Roast Leg of Lamb

I was experiencing "cooker's block" the other night while trying to think of what I might cook that would fill my need for "yummy." I worked backwards into this roast lamb, because baba ganoush and hummus kept coming to mind. The jump to a leg of lamb wasn't a far stretch. I luckily found one on sale at the local market - half price. How fun is that?!

I love to peruse recipes, so when I set my sights on what to cook, I will pull out several cookbooks and read recipes online, and what I end up with is usually an amalgam of several recipes that I've pulled pieces from. Since I'm usually tinkering with ingredients I know I like, I almost always enjoy the outcome. Here is a recent endeavor.

Herb Encrusted Roast Leg of Lamb with Oven Roasted Carrots

Reserve about a teaspoonful of the herbs to toss with the carrots.
Be sure to let the roast come to room temperature before cooking.

INGREDIENTS
2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
6-pound leg of lamb, bone in
6 large garlic cloves, minced
3 Tbs finely chopped fresh rosemary or about
     1 Tbs dried
(2 tsp chopped thyme)
1 Tbs kosher or sea salt
1-2 tsp freshly cracked pepper
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1.5 pounds carrots
2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS

PREHEAT OVEN to 450

Mince the garlic and chop the rosemary and thyme, if using, and combine with the salt and pepper, reserving a teaspoon or two for the carrots. You can chop your ingredients on a cutting board, whir them together in a food processor for a few seconds, or use a mortar and pestle. It's all a matter of ease. I have even used a coffee grinder.

Add the mustard to the herbs and mix well. Using your hands, slather the mixture evenly over every nook and cranny you can possibly find. After you've covered the lamb evenly with the mustard mixture, cover in plastic wrap and let it marinate in the refrigerator over night. If time is of the essence, let it marinate for as long as you can spare.

Cook for 25 minutes at 450, then lower the heat to 350 and cook another hour or so for medium rare. Medium rare for lamb is right at 145 degrees, if your thermometer works correctly.  My thermometers have never worked right (or maybe it's the driver?), and I've tried several, so I've resorted to kicking them out of the oven and going only by time. Going by time does require a bit of guesswork, but I've cooked many a good roast that way.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...
While the roast is cooking during the "first leg" so to speak, or while you are waiting for it to come to room temp, peel and slice carrots. Toss the carrots with the reserved herbs and the olive oil. When it's time to drop the temperature down to 350, sprinkle the carrots around the roast and cook the remaining hour, basting every 20 minutes.

Remove the lamb from the oven when done and set on a platter to rest for about 15 minutes. Slice and serve with the carrots.

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