Cast Iron Skillet Potatoes and Ham

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This recipe for cast iron skillet potatoes is an adaptation of another one of those that I’ve seen flying around Facebook (uncredited, as usual).  The base recipe is specifically for potatoes and is loaded with cheese (a no no in our house, obviously).  But I liked the idea of doing these potato slices in the cast iron skillet (this is an 8 inch skillet).  Having them cut thin and drizzled with olive oil gives that same crispy edge effect you get with Hasselback potatoes (a favorite of ours) but is rather easier since you don’t have to worry about not cutting all the way through.  I pulled out some leftover Christmas ham from the freezer and added slices of it in between to make this dish a full meal (In honor of my mom, make sure to add something green!).  Since this was a split dish for hubby and I, his half has real cheese and mine has Daiya (the stuff that browned is the real cheese).

Ingredients:

1. Brush bottom and sides of a baking dish or cast iron skillet generously with bacon grease or olive oil.
2. Using a mandolin or a sharp knife, slice potatoes crosswise into desired thickness.
3. Drizzle potatoes with a little bit of olive oil and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika.  I found it handy to do this in a separate bowl to ensure that all slices were well coated.
4. Arrange potato slices vertically and loosely in prepared dish or skillet.  Intersperse slices of ham every few slices.
5. Dot the top with more bacon grease (or butter if you can have that).
6. Cover skillet with foil and bake in a 375 degree oven for an hour, or until potatoes are tender.
7. Remove foil, sprinkle with cheddar Daiya or cheese and bake for another 15 minutes, or until crisp.