LAMB FILLET WITH POTATOES & RED PEPPER SAUCE

Serves 6 Preparation time 25-30 minutes Cooking time 45 minutes

“This is a dish bursting with Mediterranean flavours; the slightly unusual combination of olives and potatoes works well and, with the red pepper sauce, elevates roast meat to a different level.”

INGREDIENTS

• 100ml/4fl oz olive oil

• 3 lamb neck fillets

• Zest and juice of 1 lemon

• 2 tsp capers

• 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

• 1 clove garlic, crushed

• 2 tbsp sundried tomato purée For the red pepper sauce

• 3 fresh red peppers,

halved and deseeded (don’t be tempted to use the roasted peppers you can buy in a jar)

• 250ml/9fl oz Greek yoghurt

• 30g/1¼oz fresh basil leaves, troughly torn

For the potatoes

• 500g/1lb 2oz new potatoes

• 125g/4½oz black olives, roughly chopped (see tip)

• 50ml/2fl oz olive oil

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in frying pan and sear the lamb fillets until golden on all sides.

2. Combine the remaining oil with the lemon zest and juice, capers, chopped herbs, garlic and tomato purée to make a rough paste. Smear this mixture all over the lamb and leave it to absorb the flavours for as long as possible – it will happily sit overnight.

3. Preheat the oven to 200°C, 400°F, Gas 6 and roast the peppers for about 30 minutes or until the skins are nicely blackened. Remove the peppers from the oven, place in a plastic bag and leave them to cool. Leave the oven on.

4. When the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel and slice them and mix – together with any juices in the bag – into the yoghurt, with the roughly torn basil leaves. Season well.

5. Cook the potatoes until tender, then drain and crush roughly with a fork. Mix them with the olives and the 50ml/2fl oz of olive oil and season well. While the potatoes are cooking, roast the lamb for 15 minutes in the preheated 200°C, 400°F, Gas 6 oven.

6. Slice the lamb and serve on a mound of potatoes with the red pepper sauce alongside.