Hassleback Baby Potatoes with Parsley Pesto
Well hello flavour!
Crunchy potatoes with a fresh & zingy pesto made with parsley, basil, lemon and toasted pumpkin seeds.
I made a little video on Instagram!
The makings of a good CRISPY potato
* FLAVOUR organic potatoes are hard to grow so take advantage when they are available at Wild Organics (here)
* simmer in salted water until fork tender
* carefully drain and STEAM for at least 5min
* PREHEAT oven tray on 220c
* add EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL in the hot tray for a couple of min
* potatoes need to SIZZLE when they hit the tray
* cook for 40min at least, turning the potatoes once, dont faff too much with opening the door too often
* SALT! when hot
No Rule Vegan Pesto
* any herb – only leaves, freeze stalks for stock, pref organic, supermarket herbs have 50% less flavour
* add acidity, lemon juice & zest
* any nut or seed, BUT TOASTED
* GOOD extra virgin olive oil
* season well
Lekker food does not have to be complicated, stick to seasonal organic veg, extra virgin olive oil & good seasoning and you are nearly there.
The perfect dish to sit along something bbq’d or something more traditional like a Sunday lunch.
I love to play around with different pestos and the addition of pumpkin seeds (which I toasted) makes a lovely addition, and lets face its a 100 times cheaper than pine nuts! You can use toasted sunflower seeds too.
The recipe makes more pesto than you need but extra will be a delicious addition to salads, bruschetta or pasta.
Hassleback Baby Potatoes with Parsley Pesto
Ingredients
- 1 kg baby potatoes
- flaky sea salt
- olive oil
Pesto
- 20 g Italian parsley leaves only
- 20 g basil leaves only
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds toasted
- 1/2 tspn salt
- juice 1/2 small lemon
- zest whole lemon
- 1/2 cup fantastic olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven 220c.
- Boil the water and add the baby potatoes, simmer for 15 minutes until the potatoes are soft but still holding their shape. Drain the potatoes and let them steam and cool down a bit. Make little incisions, close to each other, across the potatoes (see pic) with a sharp knife, trying not to cut through ~ its not a train smash if you do!
- Add potatoes to a roasting tin, drizzle generously with oil and roast for 30 minutes, drizzle with a little bit more oil and roast until crispy, about 15 to 20 minutes. Season with flaky sea salt.
- Meanwhile, whizz all the pesto ingredients (except the oil) together, trickle in the oil and mix until a paste forms, you might want to add more oil for a looser paste.
- To serve, either drizzle the pesto onto the little potatoes or serve the pesto alongside for everyone to help themselves too.