Potato chips, sort of

I can usually tell at a glance which recipes are Big Sister's: they're done in her rather loopy handwriting.  Now, I don't mean loopy like you probably assume I mean loopy given my general tenor in these posts, I mean loopy.  Her letters are really formed with loops.  Even the ones you don't traditionally see made out of loops.  But this one isn't, because it's actually one of the few recipes I've ever received from Big Sister that she's made directly for me.  Usually during once per weekend call she'll tell me about some new thing she's tried and then send it to me and then I have to make it for myself.

This one isn't.  In her handwriting, I mean. Because I was at her house (this is very uncommon) when she made these and so she read the recipe aloud to me while I madly transcribed.  So I haven't actually made them.  So I might have transcription errors, but I don't think so. At any rate, I really enjoyed them the time she made them for me and I know this because usually when I visit her the only thing I remember is the trip to the shoe store (her town has the best cheap shoe store EVER, I usually come away with at least 10 pairs) and I do actually remember these yummy little creatures.

You need 4 or 5 potatoes (russets will do, don't be going crazy here), 1/3 c butter (cf my note about butter on the previous post), 1/4 c flour, Lawry's (tm) or an Italian seasoning blend to taste, and 1/4 c parmesan.

First complaint. To taste.  You're supposed to put the seasonings on before the cooking and I don't know about the rest of you, but how in heck are you supposed to know what "to taste" means unless it's the last thing you put on it just before you serve?  I'm not really thrilled with dipping my finger into a spice mixture and deciding whether or not it's to taste when it's not yet on the food.  So just guess, I suppose.  And be prepared to throw them out if you went overboard.  Or figure out some other way to fix if it's not strong enough.  Honestly this kind of thing just drives me batty.  No wonder I haven't made this recipe in 2 years.  Oh, and if you're like the rest of the planet, just go buy the new small bottle of Lawry's.  That one you've had sitting on top of your stove for the past 8 years is so far beyond its prime that it's probably as tasty as King Tutankhamen's mummy.

Back to the directions. Preheat oven to 350.

Scrub the potatoes or hand them over to a child who has recently displeased you and who needs to learn the value of some hard work.  If you've got one of those, go wild, double the recipe.  Slice the potatoes into 1/8" slices.  If you've made a child scrub them, do not allow said child to do this step. Making a child scrub potatoes and then handing them a very sharp knife while they're still in your vicinity is not a recipe for success.  Melt the butter and spread it onto a cookie sheet. Mix the flour and the parmesan.

Okay, let me make it clear.  My sister is from the midwest.  This means that she uses the parmesan in the plastic container with a shelf life similar to that of spent nuclear fuel rods.  You know, the stuff that us left coast types don't actually consider a food substance.  Think about how well you love the people you're serving this to before you dive in and buy the real stuff.  If you do buy the real stuff, remember that the melting point is probably going to be a tidge different than the container stuff (the real stuff has a melting point) and so I make no guarantees about how the recipe will turn out.  This is, apparently, what is known in the biz as recipe tolerance.

So take the mixed flour and whatever you used and either pour it into a bowl with a sealable lid or a sealable bag. (Or better yet, mix the flour and whatever together in the bag or bowl to begin with. No wonder my sister is always doing dishes.)  Put 4 potato slices at a time in and shake 'em up until coated. Lay flat on the buttered cookie sheet.  Once you've got them all done, sprinkle the tops with whatever seasoning blend you've chosen to use.

Bake for 30 minutes.  Yes, I know that sounds insane.  It sounded insane to me too, and I made her repeat it about 3 times and watched her do it.  It's 30 minutes.  It gets worse.  Take the pan out of the oven, flip all the slices over, sprinkle again with the seasoning blend and bake ANOTHER 30 minutes.

Pull out of the oven, spatula them off of the pan and put them in a serving dish. If you're feeling wild, mix up some onion soup mix with some fake sour cream and serve it as dip. Bon appetit!