Well-Deserved, Well-Dressed Individual Beef Wellingtons with Steamed Broccoli Spears

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), plus extra for drizzling

  • 1 tablespoon butter

  • 1 shallot, chopped

  • 1/2 pound button mushrooms with stems, cleaned and finely chopped in a food processor

  • Salt and freshly ground pepper

  • 2 tablespoons dry cooking sherry (2 splashes)

  • 4 tournedos of beef filet mignon, 1-inch thick

  • 8 ounces mousse pâté, available in specialty cheese and appetizer section at larger grocery stores

  • 1 sheet frozen prepared puff pastry (11 inches x 17 inches), defrosted

  • 1 egg, beaten with a splash of water

  • 1 large head broccoli, trimmed and cut into spears

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 425°F.

Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add EVOO, about one turn around the pan, butter, shallot and chopped mushrooms. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and sauté for five minutes. Add sherry to the mushrooms and let the liquid evaporate. Remove mushrooms from the heat.

In a nonstick skillet over high heat, sear meat two minutes on each side in a drizzle of EVOO. Remove skillet from the heat and season meat with salt and pepper.

Cut mousse pâté into four 2-ounce pieces, each sliced in half horizontally.

Spread the puff pastry sheet out on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Quarter the dough with a sharp knife. Roll each piece of dough into a 10-inch x 6-inch rectangle. On each rectangle of dough, place a quarter of the cooked mushrooms. Top mushrooms with one 2-ounce slice of pâté and one tournedo of beef.

Wrap dough up and over the meat. Seal the dough with egg wash and trim excess. Use leftover dough bits to make decorative garnishes for the tops of your Wellingtons.

Turn the wrapped Wellingtons over and cover with egg wash using a pastry brush. Affix dough garnishes with egg wash. For a simple decoration, roll dough bits into a long, thin spaghetti-like string and make swirls on each Wellington. Bake beef Wellingtons 10 minutes or until golden. Let stand five minutes, then serve.

Steam broccoli spears in one inch of simmering, salted water, covered, for 8-10 minutes, or until just tender. Transfer spears to a serving plate or individual dinner plates and serve alongside Wellingtons.