SMASHED GREEK POTATOES
Why I Love This Recipe
-- "Tom's Big Dinners" by Tom Douglas
Ingredients You'll Need
3 pounds small red potatoes, washed and dried but not peeled
1/2 cup plus one tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano or other fragrant dried oregano
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Directions
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Put potatoes in a roasting pan large enough to hold them in a single layer, and roast until just tender, 40-45 minutes. When potatoes feel tender, remove pan from oven and place on top of stove or other heatproof surface.
• Using the flat bottom of a sturdy china mug, press down on and flatten each potato, one at a time, right in the roasting pan (about 1/2-inch thick when smashed.) The skin should break, but the potato should more or less retain its round shape.
• Drizzle 1/4 cup oil over potatoes, season generously with salt and pepper, return to oven. Roast until browned on bottom, about 25 minutes, then remove from oven and turn them over with a large spatula. Drizzle another 1/4 cup oil over the potatoes and return to oven, roasting until browned on the second side. Remove the pan from the oven.
• Scatter oregano and garlic over the surface, season again with salt and pepper, drizzle with remaining tablespoon oil. Toss with spatula to distribute seasonings and return to oven for 5 more minutes.
• Use spatula to transfer potatoes to a large platter, serve immediately.
