New adventures in food!

You all know me by now, right? I am sure that you are all pretty familiar with my insatiable love of new cooking challenges and flavour adventures, right? Well, this weekend is no different!

A few years ago, my boyfriend and I went to a staff Christmas party at his boss’s place. His wife, following her British roots, whipped up the most delicious main entrée that I think I have had in a while… beef wellington. The layers of crispy pastry, earthy mushrooms and tender beef just made it the most delectable meal, and I knew that I just HAD to learn how to make it.

Well, it has taken me a few years, but I think I may have finally figured out the perfect recipe and acquired the perfect ingredients to re-create that masterpiece… and am going to be attempting to make it probably Sunday or Monday this week!

It looks like it is a mostly time-consuming process, but that doesn’t bother me. I actually rather enjoy spending an entire day creating a single meal (on the assumption, of course, that it will BLOW MY MIND when it’s done!). Not a lot of people seem to be able to say that, so I consider myself lucky in that regard…

But yes! New adventures in food! Anyone have any tips or tricks for making this dish that they want to share in the comments…?

The Ultimate Beef Wellington:

For the Duxelles:

· 3 pints (1½ lbs.) white button mushrooms

· 2 shallots, peeled and roughly chopped

· 3 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped

· 2 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only

· 2 tbsp. unsalted butter

· 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

· Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the beef:

· 1 (3 lb.) centre cut beef tenderloin (filet mignon), trimmed

· Extra-virgin olive oil

· Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

· 10 to 12 thin slices prosciutto

· 6 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only

· 2 tbsp. Dijon mustard

· Flour, to roll out the pastry

· 1 large puff pastry, thawed if using frozen

· 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

· ½ tbsp. coarse sea salt

· Minced chives, for garnish

For the green peppercorn sauce:

· 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

· 2 shallots, sliced

· 2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

· 3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only

· 1 cup brandy

· 1 box beef stock

· 2 cups cream

· 2 tbsp. grainy mustard

· ½ cup green peppercorns in brine, drained, brine reserved

For the Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Fresh Herbs and Garlic:

· 2 pints fingering potatoes

· 2 sprigs fresh rosemary

· 2 to 3 sprigs fresh sage

· 3 sprigs fresh thyme

· 6 cloves garlic, left unpeeled

· 3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for sheet pan

· Salt and pepper

For the Warm Wilted Winter Greens:

· ¼ cup honey

· ½ cup balsamic vinegar

· ½ pint walnuts, for garnish

· 3 bunches assorted winter greens (i.e. Swiss chard, radicchio, escarole…), washed, stemmed and torn into pieces

· 1 tbsp. grainy mustard

· Extra-virgin olive oil

· ½ cup pomegranate seeds, for garnish

· Parmesan shavings, for garnish

· 1 shallot, chopped, for garnish

1) To make the Duxelles: add the mushrooms, shallots, garlic and thyme to a food processor; pulse until finely chopped. Add the butter and olive oil to a large saute pan and set over medium heat. Add the shallot and mushroom mixture and saute for 8 to 10 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool

2) To prepare the beef: tie the tenderloin in 4 places so it holds its cylindrical shape while cooking. Drizzle with olive oil, then season with salt and pepper and sear all over, including the ends, in a hot, heavy-based skillet lightly coated with olive oil (about 2 to 3 minutes). Meanwhile set out your prosciutto on a sheet of plastic wrap (plastic needs to be about a foot and a half in length so you can wrap and tie the roast up in it) on top of your cutting board. Shingle the prosciutto so it forms a rectangle that is big enough to encompass the entire filet of beef. Using a rubber spatula cover evenly with a thin layer of duxelles. Season the surface of the duxelles with salt and pepper and sprinkle with fresh thyme leaves. When the beef is seared, remove from heat, cut off twine and smear lightly all over with Dijon mustard. Allow to cool slightly, then roll up in the duxelles covered prosciutto using the plastic wrap to tie it up nice and tight. Tuck in the ends of the prosciutto as you roll to completely encompass the beef. Roll it up tightly in plastic wrap and twist the ends to seal it completely and hold it in a nice log shape. Set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to ensure it maintains its shape

3) Preheat oven to 425 degrees F

4) On a lightly floured surface, roll the puff pastry out to about a ¼” thickness. Depending on the size of your sheets you may have to overlap 2 sheets and press them together. Remove beef from refrigerator and cut off plastic. Set the beef in the center of the pastry and fold over the longer sides, brushing with egg wash to seal. Trim ends if necessary then brush with egg wash and fold over to completely seal the beef - saving ends to use as a decoration on top if desired. Top with coarse sea salt. Place the beef seam side down on a baking sheet

5) Brush the top of the pastry with egg wash then make a couple of slits in the top of the pastry using the tip of a paring knife (this creates vents that will allow the steam to escape when cooking)

6) Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until pastry is golden brown and beef registers 125 F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from oven and rest before cutting into thick slices. Garnish with minced chives, and serve with Green Peppercorn Sauce, Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Fresh Herbs and Garlic, and Warm Wilted Winter Greens

7) To make the green peppercorn sauce: add the olive oil to pan after removing beef. Add shallots, garlic, and thyme; saute for 1 to 2 minutes, then, off heat, add brandy and flambe using a long kitchen match. After flame dies down, return to the heat, add stock and reduce by about half. Strain out solids, then add 2 cups cream and mustard. Reduce by half again, then shut off heat and add green peppercorns

8) To make the Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Fresh Herbs and Garlic: preheat oven to 500 F and place a baking sheet inside to heat. Add the potatoes, rosemary, sage, thyme and garlic to a medium bowl. Drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Remove sheet pan from oven, lightly coat with olive oil, and pour potatoes onto pan. Place potatoes in oven and reduce heat to 425 F. Roast for 20 minutes, or until crispy on outside and tender on inside

9) To make the Warm Wilted Winter Greens: cook honey and balsamic together over medium-high heat in a large saute pan, about 5 minutes. Toast walnuts in a small skillet; set aside to cool

10) Pile greens on a platter. Stir mustard into balsamic-honey dressing, then whisk in about 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil; pour over greens. Season greens with salt and pepper and garnish with walnuts, pomegranate seeds, shavings of Parmesan, and shallot

**NOTE: Use extreme caution when igniting alcohol. Remove the pan from the heat source before adding the alcohol. Pour the alcohol into the pan and carefully ignite with a match or click lighter. Return the pan to the heat and gently swirl to reduce the flames.**

References: The Food Network