Dijon Marinated Leg of Lamb with Mint Gremolata

Can I just say how excited I am to let all of you know I am in a Lamb Recipe Contest!Voting starts on the 18th You can vote here: http://bit.ly/ProAm2013

 I love the versatility of lamb. You can crust it in almost anything, slather sauces on it and use many different cuts to achieve recipe greatness. For this recipe contest I chose to marinate the leg of lamb in dijon, honey, mint and rosemary. What an amazing combination. To add a twist I added some bright mint in a gremolata which is traditionally chopped parsley,garlic and lemon zest. What an easy way to add brightness to a heavier meat like lamb!Mouth watering yet???? Let's continue. 

For this recipe I used a 7.5 pound de-bones leg of lamb. Lord that is alot of meat! It was already trussed, but if the cut you get is not trussed, truss the meat with kitchen twine so it does not fall apart. This would be a perfect roast for a holiday or even a weeknight meal. You could even use the leftovers for gyros or lamb tacos! The possibilities are endless. If you have another cut of lamb feel free to still use the marinade and gremolata, just adjust the cooking time!I served this dish with lemon roasted potatoes and veggies! What a perfect meal!

Dijon Marinated Leg of Lamb with Mint Gremolata

Ingredients:

Marinade
3 large cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon of kosher salt
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
4 tablespoons of dijon mustard
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 handfull of fresh mint
1 sprigs of rosemary ( leaves removed)
1 tablespoon of honey

Gremolata
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
2 cloves of garlic
Zest of 1 lemon

Directions:

1. Add all marinade ingredients to a food processor and pulse until a paste forms.
2. Rub marinade on lamb roast and sprinkle with salt.Cover and refrigerate overnight.
3. The day you are cooking the roast, preheat oven to 450F.
4. Roast lamb at 450F for twenty minutes and then reduce temperature to 325F and cook for an hour and ten minutes. ( limit opening oven while it is baking.)
5. Check temperature of lamb. It should be about 130F when you remove it to rest. Every oven is different so check the temperature and if it is still short then cook in five minute increments.
6. While lamb is cooking pulse garlic,mint and lemon zest in a food processor or chop each ingredient finely and mix.
7. When lamb is at temperature let it rest outside the oven for twenty minutes to let the juices redistribute. Slice lamb and serve with gremolata.