After a relaxing weekend with friends in the Catskills we made a detour on the way home to cut down our Christmas tree!  Wandering the forest, saw in hand, we inspected each tree from top to bottom, eventually selecting our gem. Once home we filled our mugs with warm hot chocolate, turned on holiday tunes, and began to decorate.

Growing up, our ornaments were all very organized – a tradition we of course have continued now in our house.  Ornaments are organized into shoeboxes with a detailed description of each ornament the year it was acquired recorded inside of the lid.  This comes in handy in particular when taking the ornaments off of the tree as you can make sure that none are hidden on a limb when the tree goes to the curb.  When setting up the tree we retell the story that goes along with every single one as it is purposefully place on the tree. There was the Christmas that Nana gave us 4 inch bedazzled initials, the button icicles and snowmen that we made at “crafternoon” with mom, and one we got to celebrate our first Christmas in our first home.

It feels nice to start the season hearkening back to those memories and retelling stories from holidays with our loved ones that we won’t get to celebrate with this year.  These few hours of setting of the tree are one of the few times when it feel like time pauses.

Similar to my recent spinach squares post, these filet wellingtons are another recipe from my mom’s files.  It was such a special family treat that she prepared it the first time my now-husband came over to meet the fam! They take some prep, but are fairly straightforward considering how impressive the final result is.

For this dish you first cook leeks and onions in some butter then add mushrooms to make a mushroom topping. This then goes over individual filets, which are covered with dijon and puff pastry and then baked.  We decided to throw a piece of prosciutto onto each filet this time for good measure as well.

We served these with spicy green beans, an arugula and pear salad, and some creamy mashed potatoes.  Happy holiday season to all who celebrate!

Filet Wellington

• Servings: 2
• Time: 30 prep + 20 cook = 50 mins
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Ingredients

• • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon of dried thyme leaves
  • 2 beef filets (6 oz each)
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon unsalted butter
  • 1 sheet of frozen puff pastry
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon milk
  • Optional – 1 piece of prosciutto per fillet

  For mushroom topping

  • 8 oz mushrooms finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup minced shallots
  • 2 cloves of garlic – minced
  • 1/2 cup leeks (white part only)
  • 2 teaspoons of thyme
  • sherry

Steps & Notes

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. First, melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet. Add the shallots, leeks and garlic. Cook on low heat for 5 minutes until translucent.
3. Next, add the chopped mushrooms, thyme, and a splash of sherry. Stir occasionally until the mushroom liquid evaporates, about 10 minutes.
4. Set this mushroom topping aside.
5. Combine the pepper, salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of thyme in a bowl.
6. Rub the filets on all sides with dijon mustard and then cover with the spice mixture.
7. Melt the butter in a small skillet and then sear the beef on all sides – about 5 minutes. Then, let cool to room temperature.
8. Arrange the beef on a baking sheet and then cover with the mushroom topping.
   • If you are adding the prosciutto do that now.
9. Cut out two 4 inch circles of pastry – enough to cover the filet. Then drape each pastry over each filet.
10. Blend egg and milk and brush the glaze over each pastry.
11. Bake 15 minutes for medium-rare. Serve immediately.