Herb Roasted Lamb with Roasted Veggies

Our good friends, Jeff and Jaime, came over for dinner tonight. I made a roasted leg of lamb and roasted veggies. It was all soooo good! I think we all went back for seconds (and some even for thirds and fourths!). I used a Barefoot Contessa recipe for Herb Roasted Lamb. It was very tasty and definitely a keeper for future legs of lamb. I just roasted veggies in the same pan as the lamb - potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and garlic. I had been a little nervous about making a leg of lamb for the first time - and making it for guests - but it was actually very easy and turned out very well! I cooked it a little longer than the recipe says to - none of us like our meat bloody. This was a little pink in the middle still, probably would be considered medium-well. It was so tender and flavorful - so yummy! I also should note that the lamb is all-natural, hormone-free, grass-fed. I also used organic carrots, parsnips, and garlic (not potatoes, though).

Herb-Roasted Leg of Lamb with Roasted Vegetables

12 large unpeeled garlic cloves, divided
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves (I just used my home-dried rosemary from my garden)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (I totally forgot this part!)
1 (6-pound) boneless leg of lamb, trimmed and tied
4 to 5 pounds small unpeeled potatoes (I used probably 8-9 medium-sized russet potatoes)
2 tablespoons good olive oil
(I also added 5 parsnips, peeled and chopped into 2-inch pieces and about 8 carrots, peeled and chopped into 2-inch pieces.)

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). (I cooked mine for just about 2 hours total and it registered a heat of about 154 degrees for medium-well.) 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.