Recipe; Beef Wellington

Serves two
Two 175g fillets of beef
100g mushrooms  chopped very finely, possibly in a food processor
Two shallots chopped very finely
Two cloves of garlic crushed
Two slices of Parma ham
One packet of frozen puff pastry defrosted
Half a bottle of red wine
One litre of good beef stock Vegetable oil for frying
One egg
Butter straight from the fridge
Pre heat the oven to 230C (gas mark 8).

Method

Heat a medium saucepan and, in a little vegetable oil, sweat the shallots and garlic until soft. Add the chopped mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until all the liquid has evaporated and what you are left with is your duxelle.
While the mushrooms are cooking, heat a frying pan and, in a little vegetable oil, sear the fillets of beef on all sides and remove.
Place half the mushroom duxelle on top of each steak and wrap each one in a slice of Parma ham.
Roll out the puff pastry into two pieces and wrap each fillet leaving the folds underneath to make it look neat. In a small bowl, beat the egg and, with a pastry brush, coat each parcel.
Place the parcels on a baking tray and place in the oven on the top shelf for 15 minutes.
Remove and allow to rest for five minutes before serving.
Once the pastry is cooked, this will give you a steak cooked rare.
If you wanted it cooked more like a medium steak, take longer over the sealing, possibly doing it for a total of five minutes before wrapping.
While the fillets are cooking, bring the red wine to the boil in a large saucepan and reduce by two thirds.
Add the stock and reduce until you have a light sauce consistency.
Add a few cubes of butter and shake the pan or stir with a fork whilst it melts, which will result in a slightly thicker, shinier sauce.
This dish goes well with a few roasted new potatoes and some green beans.
Serve the potatoes in the centre of the plate, place the Wellingtons on top and the beans alongside.
Pour the sauce around and serve.