Crispy mustard roasted potatoes

I’ve once again gotten in the bad habit of completely forgetting to take pictures of my culinary creations (whoops!).  Like, “I can’t even be bothered to take a blurry picture with my iPhone” forgetful.  So I am blatantly borrowing this photo from Smitten Kitchen, with full credit to the amazing Deb for another outstanding recipe. It’s recipes like this that make me wonder why I don’t just head straight to Smitten Kitchen anytime I’m looking for something new and delicious to make. (And lest you think I’m exaggerating, I could have easily written such an effusive post about her other recipe I made recently, red kidney bean curry (or rajmah)– yum!!!)

We were having a guest over a couple of weeks ago, a friend who was in town interviewing for a pediatrics residency at the University where Dylan and I both work.   Ordinarily, I’m perfectly happy to have a one bowl, one item dinner- we’re not big sticklers for meat, potato, vegetable and that sort of thing.  But when we have a guest, I always feel a little guilty subjecting them to our informal ways- what if the person doesn’t like the one thing we serve? Or what if it’s just not filling enough? So we went slightly more traditional, picking up a roast chicken on the way home and then popping some potatoes in the oven.  Not just any potatoes, of course.  I took advantage of the opportunity to try out these crispy mustard roasted potatoes.  Can I just say that they were so good that I wanted to eat the whole tray?  Though the recipe said it serves 10, the three of us made quick work of them, leaving only a small helping for Dylan and I to fight over the next night.  Delish! They’re going in my permanent repertoire.

Mustard-Roasted Potatoes (makes 10 servings)
Adapted from Gourmet, December 2007

Ingredients:

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1/2 cup whole grain Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick or 1/2 ounce) butter, melted
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
3 pounds 1- to 1 1/2-inch-diameter mixed unpeeled red-skinned and white-skinned potatoes, cut into 3/4-inch-wide wedges

1. Position 1 rack in top third of oven and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 425°F. Spray 2 large rimmed baking sheets with nonstick spray.

2. Whisk mustard, olive oil, butter, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, lemon peel, and salt in large bowl to blend. Add potatoes; sprinkle generously with freshly ground black pepper and toss to coat.

3. Divide potatoes between prepared baking sheets, leaving any excess mustard mixture behind in bowl. Spread potatoes in single layer. Roast potatoes 20 minutes. Reverse baking sheets and roast until potatoes are crusty outside and tender inside, turning occasionally, about 25 minutes longer.

4. Transfer potatoes to serving bowl and dig in!