Baked French Fries and Junky Fridays !

Have no clue when this happened but somehow Friday became "Friesday" in the Roy household. Wait..I think I have a clue . Maybe it is the fact that after a week of healthy eating and home cooked meals , the idea of indulging in some junk food seems too hard to resist. I may detest fried potatoes personally but hubby and kids are far too fond of them . So much so that even the talk of them is enough to warrant a visit to the nearest Burger King . Yes, they are very selective about their fries. It has to be the above mentioned as anywhere else just wouldn't cut it..anywhere else the fries are either too bland or not crispy enough . So, you guys get the general idea of how possessive they are regarding their fries and any call for replacement or substitution is met with fierce resistance from Mr. Roy himself.

But when has that deterred me before ? I am always ready for a challenge . My son may have given a "shocked" look when I suggested the idea of baked fries but mama dearest remianed unfazed . With a calm and determined resolve went to the pantry to check my arsenal -er - my stock of spices. Did some mental juggling and came out with a winning recipe. My secret weapon would be Sriracha in powder form. I had recently bought a jar and wanted to put it to good use . Italian seasoning would also do their part but they might have to take  back seat to the Sriracha. I didn't think they would mind  . They hate being in the limelight. Yes, they told me so . Of course I am kidding but let's get back to the recipe.

It has been adapted from the "Oven Baked Corn Fries Recipe" from averageBetty . A lot of liberties have been taken though -starting with the seasoning of Italian spices to coating it with rice powder and not to mention the more than liberal sprinkling of crushed red pepper too. Her recipe calls for corn meal which I used in the fries pictured above but I was also fortunate that a very special friend wanted to try this recipe immediately but didn't have corn meal. I recommended using rice flour and with her expert hands , that came out great too. So, do not fret if you don't have corn meal . Just go for rice flour and if you have both , do "eenie meenie minii mo " to choose. That is what my daughter does.

Ingredients - 

4 medium sized potatoes

1 tbsp Italian seasoning

1 tsp black pepper

1 tbsp Sriracha garlic powder ( or use crushed red pepper )

2 tbsp corn meal ( or rice flour)

4 tbsp olive oil 

Salt to taste

Method -

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees or 220 degrees C . Grease a baking tray and line it with greased parchment paper.

Now, with the skin intact wash and cut the potatoes into long slices in the style of french fries.

Coat them with olive oil and sprinkle Italian seasoning , black pepper, Sriracha garlic powder, salt and corn meal or rice flour..

Mix them well so that each one gets coated with seasoning and rice flour or corn meal.

 Now , spread them in the baking tray making sure that they don't overlap. That will ensure an even bake.

Transfer the baking tray to the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Take them out , flip them with a spatula and off they go for another 15 minutes.

Once, you get a nice golden brown, take them out and thoroughly enjoy them.

Did I mention that my kids absolutely loved them and even Mr. Roy did not comment otherwise which in itself is the biggest compliment !