Britain—Roast Lamb with Rosemary

British Main

Roast Lamb w/ Rosemary
(Serves 8)

Lamb with rosemary is so very English. This roast is rubbed with a fragrant blend of rosemary, garlic, and lemon zest.

4 lb. leg of lamb
2 T fresh rosemary (chopped)
2 tsp. lemon zest
1 large clove garlic (minced or crushed)
1/2 tsp. each salt & pepper
1T vegetable oil
white wine

Combine rosemary, lemon zest, garlic, salt & pepper, and vegetable oil. Rub over the leg of lamb and let sit for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 325. Place lamb in a roasting pan and roast for at least 1 hr. & 20 min., or 20 min. per pound for rare (internal temp: 140 for rare); 25 minutes per pound for medium (internal temp: 150-155 for medium). Allow roast to sit for 20 minutes before carving.

While the roast rests, pour off all but 1 T fat from bottom of pan. Add white wine to the remaining pan juices and boil till syrupy. Use as gravy, along with mint jelly. Serve with boiled, parsley-potatoes and green peas.

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Tips & Glossary

Clotted Cream: a thick yellowish cream made from unpasturized cow's milk. You can make your own, although it's hard to find unpasturized cream in the U.S. Still, you'll find 3 recipes under Scones. All use pasturized cream; try to avoid "ultra" pasturized.

Ploughman's Lunch: sounds romantic, like a peasant dish from medieval times, but it's a marketing gimmick from the 1970's! It's become a popular lunch in Britain now: a piece of bread, hunk of cheese, with onion, gherkin, and an apple. Our Ploughman's Soup is a take-off on that name.

Roux: (“roo”), paste-like mixture of melted butter and flour, into which liquid is gradually added. Used as a thickening agent for soups and all classic French sauces. Basic Roux: melt 1 part butter and add 1 part flour. Stir continuously till it becomes paste-like. Slowly add whatever liquid your recipe calls for.

Tea Time: Afternoon tea became fashionable in the mid-1600's. A light snack with sandwiches and sweets, it's served from 3-5 in a sitting room. High tea, is a light meal served from 5-6 in a dining room. ("High" because the dining table is higher than the low ones in a sitting room.)

Yorkshire Pudding: from the northern county of Yorkshire, originating in the early 1700s when flour was more readily available. A pancake like batter is spooned into the drippings of a roast as it cooks. Eaten alongside the roast or as a separate course.