Roasted Potatoes with Garlic and Thyme

Roasted Yukon Gold Potatoes with Garlic and Thyme

I love matching flavors and textures but believe it is best done with a light touch. Layering too many different flavors into one dish all too often changes the taste of the main ingredient.



It's the same with my dinner table. I try to keep it simple, no more than three items at a time (some people will find this odd, I think less is more). So salads are served with French bread, an entree with potatoes and a vegetable.

When I serve potatoes, I like them to taste like potatoes. Like chicken, potatoes are a blank slate. But overwhelming them with other flavors defeats the purpose. The best French fries I've ever came from a bistro on Boulevard St.-Michel in Paris. They didn't taste greasy or salty; they tasted like fresh potatoes. Since my Yukon Golds were from Saturday's farm market, I wanted them to taste the same.

So here's a variation of a recipe I turn to again and again, very simple, and somewhat rustic.

Roasted Potatoes with Garlic and Thyme

10 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed (or 1 teaspoon garlic salt)
1 tablespoons fresh thyme (approximately)
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Preheat over to 400.

After scrubbing the potatoes, cube them and drizzle with olive oil. I use fairly small cubes now that I have more time for prep because they cook faster. That doesn't sound like it makes sense, but I'm usually in a hurry to eat!

Crush the garlic and toss with the potatoes. Add the thyme (mine was fresh, but seemed a bit dry so I added it earlier than usual). Toss.

Place in a shallow glass baking dish (the olive oil should grease the dish, but you may want to spray the dish first, just to be sure) on a middle rack in the oven. Bake for about 30 minutes, checking frequently and tossing the potatoes at least three times during cooking. Remove from the oven when golden brown and season.

The taste is subtle. You taste potato, not garlic or thyme. But the hint is there. Just the way it should be.