Hasselback Potatoes

4 Baking potatoes, washed and scrubbed

2 Tbsp. butter, melted

Salt (to taste)

Black Pepper (to taste)

Desired toppings such as grated cheese, sour cream, bacon bits, chives, etc.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. 

Cut a thin strip (about ¼ in.) off the bottom surface of each potato so that the potato will sit flat and level on the baking sheet. 

Place a potato on a cutting board and place chopsticks or the handles of wooden spoons along each side of the potatoes, lengthwise. The chopsticks will help you stop your knife cuts evenly before slicking through the whole potato. Starting at one end, make slices across the potato, the short way, about ¼ inch apart. Make sure you cut down to the chopsticks, but not all the way through the potato. The slices should stay connected at the bottom so that the potato has a slight fan shape when you are finished cutting.

When all the potatoes are cut, place them on the baking sheet and brush with melted butter, letting the butter get in between all the slices. Sprinkle the potatoes with salt and pepper.

Bake the potatoes for approximately one hour or until soft and baked through. Cooking time will vary slightly with the size of your potatoes.

Top as desired and serve.

The taste is really no different than that of a good, oven baked potato, but the presentation of these is impressive. The fan shape and crispy outer edges look fancy and make the dish appear more complicated than it is.