Al's Marinated Leg of Lamb

Last week I tempted you with lamb left-overs, so this week I give you the lamb recipe that you'll need to try to end up with those leftovers. As promised, I give you my next "Guest Food Artist" my dear friend and co-worker, Al Laubenstein... it's only appropriate that it's President's Day, as Al was the former President of the company we worked for.

For our dinner party a several weeks ago, Al brought the main course - marinated butterflied leg of lamb, and THIS is American Idol... oh, I mean THIS, is how he made it....(in his own words)

Dinner at the Monson-Hogan’s

The menu for this gala evening is lamb, and here is how I do it. First, go to Costco and buy a boneless leg of lamb.

Take it out of the packaging and unfold it on your cutting board. One side will have a thick layer of fat called the “fell” that needs to be trimmed off, as it can impart an unpleasant taste to the meat.

It should look something like this when you finish trimming it.

Next, flip it over and take a knife and put slices through the thick parts of the meat to give the meat as uniform a thickness as possible.

Now it’s time to make the marinade:

Marinade recipe:

1 cup soy sauce

½ cup olive oil

4 cloves of garlic minced

2 good sized sprigs of fresh rosemary chopped (Surely someone in your neighborhood has a rosemary bush. I know my neighbors like me to prune it for them but just to be safe I get mine under cover of darkness)

½ tsp. Coarse ground black pepper

Put the meat in a zip-lock bag and toss in the marinade. Roll it around a bit, then put it in the fridge for a few hours. While you wait, have a few cocktails and see if you can trick Brian into cleaning the grill.
When it’s time to cook, put the meat on a piece of tin foil, fell side down, on a hot grill.

Cook for about 20 minutes without flipping the meat, and then start checking the temperature. You want the meat to be rare like a steak so take it off when the thickest part of the meat reads 125° F. Remember, it will continue to cook after you take it off the fire.

For the old school people at the table who can’t eat lamb without mint jelly, we compromised and served them a Buddha’s Eye.

Buddha’s Eye recipe (from Julia Child)

5 parts Gin

2 parts Rose’s Sweetened lime juice

2 parts Green Crème de Menthe

Make a big batch and put it in the freezer and hour before you serve it. Serve in a cordial glass. Pretty potent – one per customer.