In the book RONIA THE ROBBER’S DAUGHTER, there are plenty of hearty meat dishes, but the one that stood out to me most was the leg of lamb. . . maybe because Matt the robber chief flings it across the room in a fit of fury when he learns Ronia has made friends with his arch enemy’s son! 😆 At the time when I read RONIA, I only knew one lamb recipe (lamb stew with dried plums from THE HUNGER GAMES), so I relished the idea of adding something so impressive as leg of lamb to my repertoire. Plus, Father’s Day was coming up, and I knew there was nothing my husband would love more than a giant roast as a present.

Today’s dish is a combination of two recipes I found online. The first is from Damn Delicious, which I chose because I liked the simplicity of the method and the shorter cook time (lots of recipes I saw called for cooking the meat for hours and hours). I also drew from a Norwegian method I found on Nordic Provisions, which calls for inserting garlic slices into the meat. I liked the idea of including some Scandinavian influence, since RONIA THE ROBBER’S DAUGHTER is set in a fantasy version of Scandinavia.

This is the biggest piece o’ meat I’ve cooked in a LONG time, and boy was it impressive when it came out of the oven! It was also ultra juicy and fragrant, with just the right amount of garlic and rosemary. Of course, a roast like this isn’t something you’d make every day, but I could 100% see myself making it Easter or Christmas to serve a crowd . . . or if I need to feed a fort full of robbers! 😉

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Roasted Leg of Lamb

“With another yell Matt picked up the leg of lamb that had been served on the long table and flung it at the wall so hard that the grease flew.”

— Ronia the Robber’s Daughter

 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 6-lb bone-in leg of lamb
  • This can be tough to find at your average grocery store, so you may have to order it online or from a butcher shop. I ordered mine from D’Artagnan while they were having a sale (and, yes, the fact that the company is named after a book character fills my bibliophile heart with glee!).
• 3 large cloves garlic, cut into thin slices
• 1/2 Tbsp dried rosemary
• 1/2 Tbsp snipped fresh rosemary
• 1 Tbsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

 

Makes 1 6-lb leg of lamb

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a roasting pan with foil. Pat the lamb dry with a paper towel. Place the lamb fat side up on a rack in the roasting pan. With a sharp knife, score the top half of the lamb in a diamond pattern, using shallow cuts. In a small bowl, whisk together the rosemary (both fresh and dried), salt, and pepper. Rub the lamb all over with the rosemary mix. Cut deeper pockets into the lamb and stuff with the garlic slices.

   

2. Roast for about 1 hour 45 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 135°F-160°F, depending on preferred doneness (135° is medium). Allow to rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
3. Serve to all the rowdy robbers in Matt’s Fort!
   

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Check out my other RONIA THE ROBBER’S DAUGHTER recipes!

Norwegian Rye Bread

Norwegian Chicken Soup with Dumplings from RONIA THE ROBBER’S DAUGHTER