A classic Autumn Sunday dinner in my house. a nice rolled boneless piece of lamb or hogget shoulder slowroasted on vegetables and herbs served on lentils with some hearty sauteed autumn veg and gravy. Satisfying but lighter than a full Sunday roast.

Roast Lamb
1x lamb shoulder rolled
few sprigs of rosemary
3 handfuls diced carrot , onion , celery / mirepoix
one onion sliced thickly
salt pepper
teaspoon of minced garlic
3 tablespoons sumac
splash of olive oil
2 cups Lamb Stock (From powder is fine)

Lentils
2 tins cooked lentils (or a cup or two of dry lentils cooked as per instructions on packet)
2 handfuls of diced carrot , onion, celery / mirepoix
1 onion roughtly diced
1 leek sliced thin
1 cup lamb stock (from powder is fine)
3 teapoons minced garlic
1 red pepper diced
handfull of mushrooms diced
olive oil
knob of butter
splash of fish sauce
salt and pepper

Gravy
1 cup of lamb stock (from powder is fine)
2 handfulls of flour

Roast Lamb

Preheat oven to 220C. Finely chop the rosemary leaves from one of the sprigs of rosemary. Cover the lamb in the chopped rosemary, sumac , salt, pepper , rub the seasonings into the meat , then rub the garlic mince in finally splash the olive oil over, set aside.

In a roasting dish place the sliced onion in the centre as a pivot, surround the onion with the diced carrot , onion and celery. I do large batches of this mirepoix and freeze it down in loose plastic bags so i can take out handfuls as I need them.

Place the lamb on the onion, pour in the stock and place in the over uncovered for 15min

After 15 min cover the roasting tin with a lid or tinfoil

reduce heat to 150c and roast for 4 to 5 hours.

Lentils

Heat olive oil in a large heavy bottomed frying pan , add sliced onion and the fish sauce and fry gently for 4 min or so , then add the leek , the mirepoix, the red pepper and fry another 4 min, then add garlic and mushrooms and the butter and fry untill the onions are translucent and the leeks are creamy .

Add the stock cover and gently simmer for 20 to 30 min.

Add the lentils , season , and simmer uncovered until most the liquid is evaporated. Check seasoning and reserve somewhere warm

When lamb is ready take out of the oven and rest somewhere warm. Tilt the roasting tray and squeeze the juices out of the veg before discarding. Put over a low element and add flour when the juices are hot , cook off for a min or so and then add stock gently bit by bit to make gravy.

Slice the lamb thickly and serve on a bed of the lentil / veg mix and drizzle gravy over. Around here it would be served with a nice pint of Burton Strong Ale or perhaps a Flemish Brown Ale.