Oven Fries a la Nicole

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I mentioned this recipe when I wrote about Joie de Vivre, and this week I finally made these potatoes. You may know that I love potatoes. They are my top favorite food. And these looked so appealing in the book photograph that I just knew they would be great. And they were!

Oven Fries a la Nicole

My cousin Nicole is famous for her oven fries. These are a great substitute for deep-fried potatoes and everyone adores this dish. I always use Yukon gold potatoes for this recipe. Their taste and texture really make a difference in this simple dish. This serves 4.

Ingredients
10 cloves garlic, 5 smashed and 5 whole
3/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper
Herbes de Provence (thyme, bay, rosemary, oregano)
6 Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and kept in water to preserve color

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix the garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and herbes de Provence in a bowl.
Cut peeled potatoes in half lengthwise and make 3 to 4 wedges from each half.
Put potatoes in the bowl with olive oil mixture and toss to coat.
Arrange potato wedges on a sheet pan one by one so that the point of each wedge faces up and the rounded part is on the pan.
Cook in oven until tender and brown, about 30 to 35 minutes.

Well, first off, I had to look up what smashed garlic meant. First peel the clove. Then you take the flat side of your knife and using the heel of your hand, smash it down on the garlic clove. Then chop it roughly and use the knife again to press it firmly onto the cutting board and move it back and forth until you have sort of a mashed paste. I stopped before making the 'mashed paste.'


I didn't have bay or oregano, so used just thyme and rosemary. I used 1/2 cup olive oil instead of 3/4 which just seemed too much. I probably could have used even a bit less than 1/2 cup.

I used a 9x13 pan lightly greased with cooking spray.

I will try this with Yukon potatoes when I have them. This time I used what was in the house, some lovely red potatoes, which worked great.

As for the wedges, I've learned over time that roasted potatoes are best when the pieces are smaller.


Otherwise, they seem to take forever to cook. As it was, even with the smaller pieces, they took an hour to brown nicely.

These are some of the best potatoes I've ever tasted! They really are a good substiture for french fries. We've recently given up our fryer because, well, we ate them too often. They are irresistible to me (and to Tom). Happily, I've found this recipe which is almost as good, and much better for us. And don't these potatoes look absolutely wonderful?!