Vegetarian Porcini Wellington With Red Wine Reduction Recipe

Perhaps the only dish more elegant than a filet mignon is a flaky, savory, tender beef Wellington. The Wellington, nobly named after Great Britain's first Duke of Wellington, is a classic entree consisting of three parts: A perfectly pink beef tenderloin, a savory mixture of mushroom duxelles, and a flaky golden puff pastry. Wrapped together, the combination makes for a stunning centerpiece that tastes just as good as it looks.

The only problem with beef Wellington is that it isn't vegetarian. How can you recreate such a complicated dish without its main component? Developer Michelle McGlinn offers a solution: Instead of the duxelles being only a layer of the Wellington, the mushrooms become the main attraction. With a mix of portabella and porcini mushrooms sauteed with rosemary, thyme, shallots, and vegetarian Worcestershire sauce, the mushroom mixture is an intensely flavorful filling that deserves to be the star of the show. It's enclosed in a garlicky parsnip puree and braided puff pastry. Just like a traditional beef Wellington, this vegetarian version is a multi-step recipe that requires time and patience — but with such show-stopping results, it's worth the effort. So save this one for a special occasion (one with plenty of vegetarians present) as a dish that everyone can enjoy.

The ingredient list might look lengthy, but don't worry: Many of the ingredients are pantry staples that are used multiple times. For example, you'll need butter, eggs, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Some other ingredients you might have on hand already include Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, shallot, garlic, and lemon. To make this recipe vegetarian, be sure to find vegetarian Worcestershire sauce, as the traditional version often has anchovies and is not suited for many diets. If you can't find vegan Worcestershire sauce, you can always make your own. From there, you'll need to head to the produce aisles and grab 1 pound of portabella mushrooms and 2 ounces of dried porcinis, which will rehydrate to about a pound. While you're in the produce aisle, grab thyme, rosemary, and parsnips.

To finish the Wellington and reduction, you'll just need a frozen puff pastry, walnuts, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, and a bottle of pinot noir. You won't need the entire bottle, so buy something you can enjoy later — and if that's not pinot noir for you, swap for a dry cabernet sauvignon.

Place the porcini mushrooms in a bowl and cover with at least 2 cups of hot water. Soak until reconstituted, about 30 minutes.

In the meantime, pulse the walnuts in a food processor until very finely chopped. Remove and reserve.

Once the porcini mushrooms are soft, strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer and reserve.

Pat the mushrooms completely dry.

Working in batches, add the porcini mushrooms and portabella mushrooms to a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped.

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.

Add the chopped shallot and mushrooms to the skillet and cook until mushrooms are browned and the shallot is soft and fragrant, about 5 minutes.

Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 more minute.

Stir in the tomato paste and cook until the paste begins to stick to the bottom of the pot, about 3 minutes.

Add the Worcestershire, then add ½ cup of reserved porcini broth, thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper.

Simmer until the liquid is completely reduced, about 10 minutes.

Add the finely chopped walnuts and stir to combine.

Remove from the heat and transfer to a mixing bowl.

Allow to cool, then add the egg and breadcrumbs and mix to combine.

Place a piece of plastic wrap on your work surface and add the mushroom mixture to the center.

Shape the mixture into a cylindrical log shape, then wrap in the plastic wrap. Chill until completely cooled, about 30 minutes.

In the meantime, make the parsnip puree. Add the parsnips to a pot and cover with water. Boil until fork-tender, about 20 minutes.

Once soft, add to a blender with the olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and garlic.

Blend until completely smooth, adding oil slowly if needed.

Once blended, stir in the Parmesan until melted and smooth.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Unfold the thawed puff pastry onto a lightly-floured work surface.

Smooth the pureed parsnip across the bottom of the pastry approximately the same size as the mushroom log.

Place the chilled mushroom log on top of the parsnip puree.

Smooth the remaining parsnip puree over the log.

Make 1-inch diagonal incisions in the puff pastry along the sides of the log.

Fold the ends inwards, then braid the sides inward, one over the other, across the top of the pastry.

Brush completely with egg wash.

Place in the oven and bake for 50 minutes, or until pastry is golden and flaky.

To make the reduction, heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.

Add the shallots and cook to soften, about 2 minutes.

Add the wine and stock and bring to a boil. Add the thyme and boil until reduced to ⅓ its volume, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Strain through a mesh strainer, then return to the saucepan.

Add the butter and whisk to combine. Add the nutmeg, then season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve, slice Wellington and drizzle with reduction.

Braiding the crust of the Wellington is easier than it seems, but getting it just right might take a few tries (and that's okay). With a gentle hand, you can braid and re-braid the pastry a few times without issue. To begin, make 1-inch incisions in the pastry along the sides of the mushroom log. Slice straight lines at either end and fold the ends upwards and over the mushroom log. With the ends folded in, start at the top and fold the sliced pastry tightly over the log at an angle. Continue with the other side, firmly wrapping the pastry around the mushrooms, only overlapping the very tip of each braided piece. If you run out of pastry before reaching the end of the mushroom log, slice away the extra mushroom, reshape the log to match the other end, and refold the pastry over the new end.

If you're in a rush or simply don't want to braid the Wellington, you can also do a more classic finish with the puff pastry. To do this, assemble the parsnip puree and mushroom filling onto the puff pastry, placing the flat side of the mushroom log facing up. Fold the short sides of the pastry inward, then fold the long sides over the mushroom log and pinch to close. With the mushroom fully enclosed, flip the Wellington over and slice diagonal lines across the top of the Wellington for venting. Then, brush with egg wash and bake as directed.

The mushrooms called for this recipe were chosen for their deep umami flavor and for how harmoniously they work with both red wine and parsnips. As a plus, the dried porcinis maximize the mushroom flavor with their reconstitution water, which we use as a flavorful stock. What can you use if you can't find dried mushrooms or an entire pound of large portobello, though? Luckily, there are many types of mushrooms that will work in this recipe. 

The easiest swap for portobello mushrooms is baby bella, or crimini, mushrooms. These will be smaller versions of the big guys, with a similar enough flavor and price point. Swapping for porcini is a little bit tougher, but you can achieve a similar flavor with shiitake, chanterelles, or a dried gourmet mix (which are all a little easier to find). You can also keep it simple and use 2 pounds of just one type of mushroom or a mix of portobello and baby bellas rather than adding dried. Since you won't have the mushroom stock from soaking the dried mushrooms, just swap for vegetable broth — the flavor will just be less intensely mushroomy.