I have to firstly make an apology for my absence for the last couple of weeks, I’ve been moving house and have only just regained internet access so I hope I can be forgiven.

Due to moving house, I was very keen to test the capabilities of my brand new (to me) oven – and what better way of doing this than having it on for five hours. It passed the test!

I’ve always loved slow-cooked, pull away from the bone with a fork, lamb (who doesn’t!) and so I thought it would be a fantastic recipe to christen my oven with. I’ve served it with some cream and calorie laden dauphinoise potatoes, seeing as it’s Sunday, and peas to give the recipe at least the illusion of health.

Be warned before you start – this recipe really does take 5 hours, however there is very little effort for the chef (the potato peeling can, of course, be delegated to your sous) and you will be delighted with the results. This will serve 4.

Slow Roast Lamb with Dauphinoise Potatoes

For the lamb:

Approx 2kg leg of lamb

2 large onions

1 bulb garlic

2 bay leaves

1 tsp dried rosemary

1 tsp dried thyme

200ml red wine

For the potatoes:

3 large baking potatoes

300ml single cream

4 cloves garlic

25g gruyere

For the gravy:

2 tbsps plain flour

2 tbsps madeira

100g frozen peas, cooked, to serve

1. For the lamb, preheat the oven to 120 degrees. Take a large casserole dish (large enough to fit the whole leg of lamb and put the lid on) and place on the hob on a medium heat. Brown the lamb on all sides – you shouldn’t need any oil, but if it starts to stick add a little olive oil.

2. Throw in the thickly chopped onions, peeled (but not sliced) cloves of garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, thyme and red wine. Put the lid on and put in the oven for 5 hours, cheking every so often that it’s not catching.

3. For the potatoes, peel and thinly slice the potatoes and garlic cloves. Layer potato and a sprinkling of garlic until all are used, then pour over the cream and top with the cheese. This is best cooked at 180 degrees for an hour, but if you don’t have a separate oven section you can put it in with the lamb for 1 1/2 hours.

4. When the lamb and potatoes are done, remove from the oven and set aside. You can cook your peas now. To make the gravy, carefully remove the lamb from the casserole dish (it will try to fall apart!). Put the casserole dish containing all of the cooking juices on the hob and stir in the madeira. In a small cup, mix the flour with a few drops of cold water then stir into the gravy until it thickens. Enjoy!