Showstopper! This Roast Leg of Lamb glistens with a blackberry glaze and is the ultimate meal for the holidays or a special occasion. Thank you to Albertsons and Safeway for helping me share this recipe with you.
Roast Leg of Lamb with Blackberry Glaze Recipe
I've never been one to take the easy route when it comes to entertaining, and the first New Year's Eve after we were married was no exception. Almost every member of our wedding party, plus my parents, traveled to ring in the new year with us. We were packed as tight as sardines into our little rental house, guests sleeping on a myriad of couches and air mattresses, and we couldn't have been happier to be all together.
It only seemed to right to kick of the new year with an amazing feast, so I dove head first into cooking my first ever roast leg of lamb. With my mum's direction and the moral support of my friends, I seasoned it with garlic and rosemary, tied it up tightly, and popped it into the oven, hoping for the best. And it came out perfectly, making me a forever fan of a great roast leg of lamb for entertaining.
A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to visit Albertsons Culinary Kitchens & Technical Center to get a behind the scenes look at how their stores help shoppers bring the holidays to life. To say that I left inspired would be an understatement! We learned to properly prepare and tie a prime rib from Chef Jeff Anderson, cooked up a storm (side dishes galore!), and learned to craft beautiful flower arrangements from celebrity event designer, Debi Lilly (the creative mind behind the Albertsons and Safeway exclusive brand debi lilly design™ grab-and-go floral arrangements and décor products). The day culminated in a spectacular holiday feast, highlighting the dishes we made and the topped off with our own floral arrangements.
This roast lamb recipe is inspired by that experience and by the O Organics® and Open Nature® products that I find in my area exclusively at my local Safeway store. On the shopping trip for the recipe, I headed straight to the meat section and picked out a semi-boneless leg of lamb, and found all of the other ingredients I needed throughout the store. There's nothing better than a one-stop shop and reasonable prices on organic products when you're preparing for a holiday feast!
Roast Leg Of Lamb
I opened the lamb when I got home and was so happy to see that the fat was already perfectly trimmed to about ¼-inch. Just enough fat to add flavor without going overboard. Plus, I really appreciate that Safeway offers grass-fed meat that is antibiotic and hormone-free at reasonable prices, which makes them great options for weekday cooking or holiday entertaining.
Just like my mum taught me, I cut slits all of the surface of the lamb, then slid garlic cloves into the slits. After tying the lamb in several places, I made a paste of olive oil, fresh rosemary, salt and pepper, and rubbed it over the surface of the meat. The beauty of a roast like this is that you can pop it into the oven and walk away until it's done, leaving you plenty of time to prep side dishes.
The last step? A simple glaze of blackberry preserves, Worcestershire sauce and apple cider vinegar. Sounds like a strange combo, right? Trust me - it works! My 16-year old son actually doused the lamb with the extra glaze because he loved it so much. That being said, the flavor of the lamb was fantastic, glaze or no glaze. If you've never tried grass-fed meat, I encourage you to do so. The flavor difference is noticeable!
While at the event in California, I had the opportunity to place an order through the Albertsons and Safeway Home Delivery service, which is available in my area. Every time I see the Safeway trucks driving around my neighborhood, I reminded of how amazing this service is for busy customers or customers who are unable to leave their homes. Produce is fresh, refrigerated and frozen items arrive perfectly chilled (the inside refrigeration of those trucks is impressive) and the drivers are always on time.
Would you like to try the Home Delivery service? From now until January 14th, 2018, they're offering $25 off plus free delivery of any orders $100 or more. That's a smokin' deal! Just use the code SEASONSEATINGS when you check out.
If you don't have a Safeway or Albertsons in your area, you can find the O Organics products at all Albertsons Companies stores, including ACME, Jewel-Osco, Vons, Pavilions, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Shaws, Star Market, United Express, United and Carrs.
Side dishes to serve with the lamb:
Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Pistachios, Cranberries & Parmesan
Creamer Potatoes with Red Pepper Cashew Pesto
Roasted Brown Rice with Mushrooms & Thyme
Easy Green Beans with Prosciutto & Pistachios
Printable Recipe
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Roasted Leg of Lamb with Blackberry Glaze
Ingredients
- 5 pounds Open Nature boneless leg of lamb
- 4 garlic cloves cut in half
- 3 tablespoons O Organics extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped O Organics fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ teaspoon ground pepper
The Glaze:
- 6 tablespoons O Organics blackberry preserves
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Cut 8 small slits over the surface of the lamb. Tuck a half garlic clove in each slit.
- Using kitchen string, tightly tie the lamb in several places (see photo above).
- In a small bowl, stir together the olive oil, rosemary, salt and pepper. Rub the rosemary mixture over the surface of the lamb.
- Place the leg of lamb in a roasting pan or on a rimmed baking sheet. Cook at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes.
- Decrease the heat to 350 degrees F and roast until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat reads 130 degrees F, about 1 ¼ hours. In the last 5 minutes of cooking, brush the lamb with ⅓ of the glaze.
- Transfer to a cutting board and let rest for about 20 minutes. The temperature will rise about 10 degrees as the lamb rests, bringing it to medium-rare.
- Brush the lamb with another ⅓ of the glaze. Slice against the grain. Serve with remaining glaze.
The Glaze:
- In a small, whisk together the blackberry preserves, Worcestershire sauce and apple cider vinegar.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Safeway and Albertson. All opinions are my own. This post contains links to my Amazon affiliate page. Any revenue made from sales through these links helps to support this blog. Thank you!
Diana
Just made this lamb for Easter dinner on a recommendation from a friend who loved this recipe! It really was delicious. Glaze was amazing and lamb super tender. Definitely company worthy.
Dara
That's wonderful to hear, Diana! Thank you for commenting.
P Mandal (FavCounter)
roasted lamb is one of my favorite non-veg food. But I never tried it at home rather everytime I tried this at a restaurant. But after reading this post & recipe, I hope will also try such dish at home.
Cathy Pollak
My family loves lamb and anything blackberry is so Oregon so this is perfect for us!