Lamb Chops with Roasted Vegetables

First, bruise the rosemary leaves with a pestle and mortar and chop them.

Chop the thyme leaves. Then curl the tails of the lamb chops around, tucking them into a round shape, then place them on to the oiled tray. Season them with salt and pepper and sprinkle each one with a little of the chopped rosemary and thyme. Then pop them into the oven on the top shelf for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables. Peel and slice the carrots and parsnips in half lengthways. Slice the potatoes, leaving the skins on, in half lengthways and then cut each half into 4 wedges. Peel the garlic cloves, but leave them whole. Then what you need to do with the onions is not quite slice them into eighths – that is, make cuts, but not right down to the root, so that what you've got are 8 onions, cut like water lilies. Now put all the prepared vegetables into a dish, add the herb sprigs sprinkle in the oil and toss the vegetables well round to get them coated. Season them with salt and freshly milled black pepper.

Then remove the chops from the oven, arrange the vegetables all around the meat and return the baking tray to the high shelf of the oven and cook for a further 35 minutes or until both the meat and vegetables are tender. Then remove them from the oven and transfer the chops and vegetables to a warm serving plate, then place the roasting tray over direct medium heat, pour in the wine, stock or cider and let it bubble and reduce for about a minute, scraping and blending the residue from the base of the tin.

Then pour this over the chops before serving.