During the month we spent in Arizona, we had the pleasure of celebrating American Thanksgiving with our dear friends down there. Our dear friends who live there offered to make the turkey (thank goodness, as I did not have any of my special kitchen tools!) so I offered to make a few different sides. We had dear friends visiting from Toronto and they are vegetarian and I wanted to make something special for them for Thanksgiving, so I made this Mushroom, Chestnut and Bean Wellington. I purchased the puff pastry to make it easier but I made everything else. I was surprised to find roasted Italian chestnuts (in the Kosher section, no less!) but sadly the mushrooms were just plain cremini and white mushrooms, not much variety. It’s always a bit of a challenge to cook in a strange kitchen and shop in a different part of the world, but I think this one turned out wonderful and with a variety of mushrooms, it would be amazing! Please excuse the photos, this is the one and only blog post I managed to eak out during our stay in Arizona, I was THAT busy!
Scroll down to the end of this post to see the house we rented. It took us some time to find one that was decorated in light airy colours, most of the rentals are dark and dowdy, filled with ‘granny’s furniture’ and I just couldn’t bear to live in that for a month! Although I might have chosen a slightly lighter tone for the walls, this house made me happy.
Mushroom, Chestnut and Bean Wellington
A KitchenInspirations Original Recipe
Makes 1 Wellington about 30 cm x 15 cm (12 inches x 6 inches)
To print recipe, please click here.
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup sweet onion, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp EVOO
- 2 cups variety of mushrooms, roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp garlic, finely minced
- 1/2 cup carrots, finely cubed
- 1/2 cup celery, finely cubed
- 1/2 cup zucchini, finely cubed
- 1/2 cup roasted chestnuts, roughly chopped
- 1/2-1 tsp fresh rosemary, finely minced
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 cup navy beans, soaked
- 4 cups vegetable stock, divided
- 1/2 cup port
- salt
- pepper
- 1 puff pastry sheet
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1 egg yolk, lightly whisked with a little water.
Directions:
- Cook the navy beans in 3 cups veggie stock or water, cool.
- In a heavy bottom pan, caramelize the onions in the melted butter and olive oil on medium heat (about 20 minutes). Add mushrooms and cook until the mushroom liquid has evaporated. Turn the heat up and caramelize the mushrooms add the port to deglaze the pan.
- Add the garlic, carrots, celery, zucchini and roasted chestnuts and sauté until carrots are slightly softened.
- Add the rosemary, panko, cooked navy beans, and veggie stock. Season to taste. Remove from heat and cool completely.
- On a cold surface, roll out the puff pastry sheet to about 30 cm x 40 cm (12 inches x 16 inches). Brush the Dijon mustard on the pastry and mound the cooled mushroom filling in the centre of the pastry. Turn up each side until they meet in the middle and pinch closed. Pinch the ends closed and trim off excess pastry.
- Turn the log onto a parchment lined baking sheet seamed sized down, and brush with the egg yolk. Decorate with leaves from the leftover end pastry and brush with egg wash. Bake in a hot 400° F oven for 35-40 minutes or until golden.
- Serve sliced hot out of the oven, or reheat to serve.
Click on any photo for the slideshow.
How gorgeous! I love the way you decorated the pastry. And the filling sounds delicious.
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Thanks Jeff, that is very kind of you.
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Beautiful Wellington and I bet you had beautiful weather as well. The desert is so nice in the fall and winter (and spring!). GREG
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Thanks Greg, it really was an exceptional time, but now I can’t seem to get warm!
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What a beautiful pattern on that crust, Eva. Complimenti, as they say in Italian…
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Thank you for dropping by Frank, and for your very flattering compliment.
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Wow! This is such an appetizing recipe, Eva! A perfect combination of ingredients which I can’t wait to try.
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Thank you Agness, it was quite tasty, I hope you enjoy it.
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Your mushroom wellington is a work of art! And I’m glad I’m not the only one who cares about the decor of a rental—you found a lovely spot to spend a month! With the latest chill, I wish I had a month in AZ!!!
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You’re going to laugh when you read this Liz, but JT replaced all of the compact fluorescent bulbs with warm halogens in the house, it was lit as bright as a marina on a foggy lake!
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You’re right, it can be tricky cooking in another place outside your own kitchen. This looks wonderful. I love wellingtons as I always love pastry, especially puff! 😀
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It was definitely a pastry to celebrate with. Thanks for your comment Lorraine.
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Welcome back. Intriguing vegetarian filling for the classic dish and the pastry decorations are quite prettty.
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Thank you Maria, it was a wonderful escape from the impending cold, the down-side is that I just can’t get warm enough now!
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I can understand that. It’s snowed twice in the last 3 days … guess winter is definitely here. 😦
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Awwww here it is, HERE IT IS!!!
I’m loving all these pictures and that freshly baked wellington – Eva I can smell it from here :))
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You are too kind Dana, the pastry was definitely appreciated by the gang, even the non-vegetarians!
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I don’t doubt that for one min 😀
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Wow, Eva, you did not disappoint with this gorgeous vegetarian meal for your friends over Thanksgiving. So creative and nourishing. The ‘out of oven’ photo is just beautiful too. I would have been over the moon! I’m always amazed how much interest chestnuts can bring to a recipe – that texture – I’ve never had roasted Italian ones though, sounds especially yummy. Good call on the port — bet it added some great flavor. This ain’t no ordinary veg meal!
Your rental space would make me happy too 🙂
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Thanks so much Kelly. My goal is always to be inclusive plus I don’t want to have to make two separate meals for each group so I like to make something that everyone can enjoy. I usually buy the Aurora brand of roasted chestnuts here, they don’t take up much room, you may want to stock up on your next visit!
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Thanks Ava! I’m hosting Christmas lunch this year and this is a wonderful variation of a dish I was planning to make! I love the idea of including the navy beans for added protein. Wow, the house you rented looks fabulous and the main facilities are incredible. I can see why you would consider getting a place there. It looks wildly relaxing and those vast blue skies would be hard to leave behind…
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Thanks Michela, our trip seems like a lifetime ago, and with all the snow and frosty temperatures we have had of late, I am yearning to go back. I hope you enjoy the recipe, would love to see some photos of your version.
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That was so lovely of you. they must have been very very happy with that. mushrooms make the best wellingtons
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Thank you, Tania. I just love the earthy flavour of mushrooms and they pair so well with the sweetness of a roasted chestnut.
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I love this vegetarian version of wellington. The chestnut bean filling is definitely a favourite.
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Thanks Angie, it was rather tasty.
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