Celebrations all Round

It was your birthday yesterday and I decided to mark the event today, on my own, with a Roast Leg of Lamb. But, lo and behold, today there is even more reason to celebrate :- Aaron has just txt'd to wish me a happy Father's Day. I didn't realise the date (it`s different here in Spain) so I've popped out, got a bottle of plonk and now I'm planning to eat at about 4:15pm.

My leg is marinading in a rub of chopped Rosemary and Mint blended in some Olive Oil with some ground Black Pepper and a pinch of salt. Note the deep scoring allowing the rub to penetrate into the joint. It probably should be in the fridge but there is no room so it`s sitting at room temperature, ready for the oven surrounded by a coarsely cut onion, a whole garlic bulb cut in half and the stalks from the fresh herbs I picked earlier to use. Yes, I know that the pan is too small but at least the meat will roast properly due to the air space underneath.
I plan to serve with Roast Potatoes, some veg and an Onion Gravy made from the (hopefully) caramalised roasted onion and Red Wine. And that's not forgetting the homemade Mint Sauce! Food fit for a Dad!! Salud.

Roast Potatoes
When I was in the Garden Bar I used to , on a Sunday, do some "roasties" to put on the bar, and they used to go down well. Today I am producing them again for my own benefit and I'm going to tell you how I go about doing them.

1. Wash your chosen potatoes (Maris Piper are the roasters by the way.)
2. Peel and cut up the spuds into equal pieces (save the peelings!!)
3. Boil in salted water the spuds and peelings until the spuds are soft at the edges.
4. Drain and discard peelings. They added flavour!!
5. Add a little olive oil and shake the pan gently to break up the soft edges.
6. Roast for an hour or so, alongside your meat, until browned and crisped etc.

The photo shows my one-man portion ready for the oven (yes, they broke up a little but that's all extra crunch!!)

1540 It´s all in the oven now and has been for about 40 mins and, by crikey, it smells nice!! But my Mint Sauce? I'm not happy. Following traditional methods of steeping the fresh mint in boiling water does not produce a finish that I am after so I'm cooking the mint to tenderness, just as if it was a vegetable, before I add the vinegar and sugar to complete. Will it come out like the professionals produce it? I don't know, we`ll see.

25mins to go and the mint sauce is still "bitty" so I've added some more water to continue trying to get the mint to admit defeat and tenderize. Trouble is, of course, that I am having to keep a close eye on things to make sure nothing boils dry and I might run out of Red Wine before the gravy gets made!!

I'm going to be late! Actually no, I'm not, I forgot to allow for the meat resting for 10mins or so, but I might be late for work! And can I get the mint to soften?? So far, no! Sprouts are in now which means that in 15mins and it is dishing up time, no matter what.