"The Modern Vegetarian", by Maria Elia was a 5.00$ secret treasure I found in Barnes and Noble one day when I was trying to return a book I never read. So I decided this weekend that I'd try a recipe from the book to make lunches more interesting. For this week's lunch menu I decided to go with a veggie burger, California style with avocados, greens, and cheese, and fries on the side. I really wasn't in the mood for potato fries, and for some reason sweet potato fries just don't taste right unless they're deep fried (and I don't own a deep fryer) so I decided to make make recipe from this book. OMG! These fries are so good. Not only are they nutrient dense with the butternut squash, but the texture and flavour are so different from the typical fry that it makes lunch more exciting. The only thing I did not do was deep fry the chips. I chose to heat oil in a frying pan and cook them instead.
Rosemary Butternut Squash Polenta Chips from "The Modern Vegetarian"
1.5 cups of finely diced butternut squash
2 tsp chopped rosemary
salt and pepper to season
6 cups of water
2 cups polenta (cornmeal)
In a large pot boil the water. Add the squash and rosemary and reduce the heat to a simmer. Slowly stir in the polenta and cook for about 3 minutes. Season well with salt and pepper. Once cooked, pour the batter in a greased rectangular baking dish and allow to cool. Once cooled, refrigerate for 1 hour. Take the block of polenta out of the pan and onto a cutting board. Cut into french fry size. As mentioned before, I didn't deep fry them. Instead, I coated a frying pan with extra virgin olive oil and, on high heat, I fried the chips until crispy. Trust me, you'll be replacing your regular side of fries with these real son.
