Thursday, March 31, 2011

Knitting & Food: Grill Roasted Baby Potatoes



And we're back with our next installment of Knitting & Food.  April is Baby Month at In the Loop and I tossed around all kinds of ideas incorporating "baby" foods.  Not jarred baby food, but things like baby greens or baby peppers.  The thing is here in the Southern Ontario and in New England where the lovely ladies of In the Loop are, alot of those baby veggies aren't really locally available yet.  They will be this summer, just not in April.  We do have gorgeous little baby potatoes that are easily procured year round.  Once I settled on potatoes I then needed to figure out how to prepare them.  I wanted something that was super simple, that would carry through the spring and summer we are all so desperately wanting to actually arrive. 

We had a couple of gorgeous days here in Toronto, where all you needed was a light jacket.  It was during these days that I decided I wanted to try out some sort of grill roasted potato, one where the prep and clean up was super simple and it could easily be made along with other grilled meats.  The foil pouch is the ultimate in easy clean-up, especially when done on the grill.  


Grill Roasted Baby Potatoes
serves 2-4 as a side dish

1 lb baby potatoes (I used a mix of white and red) - scrubbed clean
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 sprig rosemary
5 sprigs thyme
1 Tbsp butter

1. Turn on grill and heat to 400F. These potatoes cook indirectly, for a 3 burner grill turn on the front & the back to medium high. 
2.  In a medium bowl toss potatoes in extra virgin olive oil, salt & pepper. 
3.  Peel & crush garlic cloves, place in the center of a good sized piece of aluminum foil.  Add the rosemary & thyme sprigs.  Top with the potatoes.  Place little dots of butter all over the potatoes.  Fold and crimp the foil to form a pouch, making sure no air can escape.
4.  Place the foil pouch in the center of the heated grill (or over whichever flame is not on. Roast undisturbed for 40-50 minutes until cooked through. 
5.  Remove from grill and let sit for a few minutes before serving with some nice sour cream or creme fraiche. 

I absolutely loved these, from the ease of prep and cooking to the creamy texture the potatoes got from the high heat and steam in the pouch.  The leftovers would make for a great potato salad the next day.  We grill bone-in chicken breasts and ribs over an indirect heat, similar to these, so you could easily do a whole meal on the grill and just add a nice green salad for a great spring/summer meal. 

Enjoy!

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