Cook Loose

These are good, easy and seem MUCH better than the effort it takes to make them. It's more about technique than recipe, but, again, it's a snap.

• 8 medium red potatoes, cut into quarters
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp granulated garlic
• 2 tsp Italian Seasoning

Cut the potatoes into quarters and toss with all the other ingredients until covered. Preheat oven to 450^o. Spread potatoes on a metal sheet pan so that at least one cut side is down in contact with the pan. Spread out as much as possible (we want to roast, not steam the potatoes). Set the timer for 20 minutes, and put the pan in the oven. When the timer goes off, pull out the pan, move the potatoes so that the other cut side is down (I use a metal pancake turner for this), and put them back in the oven for another 15 minutes.

Note

This works best with red potatoes, or another waxy potato, like Yukon Gold. I'm not saying you can't do this with Russets, or even general purpose whites...just that it won't be the same. Tasty, sure, but not the same texture.

You can do this with small red potatoes, cutting them in half and putting them on the pan face down for the first half, but the larger reds are usually cheaper and the additional cut faces make for a better look and taste, in my opinion, so I save the small reds for boiling.

Options

• Italian Seasoning is just a bunch of herbs (oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme) that I bought by accident at Sam's Club when I was out of oregano. Any combination of herbs will work with this. I've just had good luck with the Italian Seasoning.
• You can grate parmesan cheese over these when they first come out of the oven.
• You can actually use different seasonings for a different dish. Try cumin and chili powder to accompany your Mexican dinner. Or curry powder as an "Indian style" dish. Pretty much any herb or spice that isn't prone to easy burning (watch paprika closely, for instance) can work.