Roasted potatoes with garlic and lemon

I really wanted to write about steak this week. It’s Memorial Day weekend, and everyone is scrubbing their grills to kick off summer. But three things happened: 1) I kept messing up the steak, 2) I had to shovel through a mountain of construction decisions, and 3) I made some really good potatoes.

Roasted potatoes are good any time of year, but I especially love the waxy new potatoes of spring. Chicks hatch, cows have calves, and the ground births knobby baby potatoes. Red-skinned ones used to be the modestly colorful variant, but now we have golden potatoes that look pre-buttered, and vibrant purple potatoes from South America.

It doesn’t take more than olive oil, salt and pepper to make great roasted potatoes, addictive as french fries without the hassle of frying. But the fun thing about these potatoes is the surprise kick of lemon, offering a bright complement to the earthy spice of garlic. Crisp on the outside, creamy inside, they would make a great side to any meat off the grill.

I love the ease of roasting vegetables. Halve or quarter potatoes and toss them on a baking sheet.

Good olive oil and half a lemon.

Season well with salt, pepper and fresh garlic. Fresh rosemary would be great too if you have it.

In the oven until they smell so good you have to take them out and try one.

Leftovers don’t have the crispy charm of freshly roasted, so go ahead and indulge. Enjoy the weekend! And bless our troops, past and present.

More recipes for Memorial Day eating

• Greek grilled chicken [post] [printable]
• Lighter brighter caesar salad [post] [printable]
• Mom’s barbecue chicken [post] [printable]
• Quinoa arugula salad [post] [printable]
• Quinoa with roasted vegetables [post] [printable]
• New potato and asparagus salad with lemon-dijon dressing [post] [printable]
• Northstar Café salad – [post] [printable]
• Strawberry oatmeal shortcakes with maple vanilla cream [post] [printable]
• Mascarpone cream cake with boozy berries [post] [printable]

Roasted Potatoes with Garlic and Lemon
Lemon gives a surprise kick to these crispy, garlicky roasted potatoes. Thanks to my little brother for this versatile variation.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds new potatoes, washed and well scrubbed
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (1/2 teaspoon table salt)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• Sprinkle cayenne pepper (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Halve or quarter potatoes, depending on size. Spread as single layer on baking sheet.
3. Add olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper and cayenne, if using. Mix carefully to distribute seasonings.
4. Bake for 40-50 minutes, turning once during baking, until brown and crisp. If the potatoes are cooked through but not crisp enough, raise the heat to 450 degrees F for a few minutes to finish.

Serves 4-6.

Notes

• Oven temperature is flexible – you can cook it at a lower temperature for more time or higher temperature for less time.
• Fresh rosemary would be a great add if you have it.
• These are not nearly as good left over, so go ahead and indulge while they’re fresh.

Here’s the link to a printable version.