Baked Potato with a Twist

I live in Potato Land (well actually it should be "Potato Continent"), everywhere you go you see potatoes, potatoes in every shape, form, color and sizes! 
Potatoes are one of the 3 or 4 basic main ingredients not only in Holland but in all of Europe. To me, that was a big change in eating habits, I never used to eat that much potatoes, French Fries and Baked Potatoes were a real treat for me and here they are just an everyday snack! Don't get me wrong, I love my tatters, they are very versatile and I really enjoy them but sometimes it is hard to come up with new ways to prepare them............lets face it: you CAN (and you will) get tired of mashed potatoes, believe me!!!

I love baked potatoes but I am in a constant fight when it comes to the baking time, my oven tends to take way much longer time than pretty much any other oven in the world and I either end up with a raw potato casserole or a bunch of blackened french fries! 

I came across this really cool looking potato recipe the other day and I just knew I had to give it a try: a really simple yet amazing take on a baked potato. The great part is that it doesn't take that much time to bake as a normal tin foil potato and it looks so much better!

  




Ingredients:

• 6 Medium Size Potatoes
• 2 - 3 Cloves Garlic, thinly sliced
• 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 30 g Butter
• Sea Salt
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 220˚C 
2. Put the potato on a chopping board, flat side down. Start from one end of the potato, cut almost all the way through, at about 3 to 4 mm intervals.
3. Arrange the potatoes in a baking tray and insert the garlic in between the slits. Scatter some butter on top of each potato. Then drizzle the olive oil and sprinkle some sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
4. Bake the potatoes for about 40 minutes or until the potatoes turn crispy and the flesh is soft.

Tip: You can add some grated parmesan or any other kind of cheese at the end or add a bit of sour cream.