Recipe: Irish inspired Potato Nachos

We were invited to not one but TWO Thanksgivings last Thursday, so we decided to watch the first football game at the one house and then see the second game (and have real dinner) at the second house. The second hostess insisted we didn't need to bring anything, so I just brought some mini pies from Crumbl (which are so cute and yummy!). But for the first house, I wanted to bring some good football-watching food. I found this recipe on the Clean Food Crush blog, and I had never heard of healthy nachos before. I thought this was a cool alternative, and it didn't seem too difficult.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds russet or Yukon gold potatoes
• 2 Tbsps avocado oil, or olive oil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• sea salt and black pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 4 slices nitrate-free bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 vine tomato, chopped
• 1/4 red onion, peeled and diced
• 1 Tbsp chopped cilantro, scallions, or parsley leaves

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 400˚ F. Rinse and scrub potatoes thoroughly to remove any dirt. Pat excess moisture with a paper towel or allow to air dry.
2. Slice potatoes into 1/4-inch thick, even, rounds and place them in a large bowl (may want to use a mandoline for even slicing.)
3. Season your potatoes with oregano, thyme, sea salt and black pepper, drizzle oil on top.
4. Gently rub and toss to get them coated evenly.
5. Place the potatoes onto a large baking sheet (or 2) in a SINGLE layer and roast for 20 minutes until golden and crispy, flipping once during roasting.
6. Once the potatoes are done, carefully remove from the oven and transfer to a skillet or oven-safe dish. I covered mine with parchment for easy clean up!
7. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake for additional 6-8 minutes until cheese is nice and melty. To assemble your nachos, add a generous dollop of yogurt in the middle.
8. Crumble crispy bacon on top, then sprinkle with tomatoes and onions as shown.
9. Garnish with freshly chopped cilantro, scallions, and/or parsley and serve immediately.

I didn't follow the recipe to a T, and I didn't use all the ingredients. I don't eat bacon, and I used sour cream instead of yogurt. I also just topped my "nachos" with cheese, sauteed yellow onion and bell pepper, and sprinkled in a little green onion. I did season the potatoes with LOTS of cumin so that they would taste more like real nachos. And even though it was a little tedious flipping the little potato slices one by one, they turned out to be really good (although they got cold very quickly, so microwaving was necessary later). This could be good for a Superbowl party, I think!