Mustard & Herb-Encrusted Lamb Chops, Fried Cornmeal-Battered Okra, and Sweet Potatoes

I received this recipe via text message from Martha Stewart Living.  Each day they send the name of a recipe and if you think it sounds good, you text, "Cook", in reply.  You receive another text with the shopping list.  You have to go online to get the preparation directions.

We don't often eat lamb, so this sounded different and delicious.  The bonus was that it wasn't hugely labor-intensive.  The lamb chops came from a local meat market.  They were rinsed, patted dry, and seasoned with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.

While the lamb chops were adjusting to room temperature, I sliced up a some fresh okra.  Since there was only enough for two people, I don't think it qualifies as a "mess of okra".  (I've always loved that figure of speech, though.)  I read somewhere that if you use too much water to wash the okra, it becomes sticky,.  The okra was briefly rinsed and patted dry immediately before going into the dry ingredients, a simple mixture of yellow cornmeal, salt, pepper, and a tiny bit of sugar. 

Meanwhile, the lamb chops were brushed with a mix of Dijon Mustard and minced garlic.  They were then dredged in bread crumbs, freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and Herbs de Provence.  The recipe actually called for rosemary and Italian herbs, but I didn't have any on hand.
Herbs de Provence contains both of these, plus several other herbs, so I thought it would be a good substitute.  It was.

The lamb chops were fried in a small amount of vegetable oil over a medium-high flame until browned on each side.  The Parmesan in the crust made the chops brown a little faster than I wanted, so I had to move them around a bit.  We also prefer our lamb cooked a bit more than you see on television cooking shows.  (We cook ours to a medium level, while the cooking world suggests a very rare, red meat.)  The okra was fried in a different skillet until golden brown on each side.  Sweet potatoes with honey and brown sugar made a nice side dish for this home-cooked meal.