recipe: hasselback potatoes

last night we make a big din, and i needed a tater recipe to go with prime rib. i had tried making hasselback potatoes once before with blah results (the bottom was too crispy), but of all the pics on foodgawker.com the hasselbacks really seemed to pull me in (i wanted to avoid a heavy potato dish with cheese/cream/etc... just something that actually tasted like a potato in it's pure form).  

ingredients list (for 2):
- 2 large russet potatoes
- 4 tbsp olive oil (i used Mushroom & Sage flavored OO from Saratoga Olive Oil Co... love that stuff) + more for bottoms
- 1 tbsp parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp parsley
- 1 tsp kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- dollop of sour cream (optional)


to make: preheat oven to 400 degrees. mix olive oil, parmesan, parsley, salt, & paprika in small bowl. make slits width-wise down the top of the potato, about 3-4 mm apart, but NOT going all the way down to the bottom of the potato - they should be about 1/4 inch from the bottom. brush the potato with the olive oil mixture, making sure you get some in between each slit (you may have to use a fork to carefully pry the slits back open). rub additional OO on bottom of the potatoes. bake for 40-45 minutes, brushing with olive oil every 15 minutes or so. 


in small microwave-safe bowl, add garlic & butter, and melt butter. pour garlic-butter mixture over the potatoes before the last 5 minutes of baking.
***
these came out a lot better than last time... flavor from the OO was awesome, and they were cooked just right (no hard burnt bottom this time). i wish that each layer opened a bit more and could come out golden crispy, but it's still yum... like a regular potato except consistent toppings rather than butter only on the top layer. 6.5******~.