The term ‘roulade’ takes its name from the French ‘rouler’, meaning “to roll.” We pounded out a lamb leg (a common cut, easy to find) with a meat mallet, filled it with mascarpone cheese, lemon, and spinach and rolled it up tight. You can do this with most any cut of meat, but shoulder steak, top-round, and belly are best.
Then, for the real magic, we trussed it up, so it will stay tight while cooking. Trussing means tying it with string. There is an art to it, but it isn’t hard once you get the technique down. Pop it into an ovenproof skillet and voila, dinner is served.
Chef Skylar Bush used a boneless leg, which he cut pieces from and pounded out, then spread with the mascarpone filling. But you can use any cut. The key is to pound them out to a 12-inch width, which you can then roll up easily.
1. Preheat oven to 425F. Season lamb with salt and pepper and set aside.
2. Place anchovy, Aleppo, dill, lemon zest and juice, apricots, and 1/2 the spinach in food processor. Pulse until paste forms. Transfer to mixing bowl and mix in mascarpone until thoroughly combined. Season to taste. (Depending on the brand of anchovy, you may not need salt.)
3. Spread filling evenly over meat, feathering mixture out towards end you’ll be rolling toward. Top with remaining spinach leaves. Grab opposite end and roll evenly in pinwheel fashion. Truss (tie) lamb roll with butcher’s twine to secure, or use toothpicks. Place on sheet pan seam side down and roast 40-50 minutes, or until center has reached 130F. Rest 10 minutes, remove string or toothpicks, and slice.
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