Boil (or microwave) new potatoes until -just- done. Crush with a wooden spoon, you are looking for the potatoes to be in fairly large irregular pieces. Toss in a good amount of sea salt, pepper and olive oil and bake in a hot oven until all the bits are golden brown, turn a couple of times to brown evenly. Add some smoked paprika and cayenne with the salt and pepper for a nice twist.
Baked smashed potatoes are a beautiful thing. A dollop of garlicy and chivey creme fraiche on the top, and dinner is served. (They're also good a side dish)

This is one of my favorite preparations for Smashed Red Potatoes with Garlic Aioli Sauce: Boil 2# red skinned new potatoes until just tender. Drain and place in a glass baking dish. Press down gently on each potato just to break open. Pour 4 oz. melted unsalted butter over them. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Bake in a pre-heated 425 degree oven until well browned and crispy (about 40 minutes).
Top with Roasted Garlic Aioli: Put 4 peeled raw garlic cloves in 1/2 cup mild oil (suggest canola or mild olive oil) in a sauce pan. Heat slowly until the garlic is golden (watch carefully so as not to overcook the garlic which will become too bitter.) Remove from the heat and cool. In a blender, puree the garlic cloves (not the oil) & 2 egg yolks. Add 2 teas. Grey Poupon mustard, 2 teas. white vinegar, juice of 1 lemon, 1/2 teas. white pepper, 1/4 teas. salt; puree until frothy. Drizzle in roasted garlic oil with the machine running; add 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil again with the machine running. Taste & adjust seasonings. This is transport you to Heaven but you can't be worried about calories or cholesterol.

Love this recipe which reminds me a lot of a dish we make in my own potato-loving country (Slovenia); it was probably inspired by other Central European cuisines and probably similar to what Anelle had in Germany. We call it something that would roughly be translated into roasted potatoes, and the basic recipe is simple.

Here it goes: cook the potatoes, peel them and finely slice them. Chop up a large onion into chunky pieces. In a pan, heat some oil (the traditional version calls for pig fat with what the Brits call "greaves" - yummier than it sounds, but any neutral oil works just fine). Once hot, throw the onions in, and when they turn glassy, chuck in the potato slices, add salt and pepper and stir well. In the end leave it at medium heat and don't touch it for a couple of minutes; this creates a sort of a crust at the bottom of the pan. This is it for the basic version, but possibilities of additions are endless, from eggs to cheese to chives, green peppers... It's very simple and so yummy that we even have a fan club of roasted potato lovers here...

You call them smashed, I call them normal! I like the texture and the color contrast and ceased peeling potatoes years ago. I always loved the skins of baked potatoes so wondered why I was going to the trouble of getting rid of a part that adds to the flavor.

I make a dish that is very similar but has a touch of lemon; sounded weird first time but is an amazing twist too.

Ooooh! These look soooo good! I think I will make them tonight for company! How many servings does this make? Thanks!
Kelley

Sort of depends on the number of potatoes and how hungry people are. Maybe figure 1/4 to 1/3 pound per person? ~Elise

I have a question, can this been made with sweet potatoes or yams? I am allergic to potatoes and so would looove to make it with whatever you suggest I can use instead... Thanks!

I don't see why not. ~Elise

These look wonderful! I am a big fan of sour cream in my potatoes, often I sub out most of the butter for sour cream - usually I use about 1/4 cup. It adds a little extra dimension of flavor to the potatoes.

Yummy! I served this as a bed for your Chicken Parmesan (I was trying to think of a pasta to serve with Elise's Chicken Parm, but this was a much better fit!) Mmmmmm!