I have been really looking forward to an occasion to make this dinner.  I personally am not much of a beef-eater, but Ben is a big fan so I knew he would love this meal.  This turned out to be a huge hit on both sides of the table.  It surprised me – I thought it was delicious and almost ate my whole serving.  The beef was juicy and perfectly cooked, and the puff pastry was incredible.  I think this is a really great meal to know how to make.  It is surprisingly simple and easy to assemble, but is definitely impressive enough to use for entertaining.

My only change next time will be to use smaller pieces of beef.  If I hadn’t served such a large meal with so many other dishes, this might have been the right size entree, but because of the appetizer, salad and side, this was just too much.  If I were to make it again with so many accompaniments, I would probably just buy one filet and cut it in half to make two smaller servings.  I made double the amount of mushroom duxelles and really enjoyed it but it could be easily halved if you prefer.

Beef Wellington

Ingredients:

2 (6-oz.) thickly cut filet mignons

salt and pepper

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. unsalted butter

2 tbsp. minced shallots

1 clove minced garlic

8-10 oz. button mushrooms, wiped clean, stemmed and finely chopped

2 ½ tbsp. dry white wine

1-2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed (enough for two 7-inch squares)

1 egg beaten with 2 tsp. water for egg wash

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425°.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Season both sides of each filet with salt and pepper.  Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the filets and sear for 1 minute on each side for medium-rare.  Transfer to a plate to cool completely. 

While the filets cool, prepare the mushroom duxelles.  Heat the butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the shallots and garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.  Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and reduce the heat to medium; cook, stirring, until all the liquid had evaporated and the mushrooms begin to caramelize, about 12 minutes.  Add the wine and cook, stirring to deglaze the pan, until all the liquid has evaporated.  Remove from the heat and let cool before using.

Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured work surface and cut into two 7-inch squares.  Spread up to half of the mushroom duxelles on top of each filet.  Place each filet, mushroom side down, in the center of a puff pastry square.  Using a pastry brush, paint the inside edges of the puff pastry with the egg wash.  Fold the pastry over the filet as though wrapping a package and press the edges to seal.  Place the packages seam-side down on the prepared baking sheet.  Brush the egg wash over the tops and sides of each package and bake until the pastry is golden brown and an instant read thermometer registers 140° for medium-rare, about 20 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Source: adapted from Brown Eyed Baker, originally from Food Network