Roman roast lamb with rosemary and anchovies (Abbacchio alla romana)

1. Cut the lamb shoulder (or leg) on the bone into large 5-6 cm pieces and season with salt and pepper.

2. Pound the garlic, rosemary leaves, sage and anchovies to a paste in a mortar or with a knife, then loosen with the vinegar.

3. In a wide ovenproof pan, brown the lamb pieces in the olive oil over high heat for 8-10 minutes on all sides, then pour in the white wine and let it evaporate.

4. Peel the potatoes, cut them into wedges, toss with salt and olive oil and arrange around the meat; cover and roast in the oven at 180 °C for 40 minutes.

5. Uncover, brush the meat with the anchovy paste, toss everything together and roast uncovered for another 20-25 minutes until the potatoes are golden and the lamb is tender.

6. Serve at once, spooning over the pan juices.

Tip: The anchovies won't make it taste fishy - they almost melt away and simply give the meat a deep, savoury flavour; this is the Romans' Easter dish.