Cheesy Bacon Potatoes

Crispy Cheese and Bacon Potatoes
Yield: 6 servings

1/2 pound bacon
3 extra large russet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1/2"-3/4" pieces, about 6 cups worth
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar or Mexican blend shredded cheeses
3 green onions, sliced thin

COOK THE BACON: Spread the bacon strips out across a large rimmed baking sheet pan and place on the middle rack of a COLD oven. Set the temperature to 400 degrees. Set a timer for 16 minutes and check the bacon. Remove it from the oven when it is as crisp or crunchy as you like. I remove ours at 18 minutes and it's a great balance of chewy crunch. If you like your bacon crispy enough to crumble, you will probably want to cook it another minute past that.

COOK THE POTATOES: While the bacon is cooking, peel and chop the potatoes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel lined plate to drain. There should be 2-3 tablespoons of bacon grease left on the tray. (If there is more than that, drain off a bit.) Put the potatoes on the tray and toss with tongs to thoroughly coat them in the bacon grease. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread the potatoes out in a single layer and bake for 20 minutes, stir well and bake an additional 20 minutes. Stir again, making sure that none of the potatoes are sticking to the tray. Bake another 15 minutes.

Chop the bacon into small pieces. Remove the potatoes from the oven, stir again and sprinkle generously with shredded cheese and chopped bacon. Return the tray to the oven and bake an additional 2-3 minutes, until the cheese has melted. Top with sliced green onions just before serving. Enjoy! 

I made these last night and they were SO GOOD!!! We had them with fried eggs and toast, and could hardly stop eating them.  YUMMY!!

Recipe Source: http://www.barefeetinthekitchen.com/2014/11/crispy-cheese-bacon-potatoes-recipe.html?m=1 

Fried Potatoes with Polska Kielbasa

We have been making fried potatoes in our family for 3 generations now.  Traditionally, we would fry them on the stove top, but lately I have found that to be too time consuming with 2 little ones running around under foot.  I tried them in the oven, and they are every bit as good, and much easier.  They are easy to make, but I wanted to share the "recipe" here as many people have never heard of them.

4-6 regular potatoes (sliced into thin discs)
1/2 yellow onion (chopped)
olive oil (I use garlic olive oil, yum!)
salt and pepper
Polska kielbasa, sliced into thin discs (optional, but it makes a one dish meal)

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.  Spread the sliced potatoes out into an oven safe dish.  Drizzle generously with olive oil, then salt and pepper them.  Toss them with your hands to evenly distribute the olive oil.  Add more olive oil if needed (see pictures).  Evenly sprinkle the diced onions on top, then spread the polka kielbasa discs on top of that.  Drizzle more olive oil on top, and salt/pepper again.  Bake for 40-60 minutes (depends on how thick your potatoes are) until potatoes are soft and browning a bit. 

Alternately, you can do the potatoes as described above, then grill the Polska kielbasa separately.  That is also delicious!