Thursday, July 08, 2010

Dinner...Ramsey Style!

So last night's dinner was my homage to Chef Gordon Ramsey.  I super love him.  I love the yelling and the drama, because it's really not necessary but definitely fun to watch.  I'm not right that way.


Typically Beef Wellington is made with a large beef fillet and then later portioned out.  I chose not to do things this way.  We had separate smaller fillets and I thought it would be fun to make them as individual portions.
  I started by seasoning the fillets with just salt and pepper and placing them in a hot skillet, basically just to sear them off to preserve the juices inside.
Once this was complete I set them to the side to cool a bit.  Once cool, brush the tops with about a teaspoon of English Mustard.
Then I moved on to the mushrooms.  I had a large container, about a pound, of presliced steak mushrooms.
Use a food processor to chop these little guys into a puree of sorts.  Once complete place then into a hot, dry pan to allow the moisture to cook off.
When sufficiently dried out, set the mix aside to cool.

Now you want to roll out a generous amount of cling wrap.  Lay out 2 slices of prosciutto so that one slightly overlaps the other.
Next you will want to spread out a portion of the mushroom puree.
Now place your fillet in the middle and, keeping a tight hold of the cling wrap from the outside edge, neatly roll the prosciutto and mushroom mix over the beef into a tight barrel shape. Twist the ends of the cling wrap - sort of like a piece of candy.

Place your barrels in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.  This will help the whole thing set up a bit and keep its shape.
While waiting, roll out your puff pastry.  I cut mine into 5 strips and rolled out each piece individually.  Once the meat is ready unroll the plastic wrap (important step) and place the beef in the middle.
Using an egg yolk, brush this along the outside of the puff pastry to help it stick to itself.  The roll the pastry around the meat and tuck underneath.  Place all Wellington's on a baking sheet.
Brush the tops all with the egg yolk.
Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 35-45 minutes.  Let them rest for about 10 minutes before serving and enjoy. 

These are really, really good.  I had made another version last week, loving called Beef Tarynton since I had to improvise.  We had no prosciutto or mushrooms, so I ended up using bacon strips.  It was really good but probably could have killed us!!

The sauteed potatoes and peas were really easy.  Quarter up some potatoes then cover in salted cold water in a pan on the stove.  Partially cover with a lid and simmer for about 15-20 minutes until knofe tender.  Drain and transfer to a pan with a few sprigs of rosemary and a few cloves of garlic along with 3 tablespoons of olive oil.  Add peas and sautee til golden brown.  Serve along side the Wellington!

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