Louanne's Kitchen: Smashed & Roasted Potatoes

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Smashed & Roasted Potatoes

Don’t you just love an easy side-dish that you can put together with minimal muss & fuss in the morning and pop into the oven when you return from work? Well, if you’ve not jumped on the roasted & smashed potato band wagon yet, here’s proof why you should.

After I put the roast into the slow-cooker on Monday, I tossed a bag of small Yukon gold potatoes into a stock-pot, threw in some salt and covered them – just by an inch or so – with water. Placed on the cover, turned the heat to high, set the timer for 35 minutes, and went about my morning routine. When I heard the top bouncing about, I removed the cover, and lowered the heat to medium-high. When the buzzer sounded, they were perfectly tender. I drained them, placed them on a clean towel to cool, then moved them to a parchment-lined baking sheet, covered with another sheet of parchment, and using a heavy can, smashed them! Since I planned to cook them for dinner, I covered the pan with plastic wrap and placed them in the refrigerator. When I came home, I cranked up the heat to 450 degrees, drizzled on a bit of olive oil, a sprinkle of salt & pepper and then roasted them for 45 minutes or so.

No peeling! No slicing! All delicious! Love!!!

We ate them with the afore-mentioned roast. The husband loves them, as do I. I’ve also served them as appetizers, putting out bowls of sour cream, shredded cheese, bacon, green onions, and even salsa for topping. Huge hit, they were gone in no time. Try them, you’ll be oh-so-glad that you did!

Smashed & Roasted Potatoes

2-3 lbs baby Yukon Gold potatoes (or red)

Salt

Extra virgin olive oil

Boil potatoes in salted water until tender; drain, and place on paper towel or clean kitchen towel to dry.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and place potatoes onto parchment.
Cover with a second sheet of parchment, and using a heavy can or the palm of your hand, smash potatoes to a 1/2" thickness.
At this point, you can cover and refrigerate or proceed as directed below.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Drizzle smashed potatoes with extra virgin olive oil, about 1/2 teaspoon per potato.
Sprinkle on salt and pepper.
Roast at 450 for 45 minutes.
Serve as is, or with toppings of choice.
*Some recipes say to flip the potatoes - I didn't flip, and I think they came out perfectly. If you like to flip, by all means, have at it. Whatever you choose to do, just make them. Soon!