Happy Easter! (Ed’s Grilled Leg of Lamb)

Ready for a glass
of wine and family

It is warm, sunny and a tad humid today; and the backyard is leafed out and perfect for a late afternoon family get together.  Steve and I just finished preparing the deck and screen porch (i.e. blow off and hose off yet another layer of pollen!) for the sitting and chatting that will take place before and after the dinner of grilled leg of lamb my brother Ed and I are making for Easter Dinner.

The inside table is ready, too.

Ed makes a fantastic leg of lamb – boned and butterflied; then marinated overnight in wine, Worcestershire, garlic and rosemary.  I’ll provide that recipe now.  Later on I’ll share the recipe for the salad that will precede the lamb – featuring grapefruit and avocado salad with a vinaigrette made from blood-orange infused olive oil.

Ed’s Grilled Leg of Lamb

Measurements are proportions, not exact.

You will need: 

• One leg of lamb, boned and butterflied
• A big bunch of rosemary
• Garlic. Lots of garlic.
• An onion, optional
• One lemon
• Worchestershire sauce
• A quarter to a half a bottle of red wine. Use what you like to drink; cuz that's what you'll do with the rest of the wine while you grill the lamb.
• Olive Oil
• Salt and pepper

Bah Bah Marinade

Combine in an extra large plastic bag or 13” x 9” baking dish

• 2/3 red wine
• Other 1/3 equal parts (or use your own judgment, I don't measure: olive oil and Worcestershire sauce)
• About 4 cloves of minced garlic
• A handful of chopped rosemary (good amount)
• Zest from one lemon
• Salt
• Pepper

Prep the lamb -- do this the night before if possible

• To the marinade mixture above, add  1 leg of lamb, boned and butterflied. It may come tied up like a roast.  If so, snip and remove the strings.
•  Marinade the meat overnight in plastic bag; rotate when you get up in the morning and every now and then throughout the day.
• About 30 minutes before you plan to grill the meat, pull it from the marinade,  blot it dry and let it loose some of the chill from the fridge.  At this time you can also poke holes in the meat and shove slivers of garlic and/or onion in.  I highly recommend this, but it is not mandatory.
• It’s also good to run metal skewers through the meat in a criss-cross fashion to hold the meat out flat. Again, not mandatory – don’t let a lack of skewers keep you from doing the dish.

Grill time

• Heat a gas grill, all burners on high until screaming hot.  Sear the lamb, fat side down; then flip and sear the other side. Then lower the heat to Medium Off Medium.  Top with rosemary sprigs for added flavor and grill indirect method, until the meat is done to medium rare. 
• I’m hesitant to offer specific times, because each piece of meat is different (depending on how thick, and how many pounds the roast is, etc.).  I’ve seen anywhere from 30 minutes total to 40 minutes or even an hour. Just remember, that the meat will continue to cook on the plate as it rests.  And nothing is worst than overcooked lamb!
• For my money, I remove from the grill when an instant read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the roast registers 130°F (for medium rare).  Then tent loosely with foil and let the meat rest at least 10 minutes. 

 Time to serve

Our game plan for tonight is let it rest during the salad course.  Then I’ll steam some asparagus and carrots and finish up the parsley potatoes while Steve carves the lamb. 

Enjoy!