Once upon a time there was a girl who liked to eat.
This girl loves potatoes, especially Hasselback potatoes. One day last fall, she got an idea to make Hasselback baked apples.
She had a feeling this would be the Greatest Dessert She’d Ever Made.
So she grabbed a couple apples, sharpened her knives, and got to work tediously slicing the apples, row by row.
Her husband looked on, skeptical.
You’ll see, she said. And then you’ll be sorry when I don’t give you any.
I’m sure I will.
After a few four letter words and near finger removals, she dusted herself off and stuffed the apples with sugar and cinnamon.
This was not fun, not fun at all.
She carefully placed the apples in the oven and waited ever so patiently for the timer to beep.
Beep!! BEEP! BEEP!!!!
Your apples are dead.
Beep indeed.
Not one to be easily defeated, she tested a couple different kinds of apples. The apples were very hit and miss, but most importantly, they did no justice to these wonderful apples at the peak of their lives. Especially this one that she stuffed with phyllo dough. Her vision was Hasselback apple pie, but the outcome was a half cooked apple stuffed with soggy plastic sheets.
It’s best we pretend this never happened.
It’s torture that I can’t have any of those; I just love apple pie, her husband smirked.
Grrrr.
Thankfully, this girl has rid herself of any desire to make Hasselback Apples in the future. She can now be found enjoying raw apples straight from the fridge.
Also, Hasselback potatoes straight from the oven.
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Hasselback Potatoes
Yield
1 potato
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
An easy, (mostly) fuss-free Hasselback potato.
Ingredients
- Russet (baking) potatoes or Yukon Gold (or whichever type you desire)
- Garlic cloves, thinly sliced into rounds (1 clove per potato)
- High heat safe cooking oil, for drizzling
- Herbamare or fine grain sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Wash potatoes and pat dry.
- Thinly slice the potatoes, but don’t slice all the way through. I leave about 1-2cm or so at the bottoms un-cut.
- Grab your thinly sliced garlic and stuff each slice with a small piece of garlic. I used 1 clove per potato. Stuffing with garlic helps expand the potato allowing the oil to drizzle right in.
- Drizzle all over with oil. Sprinkle generously with Herbamare (or fine grain sea salt) and freshly ground black pepper.
- Bake at 425°F for 50-70 minutes until tender, depending on the size of your potato. My Russets took about 70 minutes. When I use Yukon Gold, they only take about 50 minutes. Keep an eye on them, time will vary.
- Serve with any desired topping you wish – pesto, salsa, vegan sour cream, hummus, ketchup, or simply enjoy with a pat of non-dairy butter.
High heat safe oils are ones like coconut oil, grapeseed oil…i think walnut oil is medium high heat or something odd like that. I normally buy Spectrum organic brand (in Ontario, Canada) and i have found this brand along with some others list on the label what type of heat the oil is best suited for. Hope this helps!
First…I have no intention of trying to make the hasselback apples…however …do you think putting each individual apple in a muffin tin would have worked??…..
My mom used to make potatoes like that all the time when I was younger. I loved them but have completely forgotten about them up until now. I know what’s going to be in my dinner soon!
This post had me cracking up! I’m sorry your apples didn’t turn out – but they were good for a laugh. I haven’t had potatoes like this in over 20 years. Back then we used to wrap them in foil before cooking. Maybe if you wrapped the apples? Thanks for the chuckle.
These look SO good! Thanks so much for sharing such a simple, yet creative recipe :).
I’ve always much rather enjoyed apples in their crisp, raw, natural form.
Potatoes on the other hand… :)
Oh my goodness – I was so rooting for you! So sorry it didn’t work out; I’m sure they would have been delicious. (I also might have just eaten the mush with a spoon if I were you!) Just getting started in my new vegan lifestyle, and I’m excited to try some of your yummy recipes. Thanks for all the info!
xxsarahperry.com
Yum, those potatoes look delish! I’ve become slightly addicted to homemade pesto potatoes but I can’t wait to try this recipe for something a bit different.
I love this story. It’s so frustrating when you get a vision of something that should be genius…but doesn’t quite work.
Hasselback potatoes are a pretty spiffy consolation relationship though.
I never knew these were called Hasselback potatoes but I made them once for a brunch after seeing them on an episode of Barefoot Contessa. I sprinkled on some fresh thyme to give them some extra zip :)
I also didn’t know what to call them so I just called them “Chipped Potatoes”….since the slices looked kind of like potato chips.
http://eatwithchelsea.com/2012/12/25/herb-roasted-chipped-potatoes/
Ah the apples looked promising, I didn’t want to see them transformed into potatoes… I’m sure you’ll arrange that. Your post made me think and I baked one to confirm my hypothesis, One is you didn’t use the ideal type of apple for baking, another is it can only go softer, so there must be some kind of support… Well, I’ve obtained a “lampion apple” and I’ve just posted it. Mine was delicious. I think the Hasselback cut could work on a tartlet base or in a paper case. Thanks for the idea, You always find original dishes. .
Hasselback apples sound like such a good idea! That’s too bad they didn’t work out. I’m sure there must be a way to do it though…
thank you for showing your misses as well as your hits. Very brave of you and very heartening for the rest of us. Love your blog! :)
LOVE the Hasselback apples!!! They both look good, but I’d take the apple! Yummy!!
Awww hahaha it was a great sounding idea, even though it didn’t work. Shucks! I hate when I have high hopes and great vision for a dish or dessert and it backfires so badly. Like when I made portobello mushroom burgers as the focus in a whole complete meal, and then the pyrex I had them in shattered as I was taking them out of the oven! Such a bummer.
Those potatoes look amazing, though. I’ve never had hasselback potatoes. My husband is an avid potato chip fanatic so I’m quite sure he’d adore them!
Haha… I so enjoyed your report of the hassleback apples! Thanks for sharing that story, honestly!
Should you just stick the potatoes right in the oven on a cookie sheet or wrap in aluminum foil?
Good question – I just popped them onto a baking sheet, nothing else.
Hi Angela – I’ve read your blog for ages, but never commented before. Today I had to, though. I was looking at this post on my phone, half-asleep this AM, and I thought “Hasselback” was the same as “Hasselhoff” – as in David Hasselhoff, star of the series Bay Watch back in the day. I was reading and reading, looking at apples and potatoes, waiting to see how the actor related to the recipe – like perhaps you named it that because you once shared the recipe at a meal with him or something. DUH! I felt so silly when I woke up about twenty minutes later and realized the error. What a space cadet I can be. Anyhow, thought you might chuckle about it too. That aside, the potatoes DO look awesome. I may try this sometime when I have company to impress… you know, maybe David Hasselhoff…. :)
hah!!! Well, you aren’t the only one who thinks of him :)
Big points for trying though! Worst part is, I’m sure all those recipes still tasted delicious, they just didn’t have the visual appeal (I don’t know about you, but that’s one of my favorite things about hasselback potatoes).
I’ve always used a wooden spoon to not cut all the way through the potatoes.