Roast Leg of Lamb with Almond-Mint Pesto

Ingredients

• 1.5 cups almonds toasted sliced
• 7 cups mint leaves fresh loosely packed (from 3 large bunches)
• 12 servings salt and pepper 
• 5 lbs leg of lamb 
• 2 tbsp juice of lemon 
• 0.3 cup lemon zest (from 4 to 5 lemons)
• 1.8 cups olive oil extra virgin extra-virgin divided
• 1.5 teaspoons pepper red

Equipment

• food processor
• frying pan
• paper towels
• oven
• pot
• kitchen twine

Directions

1. Remove twine from lamb and trim off all but a thin layer of fat. Pat dry, season generously with salt and pepper, and rub with 1 tbsp. oil. Unfold roast and season inside the same way. Chill 1 to 2 days.
2. Blanch mint 3 to 4 seconds in a pot of boiling water (this will help keep leaves bright).
3. Drain immediately, rinse with cold water, and gently roll in paper towels to dry.
4. Put mint, almonds, 1/3 cup oil, the lemon zest and 2 tbsp. juice, the chile flakes, 1 tbsp. salt, and 1 1/2 tsp. pepper in a food processor and pulse into a coarse paste.
5. Take lamb out of refrigerator about 1 hour before cooking.
6. Spread about a third of paste over inside of lamb, leaving a 1/2-in. border. To remaining paste, add 1 cup oil; season with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice. Set aside.
7. Roll up lamb and tie it at 1-in. intervals with kitchen twine.
8. Preheat oven to 45
9. Heat a large cast-iron frying pan over medium-high heat. Swirl in 1 tbsp. oil and brown lamb all over, 5 to 8 minutes. Slide pan of lamb into oven and turn heat down to 25
10. Roast lamb, basting every half-hour with pan drippings and turning over halfway through, until it registers 135 at thickest part for medium-rare, 1 to 1 3/4 hours.
11. Let roast rest 20 minutes.
12. Remove twine. Slice across the grain and serve with sauce.