sliced beef wellington

 

Recipe: Individual Beef Wellington

 

By Rebecca Medalle, Applications Analyst II

 

I rarely follow recipes because improvising is so much fun. Sometimes, though, you stumble across a meal that must be documented. How else will you be able recreate it perfectly every time? These Beef Wellingtons are a delicious flavor package tucked inside an outstandingly tasty giftwrap…just like an edible Christmas present.

I should note that it’s easier to make these individually than try to prepare an entire chateaubriand. This is because it is easier to get the correct meat temperature, and the individual portions are also easier to serve. I recommend preparing with a combination of both green and wax beans sautéed in brown butter with garlic, rosemary, salt/pepper, but I will leave the veggie selections to you…

Individual Beef Wellington (serves 4)

Ingredients:

  • 4 filet mignons, cut 2 inches thick
  • 1 package of puff pastry (contains 2 sheets)
  • 4 tbsp. butter
  • 12 to 16 oz. white common mushrooms
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped onion or shallot
  • 1 pinch of cayenne (trust me and don’t argue…just do it  😀)
  • 1 tsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 large sprig of fresh thyme
  • 1 pinch of finely chopped fresh sage
  • 2 to 3 cloves finely minced garlic
  • Salt/pepper to taste
  • 1/2 to 2/3 cup dry white wine (my preference) or cooking sherry
  • Dijon mustard
  • 8 very thin slices of prosciutto ham roughly the diameter of your filets (I was able to get 4 slices and cut them in half)
  • 1 egg white (for egg wash on puff pastry)

Place 1 tbsp. butter in a pan. Lightly season filets with salt/pepper, sear 2 full minutes on each side, remove from pan and set aside. Chop mushrooms very finely (I use a small food processor for this). Add remaining butter and sauté mushrooms, onions, garlic, parsley, sage and thyme for about 3 minutes. You can remove the thyme leaves before continuing but it’s not necessary as long as you remember to remove the stem afterwards. Add wine, cayenne, salt and pepper and simmer until liquid is gone and consistency is nearly a paste. It’s easier to use if you divide into 8 portions in the pan (2 portions for each filet).

For each filet, do the following:

  1. Lay out 1/2 sheet puff pastry
  2. Spread 1 portion of mushroom mixture in the middle of the pastry roughly the size of your filet
  3. Place 1 piece of prosciutto ham on top of the mushroom mixture
  4. Spread Dijon mustard on top and bottom of filet and place on prosciutto ham
  5. Place 1 piece of prosciutto ham on top of the filet
  6. Spread another portion of mushroom mixture on to prosciutto ham
  7. Fully wrap filet in the puff pastry. This is the tricky part…I fold over the long sides first and then work with the short sides. Wet edges lightly with water to help pastry stick to it itself. Make sure there are NO air pockets. I roll it up in saran wrap to work out the creases, let it sit for about 10 minutes, and then remove saran wrap.
  8. Place wrapped filet on parchment lined baking sheet and egg wash the top of the pastry
  9. Very lightly sprinkle with salt after the egg wash

NOTES:

  • Keep puff pastry cold until about 10 minutes before wrapping filets. Cut each sheet in half…you will use a half sheet for each filet.
  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes and rest for 10 minutes before serving. Should come out medium/medium rare.

 

Suggested Wine Pairing:
Coppola Caret (a relatively inexpensive cabernet)

Suggested Beer Pairing:
Hofbräu Dunkel or New Castle Brown Ale

 

 

Photo credit: https://www.jessicagavin.com/individual-beef-wellington-mushroom-sauce/