Oven Roasted Potatoes - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 lb hickory smoked, thick sliced bacon
3 1/2 lbs Yukon Gold Potatoes, scrubbed but not peeled
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated
coarse salt
fresh ground pepper
fresh parsley

Preparation

Cover potatoes with water in large pot. Bring water to a boil and cook for 12-15 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender but not falling apart.

Cook bacon in a skillet until golden, but still flexible. You don't want it crunchy. Remove cooked bacon onto a plate lined with paper towels. Crumble bacon and reserve the bacon drippings.

Check potatoes and if fork tender, drain and allow to cool.

While potatoes are cooling, preheat the oven to 425\u00b0 and mince the garlic and parsley. Also, grate the Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Next, prepare the baking sheet by brushing 1 tablespoon of olive oil and half the bacon drippings on the bottom of the pan. I used a fairly large cookie sheet for this and it worked well.

Once the potatoes are cool, peel and cut in half, or quarter if potatoes are large.

Place cut side down on prepared pan and sprinkle with coarse salt and fresh ground pepper. Place in 425\u00b0 oven for 35-40 minutes. Rotate potatoes halfway through the baking time to ensure an even color.

Reduce temperature to 375\u00b0, turn potatoes over and sprinkle with the bacon, garlic, and Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Add more salt and pepper if desired. Return to oven for an additional 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are evenly browned and cheese is melted. Remove from oven and sprinkle with fresh parsley. Makes 4-6 servings,\\