Roast Leg of Lamb with Baked Eggplant Ratatouille

Typically Ratatouille is cooked in a heavy casserole on the cooktop, but the vegetables can also be combined and roasted in the oven for an easy Convection Meal. 

Ratatouille is a flavorful vegetable stew from Southern France that combines a bounty of summer vegetables, eggplant, zucchini, peppers and tomatoes. Typically it is cooked in a heavy casserole on the cooktop, but the vegetables can also be combined and roasted in the oven for an easy Convection Meal. Ratatouille combines well with roast chicken, oven baked polenta and our favorite roast lamb and can even be served over pasta or grains.

INGREDIENTS

Roast Leg of Lamb 

1 semi boneless leg of lamb, approx 4 - 5lbs

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp, finely chopped fresh rosemary

2 tbsp olive oil

Kosher salt

Oven Ratatouille

3 shallots, peeled and cut in half

10 cloves garlic, peeled

2 small Italian eggplant or 1 Italian and 1 Fairy Tale eggplant, cut into 1 ½” chunks

3 large zucchini, cut into 1 ½” chunks

2 large peppers, yellow and orange are nice for the color, peeled, seeds removed, cut into

1 ½” pieces ( a Y shaped vegetable peeler does a good job of removing the peel)

¼ cup olive oil

1 level tsp herbs de Provence

4 medium Roma tomatoes, cut into quarters (these are added later)

Preparation

To coordinate the cooking plan on the following timing: Lamb - 1 hr 25  minutes including 10 - 15 minutes for resting and carving. Ratatouille -  40 - 50 minutes

Begin by seasoning the lamb and letting it sit overnight in the refrigerator. First give the lamb a generous sprinkle of Kosher salt, then combine the rosemary, garlic and oil and rub it all over the meat. Cover loosely with a sheet of wax paper and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight. And be sure to let it sit outside of the refrigerator for at least an hour prior to cooking.

Organize the oven racks to accommodate the roast and the tray of ratatouille underneath.

Heat the oven in the Convection Roast or Convection Bake Mode 325 °F.

Place the lamb on a rack in a shallow pan. And if your oven has a meat probe insert the sensor into the meat on the diagonal, taking care not to touch any bone.

Slide the lamb into the oven and activate the meat probe function then program to the desired internal temperature. Remember the internal temperature will rise as the meat rests so if you like your lamb medium rare, select an internal temperature of 125 - 130 degrees.

When the lamb has cooked for at least 45 - 50 minutes, slide the tray with the ratatouille into the oven.

Oven Ratatouille

Combine the shallots, garlic, eggplant, zucchini and peppers in a large shallow mixing bowl.

Season with a sprinkle of Kosher salt and the herbs, add enough of the olive oil to coat the vegetables evenly then spread onto a rimmed baking sheet. The vegetables will shrink a fair bit during the cooking so it’s best if they are fairly crowded on the tray.

When the lamb has cooked for 45 - 50 minutes, add the tray of ratatouille into the lower part of the oven. Remove the lamb when the meat probe indicates it has reached the desired internal temperature and set aside to rest. Carefully combine the tomatoes with the other ratatouille vegetables and reprogram the oven to finish cooking the vegetables in the Convection Roast or Convection Bake Mode,400℉ and set the timer for 25 minutes.

Serves 6