Roasted Potatoes

Total Time: 45 min. to 1hr. 15 min. Servings: 4-6

Posted by Lori

This is an easy recipe and, in my opinion, one of the best possible to prepare potatoes. They are a great addition to any meal, any time of day and can be prepared to anyone's taste so easily - vegan, spicy, garlicky, cheesy, herby, probably even covered in meat drippings… So here is my most basic recipe, but definitely try taking it in lots of different directions.
 

INGREDIENTS

2 pounds potatoes - Go purist and only use one variety or mix them up for a colorful, tasty medley, and try and decide which are your favorites!
2-3T extra virgin olive oil (use part or all butter, coconut oil, lard etc. if you prefer)
salt to taste

my favorite additions are:
1T each of minced fresh sage and rosemary
and/or
2t minced marjoram and/or thyme
and/or
1 medium onion, chopped
and/or
3-4 shallots, sliced
and/or
3-5 cloves of garlic, chunked up

You get the idea, it's really just all about how I'm feeling, what I have and what else is on the menu.

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Scrub taters if they're dirty, but don't peel them!!  Then half, quarter, or slice them up - I like to leave the littlest guys whole.

In a large bowl, toss the potatoes with olive oil and any herbal or allium additions you're craving, then spread out on a baking sheet or in a baking dish.

Flip/toss potatoes every 15 minutes or so, so they brown evenly. Cooking time can vary a lot depending on the size of the pieces. When I do thinner slices or fries it can be as fast as 30 min. total, but halved or whole can take up to an hour. When they're done cooking they will be soft when pierced with a fork. And then I usually keep cooking them awhile longer until they're super crispy.

Add salt to taste - I'm addicted to freshly cracked salt, lots of it - and dig in!

A couple more delicious variations:
Try grating cheese over potatoes (minus herbs for the cooking) a few minutes before they're done so it melts - maybe even browns - to perfection for a hearty dish. Top with fresh chives and dill and eat the entire pan…

Roast up a pan of mixed potatoes, that are just halved or quartered, with or without herbs and serve with a vat of lemon-shallot aioli - my friend Becky makes this aioli that I am in love with, despite its distant relation to mayonnaise.  I try to duplicate it using vegan mayo with shallots, lemon, olive oil and salt. So SO good.