Leg of Lamb for a Crowd

 

It was Easter weekend and also Julie’s birthday - a full house.  Needed a fast, uncomplicated feast for a big family:  Whole Roasted Leg of Lamb was a great choice!  It’s economical and feeds a crowd!  It looks like you fussed, but it’s very simple.

 

I bought a local whole leg of lamb with the bone in.  I very simply combined several herbs, garlic, spices and lemon juice and rubbed it all over the lamb and then put it back in the fridge overnight.  Next morning, around 11:30, I put it into a roasting pan at 250 degrees for 4 hours.  That’s IT!

 

7lb whole leg of lamb, bone in

Juice of two fresh lemons

4 cloves of garlic, pressed

2 tablespoons oregano

1 tablespoon cumin

fresh or dried rosemary - as much as you wish, I used a couple tablespoons

teaspoon coriander

tablespoon pink sea salt

2 teaspoons thyme

 

mix all ingredients after lamb in a bowl with lemon juice and then rub all over the leg of lamb.

Wrap in saran overnight in the fridge.

 

Roast 250 for 4 hours, when timer ends, broil 5 more minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow roast to rest for 10 minutes before carving. 

 

Serves 6-8 with a little left over.

 

 

I served with a large mixed salad of fresh greens from the farmers market the day before.  Added some macadamia nuts, roasted beets, red bell pepper dice, grilled onion, and topped with roasted portobello mushrooms and asparagus.  A side of mashed baked yams and parsnips was extra fast, as they were in the oven with the lamb for the last hour.  Peel the yams and add them to a food processor or vitamix with a ¼ cup kerrygold butter.  The asparagus and onion; just a quick run through a cycle on the toaster oven and they were ready for the salad.

 

The salad dressing takes about 1 minute:  In a small jar, appx. ¼ cup evoo, ¼ cup balsamic vinegar, 2 tablespoons of dijon.  If you are not VLC or on a detox, you can add a dribble of 100% pure maple syrup.  You can add herbs to this if you wish. Lid on the jar, shake well, dress salad.

 

 

I also made a mint chimichurri sauce for the roasted lamb while everything else was cooking:  

 

MINT CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

 

3 cloves of garlic

½ cup fresh mint leaves

½ cup fresh parsley

3 tablespoons of Braggs apple cider vinegar

two pinches of kosher salt

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon coriander

 

All ingredients into food processor or blender to incorporate.