Vegetarian Mushroom Wellington

Vegetarian mushroom wellington makes a fantastic centerpiece on your holiday table. It is prepared with a simple thyme mushroom-chestnut filling wrapped inside a flaky puff pastry. Serve with cranberry sauce and a red wine to make it more festive!

If you’re planning a vegetarian Christmas or simply count a few vegetarians among your guests, this vegetarian wellington is exactly what you need to make the dinner festive. It is guaranteed to be a real showstopper and will even be loved by the non vegetarian guests!

What is a vegetarian Wellington?

Vegetarian mushroom wellington is simply a vegetarian version of the beef wellington, an English dish consisting of a beef tenderloin wrapped in puff pastry. In this vegetarian version, the beef is replaced with a rich and delicious mushroom filling chestnuts, caramelized onions and fresh herbs, all wrapped up in a flaky puff pastry.

Vegetarian wellington main ingredients

• Onions. Both yellow onion and red onion can be used in this recipe. In any case, cook them with balsamic vinegar until caramelized to bring some sweetness to the filling.
• Chestnuts. I use them store-bought in a jar, and already cooked and drained. Chestnuts add some festive flavors to the wellington and bring earthy flavors too.
• Mushrooms. Any mushroom would do, but I personally like brown mushrooms. You could also use cremini mushrooms, Portobello, or a mixed of wild mushrooms to bring more bold flavors to your vegetarian wellington.
• Spinach. I recommend using fresh baby spinach. Frozen spinach tend to be too watery; if using cook them separately and drain in a colander before adding to the filling or the excess of water may make the crust soggy.
• Thyme. You could also use other herbs, such as finely chopped rosemary. Some love it with tarragon instead, that will do too. Keep in mind that the seasoning is important, it will bring fresh notes to the earthy filling.
• And of course you will need puff pastry to wrap around the filling!

How to make vegetarian mushroom wellington?

1. Start by caramelizing the onions. Melt them with butter until soft and tender, then add the balsamic vinegar and cook until caramelized, stirring regularly. This process can take up to 15-20 minutes, depending on how caramelized you want your onions to be.
2. Then, add the mushrooms and saute for a few minutes. Add garlic, herbs, and saute one additional minute. Pour the remaining balsamic vinegar and cook until the liquid has evaporated.
3. Crumble the chestnut over, add the spinach, stir and cook until the spinach are wilted.
4. Transfer to a large bowl and combine the filling ingredients with breadcrumbs and chopped walnut. Stir until the mixture comes together. Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to allow the mixture to cool. This is very important to avoid a mess when shaping the log with the puff pastry (a too warm mixture would make the puff pastry to melt).
5. Roll out the puff pastry into a large rectangle and shape the mushroom-chestnut mixture into a large log/sausage in the middle of the pastry. This could be done on the longer side of the rectangle or on the short side, depending on the number of guests you are expecting. If the filling is placed in the center of the longer side, each portion will be smaller.
6. Fold the puff pastry around the filling, using the longer sides first and folding the shorter like you would do for wrapping a present.
7. Brush with beaten eggs inside and out, and draw a cross-hatch pattern on the surface of the puff pastry using a sharp pairing knife, without going through the crust.

Possible ingredient variations

The filling prepared in this vegetarian wellington is very forgiving. You could indeed make it a little different from one time to another. The most important remains to have a wet filling that comes together easily to shape into a log. Here are just a few ideas I love to twist the recipe:

• Add dried cranberries to the filling. Delicious!
• Replace chestnuts with the same weight of roasted and diced butternut squash.
• You can also do half chestnut / half butternut squash to add to the mushrooms.

What to serve with vegetarian wellington?

This vegetarian mushroom wellington is very filling and makes for a great centerpiece for the holidays. I recommend to serve it with some cranberry sauce and a side of salad. To make the dish more complete, enjoy with these maple root roasted vegetables with parsnip puree, and maybe some maple balsamic Brussels sprouts with feta, pomegranate and pecans.

Also, I recommend pairing this vegetarian wellington with red wine. The earthy tones in mushrooms make these a natural match for nearly all types of red wines. To safely pair your mushroom dish with a red wine, choose a medium-bodied red such as Merlot, Beaujolais Villages, Bourgogne Rouge, or Bourgueil.

FAQ

Can I use a store-bought, ready-rolled puff pastry? Of course, the Wellington will have a higher quality crust if you use homemade puff pastry. But let’s be honest here for a minute, a store-bought puff pastry can save you some precious time and your wellington will still taste delicious. I recommend using a baker’s quality puff pastry if you can.

Where can I find cook chestnuts? If you live in the United States, Canada, know that you can find cooked chestnuts in jar in your Whole Foods. This item is mostly available around the holiday season, so go ahead and stock up on chestnuts. They keep for months!

Can I make it nut-free? Absolutely! Simply skip walnuts in the recipe. You do not necessary need to replace them, the wellington will also be delicious without.

Can I freeze vegetarian wellington? Yes, you can. I recommend freezing it before baking, with raw puff pastry around the chestnut mushroom filling. When ready to bake, brush with beaten egg and bake following the baking instructions. The baking time can take a little longer as the filling inside will be previously frozen.

How can I reheat vegetarian wellington? If you have wellington leftovers, you can reheat them at 300°F (150°C) for about 15-20 minutes until just warm. You do not want to over-bake leftovers or the filling will become dry.

More festive veggie meals you’ll love:

• Vegetarian Pot Pie
• My Favorite Vegan Lentil Mushroom Bolognese
• Mushroom Ragu with Creamy Polenta
• Vegetarian Lentil Shepherd’s Pie
• Butternut Squash, Spinach and Goat Cheese Lasagna

Vegetarian Mushroom Wellington

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• Author: Delphine Fortin
• Prep Time: 1 hour
• Chilling Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 2 hours
• Yield: 8 servings 1x
• Category: Savory
• Cuisine: World Cuisine
• Diet: Vegetarian

Vegetarian mushroom wellington makes a fantastic centerpiece on your holiday table. It is prepared with a simple thyme mushroom-chestnut filling wrapped inside a flaky puff pastry. Serve with cranberry sauce and a red wine to make it more festive!

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Ingredients

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• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 1 Tablespoon (15g) unsalted butter
• 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar, divided
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 10 ounces (about 4 cups/280g) brown mushrooms, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 5.3 ounces (150g) cooked chestnuts
• 100g baby spinach ( approx. 3 ⅓ cups)
• 3 Tablespoons fine breadcrumbs
• ⅓ cup (40g) walnuts, chopped
• 1 x 500g sheet of puff pastry*
• 1 medium egg beaten

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Instructions

1. Melt butter in a large saute pan. Once melted, add the onions and cook over medium heat until soft. Add one Tablespoon balsamic vinegar and stir well until the liquid has evaporated. Continue to cook until caramelized, stirring from time to time. This process can take up to 15-20 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and leave to cool.
2. Wipe the large saute pan to reuse. Heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil and once hot, add the mushrooms and cook until soft, about 2-3 minutes. Add garlic, thyme, stir, and cook for one additional minute. Pour the remaining balsamic vinegar and cook until the liquid has evaporated.
3. Crumble the chestnuts into the pan, then add the spinach and cook until wilted. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Remove the mixture from the pan and transfer to the large mixing bowl with the onions. Add breadcrumbs, walnuts and mix everything together well. Place in the refrigerator to cool down for 30 minutes. This is an important step to avoid a mess with a too warm filling in contact of the puff pastry when shaping the wellington.
5. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
6. Roll out the puff pastry. Add the mushroom filling along the center of the pastry and using clean hands shape into a sausage shape.
7. To assemble, lift one side of the puff pastry over the mushroom filling to almost completely cover it. Brush the surface of the puff pastry covering the mushrooms with the beaten egg. Lift the remaining puff pastry flap over the egg-washed puff pastry, gently stretching it if need be to create a second layer of puff pastry on top, then gently press the top layer of pastry onto the lower layer using your fingertips to seal. Brush the insides of the short ends of the puff pastry and press to seal.
8. Brush the exposed puff pastry on top with the remaining beaten egg. Using a very sharp knife, create a cross-hatch pattern by gently slicing through only the top layer of puff pastry in parallel lines, then cutting parallel lines in another direction.
9. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and completely cooked. Remove from the oven and leave to cool slightly before transferring to a serving dish.

Notes

* If you have some time ahead of you (think days), you can make puff pastry from scratch following my step-by-step tutorial.

Christmas, Fall, Main Dishes, Mushrooms, Sides, Thanksgiving, Vegetarian, Videos, Winter

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