Honey-Roasted Lamb Salad

This Roasted Lamb with Honey & Thyme is an easy and delicious entree for any special occasion from family dinners to holiday meals.

When I first included this Roasted Lamb with Honey & Thyme as a recipe on my blog in 2007, it was as a salad. Yes, 2007…a lifetime ago it seems! I wrote that post with this Roasted Lamb with Honey Thyme Glaze as part of a main course salad dish; something we had enjoyed for Easter.

While I loved it as a easy dinner over the holidays, I also sort of gravitated to nixing the salad idea and simply serving Roasted Lamb with Honey and Thyme as slices with accompanying dishes and it became perfect for both the Easter and Christmas holidays.

I love the whole process of Thanksgiving but I do not want to stand in the kitchen cooking all day on other holidays; especially ones so focused on kids. I was a single mom from the time my girls were two and six; I wanted to spend the day with them!

If I have leftovers, I might still serve it as a salad the next day; that way I get the best of both worlds. If I have leftovers is key…since I get a small leg of lamb, that is not always the case. Lamb roasts are small enough that a large crew is not necessary to see the entire roast disappear.

Whether I prepare this lamb for Easter or for our meal on Christmas Day we LOVE it with this Pumpernickel and Rye Dressing with Bacon and Pecans , it’s a savory dish that is perfect all year round and not a dressing that is reminiscent of so many served on Thanksgiving Day. It was first suggested to me by a friend that worked for a local liquor store, I will love her forever!

Multiple type of breads, bacon, pecans…and oh yeah, BOURBON…make it most unique and particularly delicious dressing I have ever had; it’s a must try!

Roasted lamb is so easy to prepare. It’s actually a boneless leg of lamb that has been rolled into shape and is kept rolled with netting or string; I get mine every year from Costco via New Zealand. Roast it and remove the netting after it has been cooked so it will keep it’s shape. How easy? This is the total of ingredients! (Complete recipe is at the end of this post)

• honey
• olive oil
• fresh thyme sprigs
• Lamb roast

I know that lamb and mint have been favorites forever but I prefer this method combining honey, olive oil and thyme; the resulting flavor is outstanding.

If I serve this for Easter, we LOVE this salad from the guys at The French Laundry; it’s so delicious. The veggies can be mixed up, but the dressing is the bomb!

For Christmas I’ve got several wonderful cranberry sauces we can choose from; that is one thing I love to play with each year and come up with something unique…here are a couple of my favorites:

• Bourbon, Brown Sugar, and Orange Cranberry Sauce – my latest and greatests (this year at least!)
• Cosmopolitan Cranberry Sauce
• Best Cranberry Sauce Ever (until I make the next one I think is best!)
• And a cocktail! Cranberry Pomegranate Moscow Mule

At one time I didn’t care for lamb but this preparation changed everything. It can be a bit gamey and this glaze works perfectly to add a sweet herbacious component. I’ve also realized that medium rare lamb is so much preferable to anything cooked longer.

This one actually was in the oven a few more minutes than I would have liked and it was still pink and  juicy but in my humble opinion, lamb roasted to medium or medium well would ruin it in my book, it simply dries out the meat.

As mentioned, while I no longer make the dish to serve as a salad, I certainly will enjoy one the next day if there are leftovers. I mix together a bit more honey, olive oil, some red wine vinegar and fresh thyme and serve it with the lamb and toasted pine nuts. Still a favorite after all these years!

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