French Fries (Chips)

I would never, ever, ever buy deep fried French fries or any other deep fried food for that matter because in my view, anything that is "cooked" in that way is completely ruined. My husband is the same way actually (he refuses to eat anything deep fried) but a couple of years ago he told me that he missed fries and even though he would never order them, he asked me if I could make a healthy version. So I embarked on an experiment and after playing around with cooking times, potatoes and different cutting methods I came up with this simple "recipe". These are healthy, baked "fries" and although you might not want to eat them if you are used to your greasy fries, just give them a chance and think of them as potato strips, rather than anything deep fried. These "fries" are actually very good for you and can be served with almost anything. Use new potatoes if you can because that way you only need to scrub them lightly (without peeling). Serve the fries immediately after they are ready because they will go soft quite quickly. Note that cooking time depends a bit on how thick your strips are as well as on the characteristics of the potato. Just check them every 5 minutes or so if they are not ready after 20 minutes.

Did you know that French fries are not actually originated from France? It is claimed that potatoes were first served in Spain and then in Belgium. It is also claimed that the term "French" was introduced when British or American soldiers arrived in Belgium during World War I. They tasted Belgian fries there and supposedly called them "French", since it was the official language of the Belgian Army at that time. If the Belgian Army had spoken any other language (unlikely as that may sound), French fries might have been called..oh I don't know German fries, Icelandic fries, English fries!!!