Local roast leg of lamb with Moroccan spices

Local Roast Leg of Lamb with Moroccan Spices, from From Food for Thought by Vanessa Kimbell, (published by Kyle Books).

Ingredients

• 1 head of garlic, halved: one half peeled and finely chopped, the other half unpeeled
• 1 small bunch rosemary, leaves only, finely chopped, plus extra sprigs
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp ras el hanout
• 2–2.5 kg leg of lamb
• 250 ml white wine or stock (optional)

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6
2. Make the seasoning rub by mixing the chopped garlic, chopped rosemary, oil, salt and ras el hanout together
3. Take a sharp knife and every 7.5cm or so, poke it about 5cm deep into the leg of lamb
4. Work the seasoning rub all over the meat, then place the leg in a roasting tin and push the rosemary sprigs into the cuts
5. Place the unpeeled half of the garlic under the lamb, so when it bakes it will flavour the gravy
6. If you prefer pink roast lamb, cook it for just 1 hour 20 minutes. But my preference is to slow roast the meat, which produces a wellcooked but meltingly tender and delicious texture. To do this, pour the wine (or stock if you prefer) around the lamb, cover with foil, reduce the temperature to 120C/100C fan/gas and roast for 7 hours.