Roast Lamb Provencal with Mint Gravy

Ingredients

• 1 (6 to 7 pound) leg of lamb
• Garlic
• All-purpose flour
• Salt and pepper
• Rosemary
• Water
• Dry white wine
• Bunch of fresh mint
• 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
• Cider vinegar

Instructions

1. Remove all leaves and the tender tips of the stems from a bunch of fresh mint and chop them very fine. Put in a deep bowl, and add 5 rounded tablespoons of sugar. Cover this completely with cider vinegar. Stir well and cover. Let stand for about 6 hours, stirring every hour.
2. Insert a number of slivers of garlic into lamb so that they are distributed throughout the meat. Sprinkle the top of the leg of lamb with flour, salt and pepper, and rosemary. Put lamb in a roaster. Pour 1 cup dry white wine and 1 cup water in and covered roaster.
3. Put into a 500 degree F oven.
4. Bake for 1/2 hour until it begins to brown and a crust begins to form on top. Baste.
5. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and let the lamb bake for 2 hours, basting about each half hour.
6. After 2 hours, skim off the grease and cook another half hour. Add equal portions of wine and water as needed.
7. At the end of the cooking time, remove lamb to a hot platter. If juices have concentrated too much add a little more wine. In the meanwhile make a flour and water paste. Put in a separate saucepan 3 tablespoons of flour and a couple of pinches of salt. Start mixing this well with dripping cold water. Keep whipping constantly as the water is added, until it has a creamy consistency. Into the juices of the roasting pan stir the flour paste slowly, until the juices are thickened. The gravy should be thicker than the average gravy as the Mint Sauce to be added will thin it. When gravy is smooth, add Mint Sauce and stir thoroughly.

Notes

* The Mint Sauce should be made in advance of baking the lamb. Read the instructions thoroughly before beginning.