Cheesy Bacon Potato Bites

Original Pin

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/489133209500638767/

Cheesy Bacon Potato Bites

This turned out to be one of the best recipes I have ever tried. Since it was a last minute addition to our dinner and I had almost everything already in the kitchen, it made life even better. I learned a new trick with the recipe and this is one that Pyro has basically told me has to become a normal part of our dinner routine.

Materials

• Cutting Board
• Knife
• Large Pot
• Colander
• Baking Sheet
• Aluminum Foil
• Olive Oil (or olive oil spray)
• 4 Rustic Potatoes
• 6 strips of bacon
• 2 cups of cheese (cheddar or a cheddar blend)

What I did 

Rinse off the potatoes and cut them into 1/4" disks. Once they are cut, rinse the potatoes off again. Fill pot with water and bring to a boil. Once to a boil, add potato slices to water. Cook for 5-7 minutes, or until just slightly tender. You do not want them to be breaking apart, as they will become mashed potatoes very quickly if that happens. Drain the potatoes in the colander.

While the potatoes are boiling, cook the bacon strips until crispy, chop into tiny bits, and save the grease. This is where I am going to lose a little bit of street cred. Since this was a last minute side dish, I did not have regular bacon and only had Hormel Bacon Bits in a jar. I am very upset with myself; however, these were actually really good and you could not tell the difference.

Moving on.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line the baking sheet with aluminum foil and give a very light coating of olive oil, so the potatoes do not stick to the pan. Once the potatoes are drained and cooled (I rinsed them in VERY cold water to stop the cooking process), line the potatoes on the baking sheet in rows, shingling them down the whole tray (see pictures below). Once the tray is covered, use either the left over bacon grease or olive oil and spread over the potatoes. Sprinkle cheese and bacon. Place in oven.

The recipe calls for 15 minutes in the oven, but I would just watch it until the cheese gets all gooey and yummy and amazing and a little crispy around the edges. We used this as a side dish, but it can be used as an appetizer or snack. Add sour cream and green onions, like the original recipe calls for, and it would be even better. 

Conclusion

Make it, use it, pin it, share it, OVER AND OVER AND OVER!!!!!!!!!