Polenta chips recipe

Many a time when we've dined at Rubicon I've marveled at their most excellent polenta chips.  Crisp on the outside, creamy on the inside...divine.   Like the pomegranate jus, no one website gets the credit for this one - a bit of research and then I came up with my own recipe.  I would like to bang on just one more time about using fresh rosemary.  There is no excuse for not growing it.  The stuff is incredibly hardy and grows everywhere.  It smells amazing, it tastes divine, you should have as many rosemary bushes as it takes to have fresh young sprigs always at hand.  We personally own five shrubs.  If you can't grow it, steal it.  Using the dried stuff is a crime and somehow the "fresh" rosemary in the herbs section at the supermarket just never has quite the same punch.

So either grow your own or take a walk around the neighbourhood - someone's sure to have a massive bush somewhere and won't miss a few sprigs. Always take the top spires where it's soft and fresh or pull the leaves off if the stem is thicker and woody.  Now to the polenta chips - this recipe makes six incredibly generous serves with a few spare for the inevitable few that will break up while you try and flip them.

Ingredients;
3 Cups chicken stock
300ml pure cream
60g finely grated parmesan
Cracked pepper to taste
Fresh rosemary to taste
2 Cups polenta

Bring the stock and the cream to the boil in a large saucepan.  Throw in very finely chopped fresh rosemary (about a tablespoon) and some cracked pepper.  Once it boils, remove from the heat and quickly whisk in the polenta and the parmesan.  Keep stirring until the polenta becomes thick and pulls away from the edge of the saucepan.  This will happens pretty quickly.

Transfer the polenta into an inch-thick slice tin lined with baking paper and smooth out the mixture.  Fold the baking paper over the top and place in the fridge, preferably overnight.

The following day (or at least a few hours later), preheat your oven to 100C and then lift the slab from the tin onto a chopping block.  Slice into chips. In a skillet heat some butter and olive oil until hot.  Place the chips in the oil and cook until crisp.  Lift each batch and place on a tray in the oven until you've cooked them all and you're ready to serve.

The final step in the process of these amazing chips is to serve them with rosemary salt.  For this you'll need a mortar and pestle.  Simply throw in your finely chopped rosemary and a bunch of sea salt flakes (or in my case Murray River Salt Flakes) and grind to powder.  Serve for your guests to sprinkle over their chippies.  And that, as they say, is that!