Roasted Parmesan Potatoes

At heart, I'm a meat and 'taters kind of gal. What's "'taters" you ask? "Po-ta-toes, ya know, boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew." (extra points if you can name the movie quote.)*  I just like, er, love potatoes. In all their configurations: mashed, roasted, baked, boiled, hash browned, O'Brianed, tater totted, French fried, scalloped. And any variety, baby new, russet, fingerling, Yukon Gold. The list goes on and on. Whenever I discover a new way to make potatoes I'm game. Seriously, the more ways I have to serve potatoes, the more meals I can serve them at and still have variety. 

When I saw a recipe for Roasted Parmesan Potatoes on Pinterest, I couldn't try it fast enough. It looked super easy and super yummy so I gave it a whirl. . .

Start by melting a 1/2 a stick (1/4 cup) butter and pouring it into a 9x13 Pyrex dish. Swirl it around to evenly coat the bottom of the dish. My Pyrex fits in the microwave so I just put the 1/4 cup of butter in the Pyrex and put the whole dish in the micro until the butter is melted. Why dirty and extra dish if you don't have too?

Add 1-2 oz. of finely grated parmesan cheese.  I like to use my microplane grater and just grate the cheese right over the dish until I have a nice thick layer of cheese covering the bottom.

Here's where you can improvise. Sprinkle, to taste, your favorite potato seasonings, over the cheese. You can stick with just fresh ground pepper and a bit of salt or go for it with garlic and rosemary. I went the easy way out and used Pappy's seasoning. Go easy on the salt, Parmesan is a salty cheese.

Take 5-7 (depending on the size of the potatoes) washed, but not peeled, Yukon Gold potatoes and cut them in half lengthwise. Lay the cut sides down on the cheese.

Roast at 400°F for 45 minutes until a knife inserted into a potato meets little resistance. Let them sit for 5-10 minutes in the pan to let the cheese set and crust onto the potatoes.

Run a knife between the potatoes to separate the cheese between them, then flip them over. I wouldn't judge you at all, if you scraped up the cheese left in the pan and ate it. It's ah-maze-ing. Chewy, nutty, buttery. And we haven't even gotten to the potatoes yet.

Serve these immediately for oohs and aahs. They're delicious. (I've made them two more times since the first.) And a hit with the whole family. They go great with steak or any grilled meat. They're nutty, buttery, tender and flavorful. Also, not too shabby reheated the next day for lunch. I'd give this recipe a 10 for over all taste and ease of preparation. Here's the recipe link again: Roasted Parmesan Potatoes.

* Did you guess the quote? Its from Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers.