French Fries, Without the Fry

Well, since there’s been a lot of ketchup experimentation going on here, it’s only right that we should post a french fry recipe, even it is is a very simple thing to do. Spread the potato love a little.

We bought ourselves a mandoline at the annual City Kitchens sale and have been having fun playing with it. (If you live in Seattle and have never been to City Kitchens, go there. It really is the best store ever. If you get on their mailing list, they’ll send you some unbelievable coupons once a year which you can use on top of the sale.)

good yellow potatoes
olive oil and peanut oil (equal parts)
salt, pepper
fresh sage, chopped finely

1. Preheat your oven to 475F. (Don’t cheat. It must be hot.)
2. Slice potatoes into shoe strings on your mandolin.
3. Rinse potatoes in bowl of water at least twice. Place on a clean, dry dish towel and pat to remove excess water.
4. Toss fries, oil, salt and pepper together and spread onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
5. Bake for about 10 minutes. (Keep an eye on these potatoes at the very end. Because they’re so thin they’ll go from perfectly golden to burnt in an instant.)
6. Remove from oven and toss with sage. Mix and serve.

Notes:

• Use the same technique for larger cut fries, just increase the baking time.
• The inspiration for the sage comes from Skillet. One of our favorite restaurants, Agate Pass Cafe, serves their shoestring potatoes with rosemary, which I thought couldn’t be beat until I had a sage potato. Try them both. See what you like.