Herb Roasted Leg of Lamb and Chicken Roll Ups

I think it has been a while since I last blogged. I've started a new part time job, and now I am sick,  and well... you know... life just happens right?

I don't know about anyone else out there, but we are being teased with spring here. I'm so done with the lack of available tasty produce. I definitely prefer a warm weather diet... I like light and bright flavors in my food, so this whole cruciferous and root veggies are starting to irritate me. I'm ready for new flavors!! Most of all I wish we weren't land locked because I prefer fish to meat. :-(

So in the last few weeks, I've made a couple of spring and warmer-weather inspired dishes. The first, a leg of lamb, is a classic spring meat, and is traditionally served on Easter (at least in the North East where I am from)(and this is a one dish meal so you have fewer things to clean up). Yum! The second was thrown together on a whim - chicken roll ups. I needed something fast and I used what was on hand. No pictures because the food disappeared to fast to take a picture of it!!

Herb Roasted Leg of Lamb

Recipe Courtesy of the Barefoot Contessa (Ina Garten)

• 12 large unpeeled garlic cloves, divided
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 (6-pound) boneless leg of lamb, trimmed and tied
• 4 to 5 pounds small unpeeled potatoes (16 to 20 potatoes)
• 2 tablespoons good olive oil

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Place the oven rack in the lower third of the oven so the lamb will sit in the middle of the oven.

Peel 6 of the cloves of garlic and place them in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the rosemary, 1 tablespoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, and butter. Process until the garlic and rosemary are finely minced. Thoroughly coat the top and sides of the lamb with the rosemary mixture. Allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Toss the potatoes and remaining unpeeled garlic in a bowl with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Place in the bottom of a large roasting pan. Place the lamb on top of the potatoes and roast for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the internal temperature of the lamb is 135 degrees (rare) or 145 degrees (medium). Remove from the oven and put the lamb on a platter; cover tightly with aluminum foil. Allow the lamb to rest for about 20 minutes. Slice and serve with the potatoes.

Chicken Roll Ups

This is an incredibly easy dish. You can make substitutions to this dish, but since I just threw this one together I'm really thrilled with how the flavors balanced. If you do make substitutions, you will want to make sure that you don't have one ingredient that will overpower the others.

You'll need one boneless skinless chicken breast per person

1/2 lb of thinly sliced Prosciutto di Parma (Harmon's has started to import directly from Italy and it's so good I almost ate the whole thing without saving some for dinner!!)

Baby Arugula

Freshly grated Parmeggiano Reggiano

2 cups of chicken stock

Juice of two lemons

First, set a 10-12" sautee pan on a medium high heat, adding 2 tbs of butter and 2 tbs of extra virgin olive oil to your pan.

Beat your chicken breasts to about 1/4" thickness between two pieces of wax paper. On each breast, put two layers of Prosciutto, a layer of arugula, and then a thick layer of Parmeggiano (the more the better with the cheese so that it stands up in taste to the Parma and the arugula, both of which have strong tastes.

Once  you have assembled your layers, roll your chicken breast up tightly, and secure with kitchen twine. Salt and Pepper the outside of your roll, and then brown your rolls in the pan on all sides. Once all sides are thoroughly browned, remove from the pan, and set aside. 

To your pan, add 2 cups of chicken broth and the juice of two lemons (three if they aren't very juicy), and then scrape the fond (the brown bits) from the pan. Bring your liquids to a boil, and then add your rolls back into the pan. Cover and let simmer until your roll is cooked through, about 5-7 minutes. 

Serve with pan juices, and enjoy!