Spring Leg of Lamb with Garden Herbs

It’s late spring in Northern California, and the Lavender and Rosemary are abundant in my garden, survivors of a winter of foraging by the deer who tend to prefer the other garden plants. I can’t think of a better pairing for our Heritage Cabernet than a roast of lamb with these two herbs as a rub. Use lavender from your garden, or culinary lavender from the market.

Ingredients:

31/2 pound boneless leg of lamb
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup finely chopped fresh rosemary
3 Tbsp minced fresh lavender leaves
4 crushed and chopped garlic cloves
salt and ground pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees

Wisk together the olive oil, rosemary, garlic and lavender, and rub the inside of the leg with half of the mixture. Salt and pepper to taste. Then roll the leg and tie with butcher’s twine. Rub the outside of the leg with the remaining mix, add salt and pepper, and place in a roasting pan, uncovered.

Place the roast in the hot oven and let brown for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 and continue roasting until a thermometer reads 130 for medium rare meat (about an hour).

Remove from oven and let rest for half an hour to consolidate the juices.

A good friend and wine club member gave this recipe to me over the holidays. She told me it is a fairly authentic version of a recipe she grew up with as a child in the Ukraine. It is perfect for cold rainy weather, and it is wonderful with all of the new wines in this release. It is called Chicken and Mushroom Julienne, but I like to add a bit of peas, carrots, and celery and call it my crustless chicken potpie.