than from top to bottom). With sharp knife, cut the dough in half down the middle. Then cut each of those halves vertically in half, and then in half once more so that you have 8 even strips of dough. Being careful not to stretch the dough, place each strip on a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the top just turns golden brown. While the dough bakes, melt the butter, then add the garlic salt and stir until it dissolves. Remove the browned dough from the oven and brush or spoon spread a coating of the garlic butter over each piece. Sprinkle with a generous amount of Parmesan cheese. Serve with Little Caesar's Crazy Sauce.

little caesar's crazy sauce

1 (15 ounce) can tomato puree
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground thyme

Combine all the ingredients in an uncovered saucepan over medium heat. When the sauce begins to bubble, reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring often. Remove the sauce from the heat and let it cool. Store in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator; it will keep for 3 to 4 weeks. Serve hot.

Yield: 1-1/2 cups

i like to call this one "cap'n crunch chicken." a slight variation on my favorite "applebee's chicken oriental salad" recipe. it says to first dip the chicken in the milk, then the flour followed by the cereal. but, i just combined the flour and cereal together to cut down on time and mess. works for me. oh, and instead of plain old corn flakes, i could only find honey flavored ones -- very nice. overall, very tasty!

planet hollywood chicken crunch

1 cup cap'n crunch cereal
1 cup corn flakes
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon granulated onion
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 pound chicken tenders or breasts cut into strips

Pulse cereals in blender until the consistency of fine crumbs. Pour into bowl. Combine flour, onion, garlic, and pepper in bowl. Beat eggs and mix with milk in third bowl. Dredge breast tenders, first in milk mixture, then in flour mixture, and finally in cereal crumbs. Deep fry at 325ºF for 3 - 4 minutes or until cooked thoroughly.