Have your butcher butterfly the leg of lamb for you.
Serves: 6 to 8 Ingredients
4 teaspoons (2-3 sprigs) fresh rosemary leaves 1 cup Italian parsley leaves, loosely packed 1 1/4 teaspoons (4-5 sprigs) fresh thyme leaves 8 cloves garlic 1/2 teaspoon cumin seed, toasted 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon for brushing 1 tablespoon lemon juice 2 lemons, zested (about 1 tablespoon) 2 oranges, zested (about 1 tablespoon) 1 boneless leg of lamb (about 3 1/ 2 pounds), fat trimmed and butterflied 1 tablespoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Butcher’s twine Directions
Combine rosemary, parsley, thyme, garlic, cumin seed, 2 tablespoons olive oil and lemon juice in the small bowl of a food processor. Process it into a coarse puree. Scrape puree into a medium bowl and stir in lemon and orange zest. Set aside.
Unroll lamb and place fat side down between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Pound lamb using a rolling pin or meat mallet to about 3/4-inch thickness, creating as much of a rectangle shape as possible. Making a few shallow cuts in the thicker portions of the interior of the lamb will help it to flatten more easily when pounding.
Season both sides with salt and pepper, and then lay lamb on work surface fat side down. Spread the puree evenly on top.
Starting from the short side, tightly roll lamb in a jelly-roll fashion. Using butcher’s twine, tie at 1-inch intervals to secure lamb and create a cylindrical shape. Cook immediately or wrap and refrigerate up to one night. Before cooking, remove lamb from refrigerator and allow to rest at room temperature for 1 hour.
To cook, Pre Heat oven to 450 Degrees. Place a wire rack inside the roasting pan roast for 15 minutes. Turn Oven down to 325 degrees and roast for 1 hour. Check temperature with instant read thermometer inserted into the center of the thickest park of the roast. 130 degrees for medium rare ( Pink) or more if you want medium 135 to 140 degrees.
Rest lamb for 20 minutes before slicing. Serve immediately.
