Parmesan Basil Pesto Smashed Red Potatoes

 Crispy smashed red potatoes are drizzled in a flavorful basil pesto and topped with lots of Parmesan cheese for an easy and addicting side dish!

I like a little green anywhere and everywhere this time of year, friends. SOLELY in the form of pesto, mind you.

Obviously cheese is gonna be a given and not far behind. And not lacking in nice-sized amounts either. Can I get a HECK YES to the smashed red potatoes that hold all this spoken goodness??

Ever since these smashed sweet potatoes a few months ago, I’ve been mildly obsessed with smashing my potatoes flat as a pancake and covering ’em with goodies.

These are the kinda things that just excite me a lot, guys.

These smashed red potatoes are basically just about the easiest dinner side you could ever make, friends. Check it out. —>

1. Roast up a ton of little baby red potatoes.
2. While that goes down, make your homemade basil pesto.—none of that jarred stuff, please.
3. Once your potatoes are very tender, SMASH ’em flat. I like to use the bottom of a mason jar for this job.
4. Smother those flatsos in your pesto and cheese and it’s back to the oven for just a little bit longer.

Once they’re crispy and the cheese is bubbly, you know you just did a very good thing. ??

These potatoes are SO good on their own or with basically any protein you want. Just make sure you make LOTS of them because I kid you not with the level of addicting they possess.

Also, save me one or 5? I mean, if you have leftovers of course. ??

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5 from 8 votes

Parmesan Basil Pesto Smashed Red Potatoes

Crispy smashed red potatoes are drizzled in a flavorful basil pesto and topped with lots of Parmesan cheese for an easy and addicting side dish!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

Basil Pesto

• 1 cup tightly-packed basil leaves
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Smashed Red Potatoes

• 10-12 small red potatoes, scrubbed and pricked with a fork
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

Basil Pesto

• In a food processor, pulse basil, pine nuts, and garlic while drizzling olive oil through top until pesto is smooth, scraping down sides as necessary. Season pesto with salt and pepper to taste. Set pesto aside in refrigerator.

Smashed Red Potatoes

• Rub potatoes with olive oil and place on a greased baking sheet. Roast potatoes at 425F 40-45 minutes or until very tender.
• Immediately smash potatoes flat with a potato masher. Drizzle with basil pesto and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Roast potatoes an additional 10-15 minutes until potatoes are crispy and cheese is bubbly and browned. Season potatoes with salt and pepper to taste and serve warm. Enjoy!

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