Lemon Roasted Potatoes

This recipe comes from Craig Lee of the New York Times. The potatoes have a nice lemon flavour but there was too much paprika for my taste.

Ingredients:

•         2 lemons
•         2 pounds large Yukon Gold potatoes (about 3), scrubbed and cut lengthwise into eighths
•          ¼ cup olive oil
•         1 teaspoon smoked paprika
•          Kosher salt
•          Freshly ground pepper
•          4 sprigs rosemary or thyme

Methods:

Heat your oven to 425 degrees F. Slice 1 lemon into 1/4-inch slices and remove all seeds. Place the sliced lemon on a rimmed sheet tray along with the potatoes, olive oil and paprika, and combine. Arrange the ingredients in a single layer and season them with salt and pepper. Scatter the rosemary in and around the potatoes. Roast until the potatoes are golden brown, crisped and completely tender, 35 to 40 minutes. Possibly flip them over half way through the roasting to enhance browning. Serve on a large platter with lemon quarters from the second lemon, in case anyone wants additional lemon flavour.

Roasted Baby Root Vegetables

This 'salad' is a slight variation of a recipe in Deb Perelman's Smitten Kitchen cookbook. Basically, I left out the quinoa that she put in. By the way, it was the first time I had tried roasting radishes....and hey, they're not just for raw veggie trays anymore.



I served this dish at room temperature but suspect it is equally good if served warm or cold.



Ingredients:

• 3 small shallots
• olive oil
• 1 and 1/2 pounds of mixed root vegetables ( I use baby turnips, radishes, potatoes and carrots)
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

For the vinaigrette:

• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar plus more for finishing
• 2 big pinches of coarse salt
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• pepper

Methods:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Peel the shallots and separate the cloves. Place the shallots in a square of aluminum foil, coat with olive oil, then wrap the foil around the cloves to create a packet and place it in the oven.

Arrange the rest of the vegetables in one layer on a baking sheet and coat them with olive oil. Squeeze lemon juice over the vegetables and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Place the vegetables into the oven with the packet of shallots and roast until tender and slightly caramelized. (Perhaps 30 minutes). 

Remove the vegetables from the oven and set aside. Toss the cooked shallots into a blender along with the sherry and balsamic vinegars, and salt and pepper. Drizzle in the olive oil and blend thoroughly. Adjust the seasonings to taste, then spoon the vinaigrette over the vegetables. I finished the dish before serving with some drops of reduced balsamic vinegar.