Roast Lamb with Walnut Topping

Name: Roast Lamb with Walnut Topping
Ingredients: 1 leg of lamb; 3 cloves garlic, sliced; 10 ml (2 teaspoons) salt; 5 ml (1 teaspoon) pepper; topping; 30 ml (2 tablespoons) butter; 1 onion, finely chopped; 2 slices of white bread, torn into tiny bits; 125 ml (1/2 cup) walnuts, finely chopped; 30 ml (2 tablespoons) fresh mint, chopped; 1,25 ml (1/4 teaspoon) coarsely ground black pepper; 2,5 ml (1/2 teaspoon) salt; gravy; 125 ml (1/2 cup) port wine; 15 ml (1 tablespoon) cake flour; 250 ml (1 cup) chicken stock; mint to garnish

This is a festive roast, studded with slivers of garlic and cooked to still-pink perfection under a crunchy mixture of nuts, breadcrumbs and fresh mint.

Published 26 December 2024

Method

Preheat oven to 180 ºC (350 ºF).
Trim the leg of lamb. Make about 12 slits all over the lamb with a sharp knife and place a slice of garlic in each. Rub the lamb with salt and pepper. Place the lamb fat side up, on a rack in a large roasting pan. Roast the lamb for 1 hour.
Make the topping. Heat the butter in a saucepan, add the onion and cook for 10 minutes. Stir in the breadcrumbs, walnuts, mint, pepper and salt. After the lamb has cooked for 1 hour, with hands, carefully pat bread mixture on top of the lamb. Roast the lamb for a further 1¼ hours. When the lamb is done, place on a warm serving platter and stand for 15 minutes for easier carving.
Make the gravy. Skim most of the fat from the drippings in the roasting pan. Stir in the flour into the remaining drippings in the roasting pan and cook until blended. Add the port wine and chicken stock and cook, stirring constantly until the gravy thickens slightly and begins to boil. Strain the gravy through a sieve into a gravy boat. Serve with the lamb. Garnish the lamb with fresh mint leaves