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One of my favorite appetizers for dinner parties is my special recipe for Potato Pave. They're the perfect finger food, complete with thinly sliced potatoes, bacon, cream, thyme, and Parmesan, baked until crispy and golden!
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Potato Pave Ingredients
- Bacon: You will want thin-sliced smoked bacon for this recipe. Thick-sliced bacon won't cook correctly.
- Russet Potatoes: These potatoes are starchy and hold up well to the cream sauce potato pave calls for. I recommend using these potatoes rather than another variety.
- Heavy Cream: Although you could use half and half or whole milk, keep in mind the flavor and consistency won't be the same. I recommend using heavy cream.
- Thyme: You want to use fresh thyme for this dish. Trust me, it makes a difference! You can use dried, however. Just be sure to use less dried than fresh.
- Parmesan: If possible, I recommend freshly grated Parmesan cheese for best flavor. You can also use pecorino romano.
- Butter: Unsalted, melted, and slightly cooled. You can use salted butter, but if you do, be careful with how much salt you add to the dish.
- Salt: I recommend kosher salt or sea salt flakes.
- Sriracha: For serving. Totally optional, but it makes a great addition.
How to Make Potato Pave
- Cook bacon until fried, but not yet crispy, and set aside. I prefer to do this in my oven or air fryer, but you can also use a frying pan.
- Line the base and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with parchment paper. Allow the parchment paper to hang over the sides.
- Peel and thinly slice potatoes. This is easiest using a mandoline slicer, but be sure to be careful. The sliced potatoes should be very thinly cut.
- Line the bottom of the prepared baking dish with two layers of sliced potatoes. Drizzle with some cream, thyme, Parmesan, and a sprinkle of salt, enough to coat the layer.
- Cover with a layer of cooked bacon.
- Top the bacon with another two layers of sliced potatoes. Continue to layer with cream, thyme, Parmesan, salt, bacon, and potatoes until all ingredients are used up.
- Fold in the tops of the parchment paper and cover the entire baking dish with plastic wrap. Place a slightly smaller baking pan on top. Fill with something heavy, such as cans, and allow the dish to rest for 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven while you wait to 350°F.
- When ready, remove the weighted pan and the plastic wrap. Cover the top with foil. Bake until the potatoes are tender, about 1 hour.
- Remove the foil and set aside. Bake another 20 minutes to lightly brown the top of the potato pave.
- Place the foil back over the casserole, and top with the smaller baking sheet and weights. Chill in the refrigerator overnight.
- The next day, preheat the oven to 425°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.
- Remove the layered potatoes to a large cutting board. Use a sharp knife to trim the edges. Cut the remaining casserole into small squares, and skewer each top to bottom with a toothpick.
- Transfer each skewer to the prepared baking sheets. Make sure they don't touch. Bake the potato pave until lightly golden, about 10 minutes. Gently flip and bake another 10-15 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel lined plate to drain the excess oil, then serve with hot sauce if desired.
Tips for Making Potato Pave
- A mandoline comes in handy for evenly slicing all the potatoes needed for the recipe.
- I often use the oven for cooking large batches of bacon. It is so much easier than frying a few in a skillet at a time. Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Line a rimmed baking sheet or two with aluminum foil to catch the grease for easy cleanup and top with wire racks. Arrange the bacon in a single layer, not overlapping, on the racks and bake until fried, but not crispy, about 14 minutes. You still want them pliable enough to layer over the potatoes without crumbling.
- I added a little salt between the layers to help bring out the flavors. Be careful not to overdo it with the saltiness of the other ingredients.
- The layers of potatoes and bacon are compressed between baking with the help of weights on the top. I covered the layers with a smaller baking dish and hand weights. Cans or anything else heavy would work well.
- Make sure to use a sharp knife to cleanly cut the squares.
- I used toothpicks to hold together each of the slices, but you can also use mini skewers.
Potato Pave Recipe
If there's one thing I always look forward to, it's the opportunity to cook for friends - especially if it means introducing them to a dish they've never tried before!
My potato pave recipe is the perfect appetizer for a dinner party. It's fantastic for the holidays (especially New Year's Eve) or a fancy Sunday Supper with your friends and family.
Potato pave might sound like a lot of work at first, but trust me, it's well worth the effort. Not only that, but my recipe for potato pave makes enough for 75 small skewers, so you can serve a big crowd! (Or, size it down to serve less. I have instructions for that, too!)
Potato Pave
My potato pave recipe is perfect for parties and serves a crowd! It's delicious, crispy, and so flavorful. You'll love every bite!
Ingredients
- 3 pounds smoked bacon - thin-sliced
- 6 pounds russet potatoes
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- 6 sprigs thyme - fresh
- 5.3 ounces Parmesan cheese - grated
- ½ cup butter - unsalted, melted and slightly cooled
- Salt - to taste
- Sriracha - or other hot sauce for serving
Instructions
- Cook bacon until fried, but not yet crispy, and set aside. I prefer to do this in my oven or air fryer, but you can also use a frying pan.
- Line the base and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with parchment paper. Allow the parchment paper to hang over the sides.
- Peel and thinly slice potatoes. This is easiest using a mandoline slicer, but be sure to be careful. The sliced potatoes should be very thinly cut.
- Line the bottom of the prepared baking dish with two layers of sliced potatoes. Drizzle with some cream, thyme, Parmesan, and a sprinkle of salt, enough to coat the layer.
- Cover with a layer of cooked bacon.
- Top the bacon with another two layers of sliced potatoes. Continue to layer with cream, thyme, Parmesan, salt, bacon, and potatoes until all ingredients are used up.
- Fold in the tops of the parchment paper and cover the entire baking dish with plastic wrap. Place a slightly smaller baking pan on top. Fill with something heavy, such as cans, and allow the dish to rest for 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven while you wait to 350°F.
- When ready, remove the weighted pan and the plastic wrap. Cover the top with foil. Bake until the potatoes are tender, about 1 hour.
- Remove the foil and set aside. Bake another 20 minutes to lightly brown the top of the potato pave.
- Place the foil back over the casserole, and top with the smaller baking sheet and weights. Chill in the refrigerator overnight.
- The next day, preheat the oven to 425°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.
- Remove the layered potatoes to a large cutting board. Use a sharp knife to trim the edges. Cut the remaining casserole into small squares, and skewer each top to bottom with a toothpick.
- Transfer each skewer to the prepared baking sheets. Make sure they don't touch. Bake the potato pave until lightly golden, about 10 minutes. Gently flip and bake another 10-15 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel lined plate to drain the excess oil, then serve with hot sauce if desired.
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Nutrition
Serving: 1skewerCalories: 92kcalCarbohydrates: 7gProtein: 5gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 210mgPotassium: 219mgVitamin A: 125IUVitamin C: 2.2mgCalcium: 34mgIron: 0.5mg
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