Cheesy Garlic Smashed Potatoes

About this Recipe

We've now been quarantined for just about 6 months. The kindest part of 2020 was the fact that the MN winter ended relatively tamely this year, and we've been able to really appreciate our patio and outdoor space. Because of that, we have been using our grill more than ever this summer. We got bored of our standard grill recipes pretty quickly (even if they are delicious), and needed to start figuring out some new ones.

I vaguely remembered a friend making a similar recipe for us once a few years ago in the oven, and decided why not give it a shot on the grill!

It was almost dinnertime so instead of looking at a recipe, I just started cooking. I figured if I wanted to smash the potatoes they needed to be totally cooked before that step and any cooking after is mostly to melt the cheese and add tasty crispiness.

As mentioned, I cooked them on the grill instead of in the oven, but I definitely will be making them in the oven this winter. Especially because we just got a costco membership, and the massive bags of mini potatoes are perfect for this.

Method

Add the potatoes to a pan and cover with water, about an inch over the potatoes, and salt liberally.

Cover, place over high heat and bring to a boil. Remove cover and reduce heat to medium low. Boil 20-25 minutes, or until a fork can easily poke more than halfway through the potato. Remove from heat and drain water. Let cool, uncovered.

Slice or mince your garlic (I like big pieces but this is to your taste!), then add to a bowl with 3 Tablespoons olive oil.

Cover a sheet pan with foil and spray with oil. Evenly space potatoes across pan, as otherwise if they break apart they can mix together and be difficult to serve later! Using a fork lightly sprayed in oil, or a flat implement such as the back of a spatula, or even the bottom of a glass, press down on each potato until you feel it pop and smash down. The potato should be about 1/2 inch thick at maximum once smashed.

Sprinkle over salt and pepper liberally

Using a basting brush, brush each potato with olive oil garlic mixture, making sure to distribute the garlic even. Sometimes you need to use a scooping motion out of the bowl with the brush in order to make sure you're getting enough garlic each time.

Cover each potato with a big pinch of cheese, then place in oven and bake 15-20 minutes or until cheese is melted and browning and potatoes are crispy on the edges.