what, you ask, is beef freddington? well, it is what you get when you adapt beef wellington by removing the mushrooms. this recipe is probably the most ambitious thing i have ever cooked (and certainly the fanciest), and i created it the day after thanksgiving (by special request from my sister). she wanted beef wellington but hates mushrooms (and frankly, who can blame her for that).
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| selfie! |
after reviewing the all-knowing internet, i found ways to adapt the recipe to remove mushrooms...but most resources vehemently declared that removing the mushrooms effectively makes it something other than "beef wellington." so my sister said that i could call it "beef freddington." i think this works just fine.
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| because you sometimes need to eat something other than turkey the day after thanksgiving |
the basis for my recipe comes from chef gordon ramsay's beef wellington recipe (see video
here and recipe
here), to which i made various adaptations. it's not a terribly difficult recipe to follow, but the preparation is a little time-consuming.
ingredients:
- about 1.5 pounds beef tenderloin (yeah, this is xpnsv)
- proscuitto (i used 6 slices)
- english mustard
- one small eggplant
- package of raw chestnuts (approximately 1 pound unshelled)
- 2 cloves garlic
- puff pastry (i used two sheets of frozen pastry)
- 1/2 granny smith apple
- rosemary and thyme
- salt/pepper
- 2 egg yolks
- olive oil
preparation:
i roasted (and shelled) the beforehand using instructions found
online, which turned out to be a good thing. shelling chestnuts is very time-consuming, and it makes ones thumbs hurt after awhile. i ended up with about a quart of shelled nuts.
i salted/peppered the tenderloin, put olive oil in a
hot cast-iron pan, and seared the meat just enough to get a nice caramelized color on all sides (including top and bottom). as a hint, pressing the meat up against the side of the pan helps provide a nice sear. remove the meat from the stove and brush english mustard on the entire tenderloin. set aside to cool while preparing the duxelles.
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| you might think it's too much mustard...but it is not |
the duxelles is the filling between the puff pastry and the meat (apparently used as a tasty moisture barrier). where normally it's made of minced mushrooms, i made my own version. mix the (chopped) eggplant, half a granny smith apple, the garlic, and the chestnuts and blitz together with salt/pepper in a food processor. i made a rather coarse mixture, but i think it would work better to make a very fine mixture. cook the mixture in a hot, dry pan (maybe medium heat) to help dry out any remaining moisture. i also added fresh rosemary and dried thyme. once the mixture is starting to brown (it took maybe 10-15 minutes), remove the duxelles from the pan and set aside to cool.
using a long sheet of cling wrap as a platform (leave it on the roll), take the proscuitto and overlap it a rectangle. i made my rectangle to rows of three. add a little black pepper. once the duxelles are cooled, spread them on the proscuitto (leaving a clear edge of approximately 1/2" around the perimeter). put the beef in the center and use the cling wrap to fold the proscuitto/duxelles around it. tightly wrap the cling wrap around the beef (squeezing the ends together to create a log). refrigerate for about 15 minutes to allow it to get firm.
encase the beef in puff pastry; i had to connect my two sheets of puff pastry together to get something long enough to fully encase the freddington. trim any excess pastry (use it for dessert! i cut it into squares, brushed with butter, added a little jam or honey/nuts, twisted the tops together, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, and baked at 400°F for about 15 minutes) and twist the ends of the freddington together.
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| yummy |
again, tightly wrap the freddington in cling wrap and return the cylinder to the fridge. i did my prep in the morning and didn't cook it until evening, so i left it there awhile. apparently this is something that you can prepare in advance for dinner parties or whatever.
when you're ready to cook, remove the freddington from the fridge and brush with egg yolk (i mixed the two egg yolks with a little water to make it easier to brush on). for decorative purposes, use the back of the knife to create a line down the spine of the freddington, and then twist the knife down the sides to create a ribbing effect. sprinkle the top with a little salt.
bake in the oven at 400°F for approximately 35 minutes or so. the meat shouldn't be overcooked, so you're looking for a nice rare to mid-rare. i used a meat thermometer to tell me when the internal temperature was approximately 125°F. remove from the oven and let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.
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| almost a pretzel texture on the very outside |
verdict:
this was totally worth the effort. the aroma as i sliced the freddington was amazing; there was a sweetness (probably the chestnuts and the apple), but it wasn't overly sweet. the eggplant was hard to distinguish, which makes me think that mushrooms may not be noticeable if they were used, either. the english mustard (used because it has more of a kick than regular mustard) isn't overpowering, but you can definitely taste it on the palate. obviously, the middle of the roast was a little more rare than the edges, but everything was exceedingly tender.
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| so good... |
i would make a few changes to the recipe in the future, though:
- as i noted previously, i would chop the duxelles a little finer in the future, and i might use a little more apple.
- for future wrapping purposes, i would probably also overlap the cling wrap; the roast was a little longer than i had anticipated, so there wasn't quite enough width of cling wrap to effectively roll the freddington. having a doubled width would make that a non-issue.
- i'd also do a better job putting the puff pastry sheets together. as you can see below, there was a slight split in the seam.
- i would also roast this on a baking rack (as opposed to directly in a pan). despite the moisture barrier of the duxelles, there were still some juices that the puff pastry sat in, and cooking on a rack would prevent that slight sogginess.
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| it split =( |
