The bay tree at La Varenne is a monster, more than twenty feet tall. There’s a niche or cubbyhole on one side, the side that everyone approaches to cut fresh leaves for classes. I implore my students to discard the jars of brown, tasteless dried bay leaves in their pantries: even a semi-fresh bay leaf several weeks old from the fridge will have more flavor.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Using a sharp knife, thinly slice each potato, stopping each cut 1/4 inch from the bottom, so the potato is sliced, but still intact. Insert 1 to 2 bay leaves into each potato.
Step 2
Place the potatoes in a large roasting pan. Drizzle over the oil and toss the potatoes to coat. Season the potatoes with coarse salt and pepper.
Step 3
Roast the potatoes until tender when pierced with the point of a knife, about 1 hour. Season with sea salt and additional freshly ground black pepper. Serve hot.
