Crispy Parmesan Potato Stacks

Crispy baked potato stacks with Parmesan and garlic! So easy to make in a muffin tin.

By
Lisa Lin
Lisa Lin
Lisa Lin
Lisa has been writing and developing recipes for her blog, Healthy Nibbles, for over 6 years. She started writing for Simply Recipes in 2016.
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Updated September 15, 2021
Lisa Lin
Lisa Lin

When the weather gets colder, I turn to baked potatoes for comfort. It's the perfect excuse to turn on the oven and warm up the house. Besides who doesn’t want a side of roasted taters for dinner?

These crispy Parmesan potato stacks are a fun twist on your standard baked potato, and they’re surprisingly easy to make.

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Lisa Lin

A muffin tin is definitely required equipment for this recipe. I tried baking these stacks on a baking sheet, but nearly half of the potato stacks toppled over midway through the bake. The walls of a muffin pan help keep everything in place.

Because they need to fit in the muffin tin, look for relatively small potatoes when shopping. Potatoes that are 2 inches in diameter or so work well. (For reference, a standard muffin cup is 2 inches wide at the bottom and 3 inches wide at the top.)

I tried this recipe a few times with Russet potatoes, and in general, I found that these potatoes are just too big to fit into muffin cups. Yukons are usually a better size, plus they have a buttery flavor that I love. (Yukons are also our top choice for mashed potatoes here at Simply Recipes!)

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Lisa Lin

Slice the potatoes as thinly as possible. A mandolin set to 1/16-inch is great for slicing uniform, thin slices, but you can use a chef's knife, too. Just try to slice as thinly as you possibly can.

If you're using a mandoline, make sure to be very careful with the blade. As an extra precaution, I always wear cut-resistant gloves when I’m operating the mandoline.

One or two stacks is usually enough for each person. If you have a big crowd coming around for dinner, feel free to double up the recipe! Just be sure to save a stack for me, okay?

Crispy Parmesan Potato Stacks

Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 35 mins
Total Time 50 mins
Servings 12 stacks

I purposely use a silicone pastry brush for this recipe because I found that a standard pastry brush with bristles added too much oil.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

  • 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

  • 3/4 teaspoon salt

  • 1 3/4 pounds Yukon potatoes

  • 1/2 tablespoon fresh thyme

  • 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 375F:

    Set an oven rack in the center position. Coat a standard 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or brush on a thin layer of oil.

  2. In a small bowl, mix olive oil, garlic powder and salt together:

    Set aside.

  3. Slice the potatoes:

    Rinse and scrub your potatoes. Slice each potato thinly, between 1/8 and 1/16-inch thick. I use a mandoline to get 1/16-inch thick slices.

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    Lisa Lin
  4. Assemble the potato stacks:

    Place 4 slices of potatoes at the bottom of each cup of the muffin tin. Using a silicone brush, lightly brush the potatoes with some of the oil mixture. Sprinkle some thyme leaves on top. Continue stacking several layers of potatoes, brushing the oil and sprinkling thyme leaves until you have stacked all the potato slices. Each muffin cup should be filled to the top with potato slices.

    Sprinkle half of the Parmesan evenly over the potato stacks.

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    Lisa Lin
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    Lisa Lin
  5. Bake the potato stacks:

    Bake the stacks for 30 minutes, then pull out the potatoes and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Bake another 5 to 15 minutes, depending on how brown and crispy you want them to be (35 to 45 minutes total).

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    Lisa Lin
  6. Transfer the stacks to plates or serving dish:

    Use a spoon to help release the potato stacks from the muffin pan. Season potato stacks with more salt and pepper, if you like. Serve immediately while hot and crispy.

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Lisa Lin
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
94 Calories
3g Fat
14g Carbs
2g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12
Amount per serving
Calories 94
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 3g 4%
Saturated Fat 1g 4%
Cholesterol 1mg 0%
Sodium 167mg 7%
Total Carbohydrate 14g 5%
Dietary Fiber 1g 5%
Total Sugars 1g
Protein 2g
Vitamin C 7mg 33%
Calcium 31mg 2%
Iron 1mg 4%
Potassium 357mg 8%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.