Roasted leg of lamb, Moroccan style

Roast boneless leg of lamb with ras el hanout, garlic, and herbs.

I watched Nigella make a version of this lamb many years ago and have always wanted to give it a shot.  It's a roasted leg of lamb (I used a boneless leg) rubbed with aromatics and a Moroccan spice mixture called ras el-hanout.  It's an earthy and beautiful spice blend of cardamom, cinnamon, clove, rose petals, coriander, cumin, chili peppers, fenugreek, and many more ingredients.  Literally translated, it means "head of the shop", so the combination can vary place to place. I ordered mine online.  The lamb came from Border Springs Farm in Virginia, they are known for their lamb and I was able to get it through Washington's Green Grocer - it's an affordable grocery delivery service where I get a lot of specialty cuts of meat and local, organic vegetables.

Borrowing from Nigella's original recipe, I tweaked it a bit to incorporate some fresh herbs and lots of garlic.  You roast it at a really high heat (450 degrees) for about 30 minutes, then bring them temperature down and let it cook slowly to keep the meat moist.  It frankly was the star of the dinner and a real treat.   Serve it with labneh (take a quart of whole milk organic yogurt, mix in a teaspoon of salt, and then strain overnight in cheesecloth over a bowl in the fridge) - it's sharpness contrasted perfectly with the earthy lamb.  For a weeknight meal, you could simply mix some greek yogurt with lemon juice, salt, and some chopped parsley.  Drizzle the top with extra virgin olive oil and you are good to go.  One final point, cook the lamb to medium rare or rare (internal temp of 135 degrees).  If it's overcooked, it could get tough.  Again, I used boneless here, it was a little more expensive - if you want to save some money use bone-in, but make sure to adjust the cooking time.

I use a bed of thickly sliced onions as my base for roasting the lamb.  The onions caramelize in the rendered fat and are quite amazing.  However, if you want you could slice up some yukon potatoes and put them as the base, much like Ina Garten does.

The lamb in its marinade, before being roasted.

Roasted Ras El Hanout Leg of Lamb
Ingredients
a 4-5 lb. boneless leg of lamb, netting removed
6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1-2 tablespoons of ras el hanout spice blend
3 tablespoons of fresh oregano, finely chopped
2 tablespoons of fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, sliced into thick rounds
salt
pepper
kitchen twine

Directions
1. Chop the garlic and herbs and combine in a bowl with the ras el hanout, a couple tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, and a big pinch of salt.  Stir to combine.

2. Free the lamb from any netting or packaging it may have come in and unfurl it on a large cutting border.  If there are large pieces of fat or silverskin, trim them off and discard.  Put the lamb fat side down on the cutting board. Rub half the mixture on the inside, making sure to get some into various nooks and crannies.  Roll up the leg and tie the meat together with kitchen twine at regular intervals (I did mine about every 2-3 inches).  Place on a plate and rub the remaining marinade over the top of the lamb (fat side) now.  Grind fresh black pepper over the top as well. Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate in the fridge over night.

3. Remove the lamb about 30-40 minutes before you plan to put it in the oven.  Turn the oven on to 450 degrees.  Place the onion slices in a row down the middle of your roasting pan.  Place the lamb on top.  Once the oven is ready, put the pan in the oven and roast at the high temperature for at least 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, turn the heat down to 375 degrees and pour in about 1 cup of water to the bottom of the roasting pan.  Continue to roast for about another hour or until the lamb registers 135 degrees (for rare) or 145 degrees (for medium) on a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the lamb.

4. Let cool on a cutting board for 15-20 minutes, then slice thinly and serve with the labneh.