Lemon Potatoes

Do you get angry when playing video games?
I myself am not big on video games — growing up I’ve never owned an Atari, PlayStation, XBox or Nintendo Wii. But ever since the dawn of smartphones and tablets, I’ve started playing video games on my mobile devices like the rest of the world population.
Angry Birds, Words with Friends, Candy Crush, Fruit Ninja, etc, you name ‘em.
During a subway ride, while waiting at the checkout line, when you do your business in the restroom (to me, a sacred moment), playing a quick video game on your phone it’s the best.
That is, until you start getting angry at the video game. I’m talking about full on exasperation, to the point that you want to smash the device against the wall.
NEVER.A.GOOD.IDEA.

Then the other day I started thinking how dumb it was for me to get so worked up over a game built for entertainment — not to mention how dumb it would be to destroy a 500 bucks device over a video game.
So I’ve decided to take a different approach: from now on I’ll just turn the video game off when I get frustrated, take a deep breath, think about how much I have enjoyed the game up to that point, and go on about my day.
Because it’s just right down stupid to get mad over such a petty thing.

When I’m cooking I never get angry, not even when I fail miserably at making something.
It’s a total stress-buster for me and that’s one of the reasons I love doing it so much.
For instance, cooking potatoes always puts me in a good mood.

It’s so simple. There’s no complex science behind it, you just grab some potatoes and go for it. Boil, bake, steam, mash, roast, et cetera. Endless possibilities and always awesome results.

I know that many of you associate potatoes with weight gain. And in a way, you’re not mistaken.
Potatoes are indeed a great source of energy and carbs; but they contain also other important nutrients such as amino-acids, vitamins, and minerals.
Not to mention that they have been recently allowed in the so-called Whole30 program — meaning that now even the most hardcore paleoistas can enjoy the tuberous crop (as long as they’re not chips or fries.)

Anyways, let’s talk about this recipe, shall we?
I’ve been making these lemon potatoes for quite some time now.
Can I just say: YUM?
These are truly divine potatoes; crusty, nicely browned, and accented by a full (but not overpowering) lemon flavor.
They are perfect on their own or accompanying roast lamb, chicken, pork, a juicy burger or steak...the list goes on.
These are seriously legit and yummy and awesome. OK, I’ll stop.

Lemon Potatoes                                                                                                              Print this recipe!

Adapted from Everyday Food

Ingredients
Serves 5

2 lbs / 900 gr potatoes, peeled and cut into ¾-inch pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ lemon, thinly sliced
Juice of ½ lemon
Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions

Place potato chunks in a large pan and cover with 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until potatoes are just cooked through, about 15 minutes.
Drain potatoes and let them dry for 5 minutes.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add potato in one layer (if you can’t fit all the potatoes in the skillet at once, cook them in batches) and cook, without stirring, until crisp and golden on one side. Gently turn the potatoes and cook until golden on all sides, about 2 minutes per side.
Use a slotted spoon and transfer potatoes to paper towels to drain.
Add lemon slices to the skillet and cook until slices are golden on both sides, about 3 minutes.
To serve, season potatoes and lemon slices with salt and pepper, squeeze fresh lemon juice over the top and sprinkle with chopped rosemary.

Nutrition facts

One serving yields 224 calories, 6 grams of fat, 36 grams of carbs, and 5 grams of protein.