At Waterloo Napoleon did surrender,
Oh Yeah..."
Abba - Winner 1974 Eurovision Song Contest
This week we were experimenting and taste testing various hamburger patties which Incredibly Fed has been asked to make for a big 21st party shortly. Having tried several and decided on the winning formula we still had some minced beef left over. Looking for an alternative use we hit upon this one....
Beef Wellington is an 'en crute' dish which may or may not be named after the heroic and definitely upper crust 1st Duke of Wellington (winner at Waterloo). It's a winning winter classic calling for the best quality centre cut of beef fillet making it a pricey dish to prepare to say the least. But we managed to come up with a much more economical version no less triumphant and definately something of a treat which you do not have to be an aristocrat to enjoy whenever you like. The luxurious element is provided by the melting unctuous Gruyere oozing from the middle as you cut through. Wellington meets Kiev so to say!
They are individual parcels which can be prepared in advance, kept in the fridge and popped in he oven just when the crucial moment arrives. The ultimate easy entertaining dish! We suggest this portion size, one of which would make a wonderful eat in the hand snack (in the heat of pitched battle perhaps??), whilst two would constitute a hearty dinner main course fit for a blue blooded appetite!
As with all types of Wellington and 'en croute' dishes it is essential to keep the contents from leaking out of the pastry parcel in the final bake. We have seen all sorts of solutions to this problem including pancakes, mushroom duxelle or pate. In this version the damp proof course is provided by a simple pepper which is perfect for keeping the pastry base dry.
(Makes 10 parcels)
500g lean minced beef
3 Tbsp Bread crumbs
1 Red onion finely chopped
2 Garlic cloves chopped and chrushed
1 Egg beaten
Dash Worcestershire Sauce
Seasoning
50g Gruyere cheese
2 Red Peppers
Pastry
Method
Slice the pepper in wide slices, remove seeds and lay flat on a baking tray skin side down. Drizzle olive oil over and place in an oven at 180 C for about 20 minutes or until flesh is soft and pliable. Place on kitchen paper to remove moisture, oil etc. Meanwhile heat a skillet gently and sweat down the onion and garlic until soft and translucent. (About 6 to 8 minutes). Allow to cool. In a large bowl mix together the beef, breadcrumbs, Worcester sauce, about 3/4 of the beaten egg and the onion and garlic. Season to taste and gently knead mix. Scoop out balls of approx 50g - 60g, pierce each with a sharp pointed kitchen knife and insert a cube of cheese making sure it is completely surrounded by meat. Flatten the balls slightly and place on a hot pan for 2 - 3 minutes per side. Remove from pan, place on kitchen paper and allow to cool. Roll out the pastry and cut into squares large enough to cover the meat. Wrap the meat in a slice of pepper (skin side out) making sure most of the pepper ends up at the bottom of the pastry parcel to prevent leakage causing sogginess. Bring up the corners of the pastry squares and crimp together to seal using milk or the beaten egg as adhesive. Brush with the remaining egg. Place in an oven until golden brown (about 25 minutes).
Posted by incredibly fed
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