Individual Beef Wellingtons

How to make Individual Beef Wellingtons Recipe - The trick to achieving a perfectly baked Beef Wellington is not to overcook the meat before cooling and wrapping in a delicate puff pastry. The mushrooms, Gorgonzola and trufle oil make a wonderful marriage with the beef. These pies go well with a simple, creamy potato mash and green beans. recipe from Dean Brettschneider

MAKES 4 INDIVIDUAL PIES

PASTRY
1 quantity of Butter Puff Pastry

FILLING
4 × 3.5cm-thick centre-cut beef eye fillets
salt and pepper
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp truffle oil
4 large mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 shallot, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
4 tbsp Gorgonzola

GLAZE
1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water, for egg wash

Method:
Make Butter Puff Pastry ahead and rest it as required.

Preheat oven to 220°C. Season beef with salt and pepper. In a shallow roasting pan, roast the fillets in the middle of the oven for 10 minutes, then cool (fillets will be baked again after being wrapped in pastry). Alternatively, cook the beef in a frying pan over a high heat searing it for 1–2 minutes on each side and ends. Cover and place in the refrigerator until cold, about 1 hour.

In a heavy saucepan, melt butter and truffle oil over a low-medium heat. Add mushrooms, shallot and garlic, and cook, stirring, until mushrooms are lightly browned. Season with salt and pepper, then transfer to a bowl to cool completely.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out pastry into a 35cm square, then cut into four equal pieces.

Put 1 tablespoon Gorgonzola in the centre of each pastry square and top with one-quarter of the mushroom mixture. Top with a beef fillet, pressing it down gently. Wrap two opposite corners of puff pastry over the fillet, overlapping them. Seal seam with egg wash. Wrap remaining two corners of pastry over fillet and seal in same manner. Seal any gaps with egg wash and press pastry around fillet to enclose completely. Arrange each Beef Wellington, seam-side down, on a non-stick baking tray. Chill, loosely covered, for at least 1 hour and up to one day.

Brush with egg wash just before baking.

Bake in a preheated 220°C oven for 20 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and golden-brown in colour.

Individual Beef Wellingtons