A Generous Table

Some very yummy looking local & organic fingerling potatoes were given to me the other day.  They are called “Fingerling” because they are long and cylindrical like a finger, and usually no longer than the average person’s finger.  Prized for their tastes and texture, there are many European varieties of fingerling potato, and they are easy to grow in the ground or deep pots.  My personal favorite way of making them is to roast them at a very high heat to caramelize and crisp the outside, while still having a fluffy and rich interior.  You can use these guidelines to roast most root vegetables. Here I used carrots, so I would have a more balanced side dish.  When you cut them up, remember the more evenly sized the pieces, the more evenly they cook.  You could leave the fingerling potatoes whole, but they will take about another 15-20 minutes to cook through.  When making simple dishes like this, it is very important to have really good quality ingredients – any not-so-great element will really stand out.  Leftovers are great for folding into fritattas or adding to breakfast burritos, or even added to pasta (well, maybe not potatoes, but the carrots for sure).

Roasted Potatoes and Carrots

• 2 lbs fingerling potaoes, halved or 2 lbs any kind of  potato, cut into wedges
• 1 lb Carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt & Pepper
• 1 Tablespoon chopped fresh or 2 teaspoons dried parsley

Preheat oven to 450F.  After cutting vegetables, toss them on to a large rimmed baking sheet.  The vegetables need to be spaced out a little to brown, so use 2 sheets if all you have are smaller baking sheets.  Drizzle on olive oil, about a Tablespoon to start, sprinkle generously with salt & pepper and the parsley, then toss mixture with your hands to coat evenly.  Vegetables should be glossy and quite slicked with oil.  Add more oil if needed.  Dry vegetables will stick to the pan and really oily ones will just leave a lot of oil on the pan – a waste, but at least they won’t stick.  Practice makes perfect.  Roast for about 30-40  minutes, or until potatoes are cooked and crispy golden brown.  I prefer quite brown potatoes, but as long as they are tender, you can serve them. (You will just have softer outside crusts on the potatoes).  If you are using the oven to make something else, you can roast the veggies  at lower temperatures (like 350F), it will just take twice as long.  Serves about 4.