If your supermarket doesn't regularly stock
leg of lamb, order the cut a few days in advance and ask the
butcher to butterfly it for you. Use a meat thermometer to determine
doneness.
Hunter's
Leg of Lamb
1 (4 to 6-pound) leg of
lamb, boned and butterflied
3/4 cup dry red wine
1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 (6-ounce) package dried apricots, chopped
1/2 cup water
1 (6-ounce) package long grain and wild rice mix
1 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup snipped fresh basil or 1 tablespoon dried basil, crushed
1 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
Remove fell (paper-thin,
pinkish-red layer), if present, from outer surface of lamb. Place
lamb in a 3-quart rectangular baking dish. Stir together red
wine and Worcestershire sauce; pour over lamb. Cover and marinate
in refrigerator for 6 hours or overnight, turning meat once.
Remove meat from dish,
reserving marinade. Preheat oven to 325 degree F.
Combine chopped apricot
and water in a small saucepan. Bring to boiling. Remove from
heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes.
Prepare rice mix according
to the package directions, adding chopped onion. Stir together
cooked rice mixture, undrained apricot, basil, and lemon-pepper
seasoning in a large bowl. Mix well.
Trim fat. Place meat,
boned side up, between two pieces of plastic wrap pound meat
with a meat mallet to an even thickness. Spread half of the rice
mixture over roast. Roll up; tie securely with string.
Place roast, seam side
down, on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Insert a meat thermometer
into thickest portion of meat. Roast in the preheated oven for
1-3/4 to 2-1/¿2 hours or until thermometer registers 150
degree F. Baste lamb with reserved marinade several times during
cooking. (Do not brush during the last 5 minutes.) Let stand
15 minutes before carving.
Meanwhile, place remaining
rice mixture in a 1-quart casserole; cover. Bake alongside lamb
during the last 25 to 30 minutes or meat¿s roasting and
standing time. Remove the string.
