It’s cherry season here in Southern California, so we knew we had to ask Maureen Abood about her black cherry salsa. This week on the show she tells us, “Lamb loves to be paired with something sweet, and this recipe is just gorgeous.”
This particular recipe comes from her new book Rose Water and Orange Blossoms, but you can find many more of her recipes on her blog of the same name.
Roasted Leg of Lamb with Black Cherry-Pomegranate Salsa
Makes 8 servings
For the lamb:
5 to 7 pounds / 2.2 to 3.2 kg lamb leg, bone in
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 garlic cloves, minced
For the salsa:
3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
Juice of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Pinch of kosher salt
Few grinds of black pepper
1 quart / 560 g black sweet cherries, pitted and halved
1⁄4 cup / 2 g coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1⁄4 cup / 2 g coarsely chopped fresh mint
Bring the lamb to room temperature for about an hour before roasting. Using kitchen twine, tie the leg crosswise 3 or 4 times, about 3 inches / 7.5 cm apart. Place the lamb on a rack set in the bottom of a roasting pan and drizzle the olive oil evenly over the top. Rub the oil over the fat and the meat and season it liberally all over with salt and pepper.
Position a rack in the oven far enough below the broiler so that the meat is a few inches from the heat. Turn on the broiler to high and broil the lamb for about 5 minutes, or until the top of the lamb is caramelized and looks seared. Turn the lamb over with tongs and broil the opposite side in the same way. Remove the lamb from the oven and flip it back to its original side up. Turn off the broiler and reposition the oven rack to the center of the oven.
Heat the oven to 325˚F / 165˚C. Coat the top of the lamb with the minced garlic, tent the lamb loosely with foil, and roast for 1 hour, or until the internal temperature reaches 135˚F / 57˚C on a meat thermometer; if taken out at this temperature, after the lamb rests it will be medium-rare to medium.
Remove the lamb from the oven and let it rest for 15 to 30 minutes before snipping the twine off and then carving. While the lamb rests, make the cherry salsa (it can also be made a day in advance). In a medium bowl, whisk together the pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Add the cherries and stir to coat them with the vinaigrette. Gently stir in the parsley and mint.
To carve the lamb, place it on a cutting board with the bone parallel to the board. Make perpendicular slices to the bone, angling straight down until the knife hits the bone. Cut the lamb off the bone by slicing through the bottom of the slices, keeping the knife along the bone. Serve the sliced lamb on a platter with the salsa alongside or spooned over the slices.
Reprinted with permission from Rose Water & Orange Blossoms © 2015 by Maureen Abood, Running Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group.