Potatoes are a wonderfully versatile vegetable anyway, and, when they are new potatoes roasted in garlic rosemary and olive oil, the flavor is out out of this world!
COOKING INVOLVES HIGH HEAT. So always take great care and keep children well away.
New Potatoes Roasted In Garlic Rosemary And Olive Oil – The Recipe (serves two)
12 oz or 350 gm of new potatoes
6-8 garlic cloves
3-4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
3-4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Preheat an oven to 190c or 375f
Cook potatoes in boiling water for half the normal time (ten minutes instead of 20).
Drain and place in a roasting pan, with the garlic cloves and rosemary.
Drizzle with olive oil and toss the potatoes to coat them.
Place in the oven for 25-30 minutes, occasionally shaking the pan to prevent the potatoes from sticking.
New Potatoes Roasted In Garlic Rosemary And Olive Oil – The health Benefits
Potatoes are a good source of vitamin c, as well as fiber. Scrubbing them clean, rather than peeling them is a good idea, as the skins are high in chlorogenic acid, which is thought to prevent cell mutations which lead to cancer.
Cooking them with the skins in minutes of digging them out of the ground maximizes the levels of vitamins and minerals. Also only partially boiling and then roasting the potatoes avoids the valuable nutrients leaching out into the water, which is what happens when you boil for the full twenty minutes.
Another good way to cook delicate new potatoes is to steam them in either a bamboo steamer, from your local Chinese supermarket, or a stainless steel steamer from a cookware store. Whichever sort you use, they simply sit on top of a pan of boiling water. Cooking vegetables this way preserves many of the minerals and vitamins that would be lost if boiled directly in water. It also does wonders for the taste of the food!
Potatoes are a good source of potassium, which is good for helping with high blood pressure and for alleviating the symptoms of rheumatism. Potatoes also boost production of the brain chemical serotonin, which lifts the mood.
Olive oil has been an important part of the very healthy Mediterranean diet for about 4,000 years. It is high in beneficial monounsaturated fatty acids and lowers the amount of harmful LDL cholesterol. It is also a valuable source of vitamin E, which is one of the three great antioxidant vitamins — A,C and E, which protect the body from harmful free radicals.
It also works at preventing the blood from clotting, reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Italian scientists believe a diet rich in olive oil can help assist brain function and prevent loss of memory.
Garlic is a well known super food and, when roasted in this way, takes on a very palatable sweet taste. Like olive oil one of garlic’s most potent attributes is as a protector of the heart and arteries, lowering blood fat and cholesterol and decreasing the tendency of the blood to form clots.
Enjoy feasting on these new potatoes roasted in garlic rosemary and olive oil.
