I know it’s not yet December, but my mind has started to turn to Christmas, and recipes that are a little festive and warming. I live in Dubai, so the weather isn’t exactly cold and doesn’t feel at all festive. Growing up in the UK, Christmas time to me means snow and freezing temperatures. However I like to still try and observe some seasonality so I know where I’m up to in the year.
Last week we actually had a torrential downpour – we get them maybe 2 days a year here. It was completely black outside at midday, and thunder was rolling in the air. It was so dark that I nearly had to switch on my lights. I sat on my sofa as the rain pelted my window and the occasional lightening bolt lit up the room. It was that dark and ominous afternoon, the weather too miserable to venture out, that I got to thinking about making this beautiful portobello mushroom & goat’s cheese wellington.
Even if you are a self-confessed meat eater (as I am) then you’ll still love this recipe. Crispy puff pastry encasing salty and creamy goat’s cheese Sweet red onion marmalade, spinach and all topped by the meatiest of mushrooms, the portobello. If you’ve made a batch of my red onion marmalade then this a great excuse to use some if it.
This is a brilliant recipe that you can easily make for yourself given that it is served in individual portions. It’s also a great idea to make if you have people round for dinner, or Christmas, and you have just one vegetarian guest and don’t want to cook a veggie meal for the entire party. You can easily prep it in advance and keep it uncooked in the fridge for a day or two before cooking.
If you are feeling fancy you can dress this up with puff pastry leaves – just cut them out and score the surface. I made a kind of holly design on mine since I am getting a little excited for Christmas. I tend to use ready made, store bought puff pastry and it works perfectly every time!
Portobello Mushroom & Goat’s Cheese Wellington
Course: DinnerCuisine: VegetarianDifficulty: Medium1
servings30
minutes40
minutes450
kcalPortobello Mushroom & Goat’s Cheese Wellington – a feast for the eyes and the stomach! Crisp puff pastry encloses mushroom, creamy goat’s cheese, spinach and rich red onion marmalade. A perfect treat for one or a great vegetarian option for festive guests this Christmas.
Ingredients
approx. 80g large portobello mushroom, stem removed
40g goat’s cheese
100g puff pastry
a large handful spinach (around 25-30g)
2 tbsp red onion marmalade – see recipe here, or use ready made
large handful of plain flour, for rolling
1 egg, beaten
2 sprigs fresh thyme
Directions
- Heat the oven to 180°C. Place the portobello mushroom on a baking tray and spray with low calorie cooking spray. Place in the oven for 15 minutes. Turn half way through. Once it’s ready transfer the mushroom to a few sheets of kitchen roll to soak up the juices.
- Heat a frying pan over a medium to high heat and add the spinach to wilt. No need for oil – just keep turning continually with tongs to stop it catching
- Dust your worktop and roll the puff pastry into a large, even piece of medium thickness.
- Place the mushroom on the pastry and cut around it leaving around a 2cm margin. Place the pastry circle over another area of the pastry and another circle leaving another 2cm margin from the smaller one. If you are feeling fancy then cut a few pastry leaves out as well.
- Optional: this step helps to make the bottom crisp a little so the bottom of the wellington isn’t soggy. However, it makes it a little harder to assemble. So, it’s up to you if you want a crispy ‘bottom’ or not 🙂 Place the small piece of pastry in the oven on a piece of floured baking paper. Cook for 3-5 minutes. When you remove it, it will likely have puffed up so use a knife to piece and when cooled, flatten.
- Place the wilted spinach on top of the smaller circle.. Then the goat’s cheese. Then the onion marmalade/chutney. Running your finger in the opposite direction of the growth of the leaves, remove the thyme leaves and scatter over the top. Finally top with the portobello mushroom with the rounded side facing upwards.
- Drape the larger pastry piece over the mushroom and carefully pinch the bottom of it together with the smaller pastry piece. Once it is sealed well all round then use a pastry brush to lightly coat the surface with egg. If you felt like being fancy enough to make pastry leaves then top the dome with the leaves and brush them lightly with the egg.
- Place in the oven for 30 minutes. Check halfway through to make sure the dome is browning evenly and rotate if it seems browner on one side than the other. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- I’ve tried to be as accurate as possible with the calorie count for this recipe, for example, by weighing what was left over (not eaten) from the pastry included in the calculation
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