Frying in the New Year

Did everyone have a pleasant, gluttonous holiday? Good. I don't know about you, but each year come January, I am so ready to get back to my real life. I am ready to kiss those candy canes goodbye. Ready to extinguish those chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Ready to blow off those powdered sugar cookies. Is anyone with me?

As excited as I become to ring in the holiday season, I think that if I see another Bûche de Noël I just might have to toss it into the fireplace. (She says with a bah-humbug!) I am ready to go back to the daily, winter grind: obsessively checking the weather forecast for signs of snow, piling on layer after layer of woolen winter clothes, and slowly exhaling warm air hoping to catch a glimpse of my breath. And the food-- there is always the food.

This year, I just might have a new favorite-- the polenta fry. Or maybe I should call it, the polenta bake, since there really is no frying to speak of...but fry is somehow a catchier word. I have never much been one for New Year's resolutions. But for many, after an indulgent holiday season eating a fried anything is too much to bear. So...enter these lovelies.

They couldn't be more delicious. Simply make a recipe of polenta, then pour the molten carbohydrate into a pan, either 8-inch square, or slightly larger, to cool. When polenta is cool, what you will have is one giant mass, ready to cut. Slice this into manageable fry-size portions, place on a Silpat, or parchment-lined baking sheet, brush with olive oil, then bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes.

If you are anything like me, and have difficulty leaving well enough alone, pile the fries high, and dust with Parmesan cheese and fried sage leaves. So I guess I made a baked fry, then slathered my "healthy" alternative with a fried herb. Well, we can't be good all the time, can we?