June 16, 2015
The men in my family are easy to please. For Father’s Day, I could serve both my dad and my husband grilled steak with a side of grilled steak and they’d be happy. Do you have one of those, too?
I can’t quite bring myself to serve up a steak/steak meal, but I can add on sides that are home run hitters with the XY crowd. We’ve made our special order from Flannery Beef for the steaks. Confession: My husband ordered the steaks, the Father’s Day steaks. He’s too familiar with my procrastinating tendencies. I consider it my gift to him that he knows his porterhouse is coming.
Along with that timely delivered meat, the plan is to make a Wedge Salad with Gorgonzola Dressing and these favorite Father’s Day Smashed Potatoes.
You literally smash the potatoes down with the palm of your hands, flattening them into little disks. Hit them with a drizzle of olive oil, a little seasoning and cook them up until crispy and flavorful.
This is a great recipe to get the kids in the kitchen helping. The kids take a sense of ownership over the meal for dad and it’s a fun dish to make together. Finish up the meal with our favorite Fijian Mud Pie and everyone is happy come Sunday night.
Serves 4-6 as a side
1 ½ pounds baby golden potatoes (organic, if you can)
2 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf
¼ cup olive oil
6 sprigs of thyme
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon salt
Whole parsley leaves for garnish and sea salt
Place 2” of water in a 4-quart pot fitted with a lid and add the garlic and bay leaf to the water. Place a steaming basket in the pan and add the washed and scrubbed potatoes. Cover with a lid and bring to a boil. Then, reduce to a simmer and cook for15 minutes.
The fresher the potatoes, the quicker they cook, so check doneness after 12 minutes. You want them soft enough to smash but not completely crumble (sort of like a medium-rare potato). Pierce with a knife to test doneness– it should go through to the middle of the potatoes with the slightest resistance.
As the potatoes steam, turn the oven to 375 and place a baking sheet in the oven as it preheats. This step gets the pan good and hot, making the potatoes ever crispier.
Once the potatoes have been steamed and are cool enough to handle, on a clean surface, smash each potato using the palm of your hand – press until it’s about ¾” thick. You can cover the potato first with a clean cotton kitchen towel or just use your bare hands.
After all of the potatoes have been sufficiently smashed, carefully remove the hot pan from the oven and gently add the oil (careful for splashing) and then the potatoes — sprinkle with paprika, salt and whole thyme sprigs.
Cook the potatoes for 15 minutes, turn over with a spatula and cook an additional 15 minutes until golden brown. Any random small potatoes pieces that stick a little are a gift from the gods – they get incredibly crispy and delicious, be sure to save a crunchy corner for the cook.
Remove from oven, taking off the thyme sprigs. Serve warm with fresh a sprinkling of fresh parsley leaves and sea salt.
