Last week I baked an apple for Terry — Hasselback style — and it had so much more appeal than a regular baked apple. Hasselback may sound like I’ve confused a cooking term with a 90s TV star, but I have spelled it correctly, and it is a cooking method. It originated at a Swedish restaurant, Restaurang Hasselbacken, in a historic Stockholm hotel. Hasselbackspotatis were first served in the 1940s or 1950s and quickly became popular not only for their taste, but also for their elegant appearance on the plate.
The method is quite simple and offers endless possibilities. You can use any type of potato, but I recommend yukon gold or russets, as they bake better than a waxy red. You are simply making about 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch vertical slices in the vegetable not quite to the bottom. Putting the potato between two chopsticks helps keep the distance to the bottom even. You need to be careful; don’t go too quickly or the chopsticks will slip and the potato will slip and (hopefully not) the knife can get away from you. It’s not too precarious a set-up, just take your time.
The technique works best with any food that has a long or rectangular shape or is round. For something round I suggest cutting it in half so that you have a flat base.
So, without further ado, I present to you — the Hasselhoff potato! No, wait … it’s the Hasselback potato!
HOW TO MAKE HASSELBACK POTATOES
Serves 4
4 large potatoes (Yukon Gold, Russet or Red Bliss)
4 tablespoons melted butter, olive oil, duck fat, bacon fat, coconut oil, or a mix
Salt
Pepper
Optional extras: minced fresh herbs, spices, grated cheese, bread crumbs, panko crumbs
Heat oven to 425 F, with a rack in the lower-middle position.
Wash and dry potatoes: Scrub potatoes clean and pat them dry. Alternatively, you can peel the skins off.
Cut slits in the potatoes, stopping just before you cut through so that the slices stay connected at the bottom of the potato. Space slices 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch apart. You can rest the potato in a large serving spoon and use that as a guide for when to stop slicing or use two chopsticks on the outside of the potato — slice straight down; when your knife hits the edge of the spoon or chopstick, stop slicing.
Arrange potatoes in a baking dish. Brush potatoes all over with half of the butter or other fat, including the bottoms.
Sprinkle potatoes generously with salt and pepper.
Bake potatoes for 30 minutes. At this point, the layers will start separating. Remove pan from oven and brush potatoes again with fat; you can nudge the layers apart if they’re still sticking together. Make sure some of the fat drips down into the space between the slices.
Bake for another 30 to 40 minutes, until potatoes are crispy on the edges and easily pierced in the middles with a paring knife. If you’re adding any extras, stuff those into the slits and sprinkle over the top 5 to 10 minutes before the end of cooking. (Total baking time is 60 to 70 minutes for average potatoes; if your potatoes are on the small side or are larger, adjust cooking time accordingly.)
Serve immediately: These potatoes are best straight from the oven while the edges are at their crispiest.
(Source: thekitchn.com)
HASSELBACK MAPLE PECAN SWEET POTATOES
Serves 2
2 medium sweet potatoes
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Salt and black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Place a sweet potato between two chopsticks for stability and knife guidance. Every 1/4-inch along the length of the sweet potato, slice 7/8ths of the way through, or until the knife hits the chopsticks. Repeat with second potato.
Brush sweet potatoes with the vegetable oil. Place in a small baking dish and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Bake sweet potatoes for 30 to 40 minutes, or until soft.
Remove sweet potatoes from the oven, and increase oven temperature to 450 degrees.
In a small bowl, combine melted butter, ground cinnamon, chopped pecans, maple syrup, vanilla extract and kosher salt. Stir to mix.
Spoon the maple syrup mixture over and in between the baked sweet potato slices, pushing the pecan pieces in between each slice.
Return the filled sweet potatoes to the oven and bake an additional 8 to 10 minutes.
Remove baked sweet potatoes from oven and spoon any cooking liquid over potatoes. Allow to cool slightly before serving.
(Source: tiphero.com)
HASSELBACK ZUCCHINI
1 pound zucchini, ends trimmed
3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Slice each zucchini crosswise, making sure not to cut all the way through zucchini.
Drizzle with olive oil and top with Parmesan. Season with salt and crushed red pepper flakes.
Bake until tender and golden, about 25 minutes.
(Source: dish.com)
CAJUN HASSELBACK CHICKEN
Serves 2-4
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
4 ounces pepper jack cheese, sliced into thin 1/4-inch slices
1 tablespoon breadcrumbs
1/2 tablespoon cajun seasoning
1/2 cup cooked spinach (frozen or fresh)
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Using a sharp knife, make slits in chicken breasts that are about 3/4 inches wide, making sure not to cut all the way down through the bottom of the chicken breast. You will have about 7 or 8 slits per chicken breast, depending on how large your chicken breasts are. Season chicken with salt and pepper.
Place the spinach evenly in the slits of the chicken.
Combine the breadcrumb and Cajun seasoning in a small bowl. Sprinkle mixture evenly over chicken. Place pepper jack slices in the slits of the chicken.
Place each chicken on its own lightly greased sheet of tin foil and make a “bowl,” surrounding each chicken breast. This keeps the juices contained.
Bake in preheated oven 30 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Remove each chicken breast from its tin foil “bowl” and place on a serving tray.
(Source: food.com)
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Anne's Kitchen food Hasselback recipes
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