Mushroom and Chestnut Wellington
This indulgent version of a meat-free Wellington will impress all your guests! It has hearty and delicious flavors such as mushrooms, chestnuts, and goat's cheese and is the key to everyone's heart!
Battle of Waterloo
A distance south of a small village called Waterloo, which is now modern day’s Belgium, was a battle that was held on June 18th, 1815.
There was approximately 190,000 men, and they fought one of the most notable battles of the modern era. Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated the year prior to the battle and was exiled to the island of Elba after abdicating his throne. In March of 1815, he returned to Paris and reclaimed his thrown. That period was known as the “hundred days”, and it was then when Napoleon’s enemies decided to finally defeat Napoleon once and for all… for good.
There were numerous European countries that amassed their armies to defeat him – Gebhard von Blucher commanded the Prussian army forces and Field Marshall Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington at the time, commanded the British army and its Anglo allies.
Napoleon was not brilliant as he was during his previous reign, he was in fact much weaker and it was definitely not his finest hour. After the battle, 50,000 men were dead or wounded and the French army was obliterated – Napoleon was forced into exile for the rest of his life.
The Mushroom and Chestnut Wellington before baking.
The Duke of Wellington
Field Marshall Arthur Wellesley was awarded the title of the Duke of Wellington in 1814 after Napoleon’s first exile. After the Battle of Waterloo, he was promoted and awarded many times, and even became Prime Minister. In efforts to immortalize him, the culinary world created the classic dish that will bear his name for centuries to come: Beef Wellington.
The recipe started off with beef wrapped in a simple dough, reportedly just flour and water. Puff pastry is extremely labor-intensive when made by hand, so the beginnings of the Wellington were quite simple. There are different variations of the recipe that originated in different countries – France, England, Ireland, and maybe even Africa. French cuisine has a famous dish called “filet de boeuf en croûte”, which literally means beef wrapped in pastry.
So is the Beef Wellington originally a French recipe that’s been renamed after the battle? Probably.
As years pass by, there have been many different variations of Wellington. The classic, which is a tenderloin and foie gras and duxelles wrapped in pastry, some other proteins used, and some vegan and vegetarian variations as well.
All in all, it’s always interesting to know the origin of classical dishes and to discover and explore the different possibilities of flavors!
This recipe was inspired by the Waitrose Mushroom Wellington recipe with minor adjustments from me. All credit goes to them!
Mushroom and Chestnut Wellington
Ingredients
- 450 g butter puff pastry
- 3 shallots, finely chopped
- 250 g baby spinach
- 30 g butter
- 2 leeks, finely sliced
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves chopped
- 2 sprigs fresh oregano, leaves chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 300 g cremini mushrooms
- 150 g shiitake mushroom
- 50 g hydrated chanterelle mushrooms
- 200 g chestnuts, crumbled
- 150 g soft goat's cheese
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 egg
- 2 tbsp milk
Instructions
- Add a tsp of butter and sauté spinach until wilted.
- Drain the spinach and squeeze out as much water as possible.
- Roughly chop and set aside.
- In the same pan, add butter and sauté shallots until translucent.
- Add leeks and cook for about 5 minutes, until softened and slightly caramelized.
- Add 3 garlic cloves, thyme leaves, and oregano.
- Add mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes.
- Transfer everything to a bowl, stir in chestnuts and spinach, and leave the mixture to cool.
- Once cooled, stir in goat's cheese.
- Lay large sheet of clingfilm on your surface and place the mixture into the middle, then slowly wrap the clingfilm around the mixture and mold it into a cylinder, twisting both sides of the clingfilm and rolling it against the table to form a tight cylinder.
- Leave it to completely cool for at least an hour or prepare overnight, until it's completely firm.
- Preheat oven to 200ºC (400ºF).
- Dust the work surface with flour and roll the puff pastry into a rectangle that will fit the width of your filling.
- Lay the filling on the puff pastry and unwrap it.
- Whisk together the egg and milk to create an egg wash.
- Brush the edges of the puff pastry.
- Slowly roll the puff pastry around the filling until the puff pastry closes up and joins from underneath the filling.
- Close up both ends of the Wellington with your fingers or a fork.
- Cut up the pastry trimmings into decorations of your choice and use the egg wash to place it on the Wellington.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and brush the Wellington with the egg wash.
- Bake for 30 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and crisp. Leave to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
Notes:
To make this recipe vegan or dairy-free:
- Switch butter with oil.
- Use vegan puff pastry.
- Replace goat's cheese with rice.
- Replace egg wash with a plant-based milk.
- You make prepare the mixture a day in advance.
- If you don't like goat's cheese, you may substitute it with cream cheese or any soft cheese of your choice.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
478.18Fat (grams)
13.28Sat. Fat (grams)
6.99Carbs (grams)
33.50Fiber (grams)
5.18Net carbs
28.32Sugar (grams)
8.15Protein (grams)
11.43Sodium (milligrams)
268.92Cholesterol (grams)
53.66