Roasted Leg of Lamb

Using a leg of lamb in this recipe makes the dish special and also quite extravagant, so it should be made for a big occasion. I cooked it for French cousins from Burgundy, great connoisseurs of food and wine, who came to visit Bethlehem while I was at work on this book. They were so delighted with the dish that they had seconds and smothered the accompanying rice with the sauce.