Tag Archives: french fries

Italian Cheese Fries

If you guys know anything about your Smart Cookie Cook, then you know I have a borderline-obsession with french fries. Naturally, there is only one thing in the world better than crisp, golden, deep-fried potatoes, and that’s crisp, golden, deep-fried potatoes covered in mounds of melted cheese. I’m talking about cheese fries, and I mean business.

Cheese fries are no joking matter. You can’t just serve some sad fries with a side of neon-orange “cheese” sauce dispensed from a machine; you’ve got to have great fries topped with real cheese. Some of the best cheese fries I’ve ever had are covered with real mozzarella cheese; no fake sauce crap or unnecessary garnishes. The fries are cooked to golden perfection and the cheese is beautifully melted. It’s delicious.

Unfortunately, I can’t for the life of me get good cheese fries in CNY. Thus, in order to satisfy my cheesy potato needs, I had to make my own. So I deep-fried my own fries, topped them with real cheese, and finished them with fresh herbs and garlic to create an Italian take on this cheesy classic. The french fries are perfectly cooked thanks to a double-deep frying; they’re soft and tender inside but crisp and golden outside. The blend of Italian cheeses melts perfectly with those golden taters, and is further complimented by aromatic herbs and garlic. It’s wonderfully flavorful, but beautifully simple.

Real cheese, homemade french fries, and flavor that processed cheese sauce can’t touch. Don’t settle for soggy fries, fake cheese, or bland taste; make these deliciously indulgent, crispy, cheesy Italian Cheese Fries at home. Experience what good cheese fries are supposed to taste like, and settle down with finger food at its finest.

A Few Tips Before You Get Cooking:

  1. You can use canola oil, vegetable oil, or peanut oil for the fries.
  2. Keep it simple and use straight-up mozzarella if you like.
  3. Fresh herbs would make these babies even better. Try basil or oregano.
  4. Don’t be afraid of the fryer! It’s really not difficult or scary. Once you try it, you’ll never go back!
  5. Serve with marinara sauce if you like.
  6. Frying the fries twice allows them to cook until tender during the first fry and turn golden brown and crisp during the second fry. Just one frying session can leave your fries over-cooked on the outside while still hard on the inside.

Italian Cheese Fries
By The Smart Cookie Cook

Ingredients:

  • 5 russet potatoes, peeled
  • vegetable oil or canola oil, for frying
  • kosher salt, to taste
  • 2 tsp. fresh garlic, minced
  • 1 cup mozzarella cheese or Italian blend
  • 2 tsp. Italian seasoning

Directions:

  1. Fill fryer with oil to fill line and preheat to 350 degrees F. Slice potatoes into fries just shy of 1/2-inch thick. Use a paper towel to blot out as much moisture as possible. The drier they are, the crisper they’ll get.
  2. Pre-fry the french fries in batches for 5 minutes, just until fork tender, not golden. This is a pre-fry step that will cook the fries tender. You will fry them up crisp in the next step. Lay cooked fries on a baking sheet lined with paper towels to absorb grease. Sprinkle with salt to taste.
  3. When ready to eat the fries, preheat fryer to 400 degrees F. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F as well. Fry the french fries in batches until golden brown and crisp, about 7 minutes. Lay finished fries on a baking sheet lined with paper towels.
  4. Once all the fries are finished, line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spread the fries out in a single layer. Sprinkle garlic over fries evenly. Top with cheese and herbs then bake for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Enjoy.

Classic Crispy French Fries

My little cookies, I must confess something about myself to you.

When I was little, I had a problem, or perhaps “obsession” would be the better word. I have mentioned the deep, all-consuming love I had for potatoes as a child a few times before, and I have never once exaggerated. Potatoes were my main food group between the ages of 6 and 12. I could not get enough of them. It didn’t help that I was a picky eater, so I didn’t eat much else. In the morning, I would eat a hashbrown with cheese melted on top. Then, I would come home from school and wolf down almost an entire bag of sour cream and onion potato chips (still my favorite). And for dinner: I gorged on my all time favorite cheese fries from Giovanni’s Pizza, the incredible pizzeria I was so blessed to live within walking distance from as a kid.

Whether it be mashed potatoes, hashbrowns, or potato pancakes, I ate every food involving potatoes to satiate my starch cravings. However, my true achilles heel was french fries. At that young age, I knew of no love stronger than the one I harbored for french fries. I would make a meal out of them, eating ungodly large piles in one sitting. They were just so good. (Would you be shocked if I told you I went through a pudgy stage right around this time?)

Eventually, my dad rationed me to only eating fries twice a week, in the hopes of working some other food groups into my system. This was a crushing blow, but perhaps for the better. Nowadays, I eat much healthier (not to mention, I lost the pudge). My diet consists of many more health-conscious choice and a lot loss french fries. But I’ve got to say, they are still one of my absolute favorite foods.

When I choose to indulge, I still love to scarf down some fries. There’s just something so impeccably addicting about those golden, deep-fried suckers that lures me in every time. If you offer me fries, I could muster up a serious amount of strength and force myself to pass them up, but as soon as I eat one, I’m a goner.

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