This recipe started out life very differently. I was working on a new Beet Burger recipe (don’t worry – you’ll see it this week, it’s amazing!) and had a shock of inspiration. Big meals like Christmas and Thanksgiving can be tricky for vegans as there are few big, dramatic centrepieces to build a fancy roast meal around. A lot of those that do exist are impressions of meat, like vegan friendly roast turkey. Now I have no problem with these dishes, but I wanted a dish that was both vegan and gluten free while elevating vegetables to the centrepiece.
My trial beet burger was meaty and interesting enough that it could happily stand as the star of the show on taste but needed a fancy coat for special occasions. So we come to a wellington, a big beautiful beetroot roast, coated in a chestnut and chard duxelle, all wrapped in some gluten free puff pastry. By itself the wellington is wonderfully tasty but what takes it to another level entirely is the peppercorn sauce. Creamy enough that your guests won’t guess it’s vegan, the mix of peppery bite and soothing cream will lift your beetroot wellington to a dish worthy of any special occasion.
Make it for Christmas, for my american friends – it’s perfect for thanksgiving, it’s so easy to make for a crowd, and equally wonderful for your next date night (make two individual wellingtons, the process is the same and you’ll just charm the socks off your other half).
A small note on why I’m just so stoked to have this recipe for Christmas, even though I know it’s too close to begin planning for! The secret to a perfect, stress-free Christmas feast is planning ahead. Do as much as you can in advance and the event on the day will be so much easier to juggle. This wellington, it loves to be made in stages, or prepped in advance. In fact it works better if you do. The filling needs to be chilled before wrapped in pastry and the pastry cooks better if it’s also chilled. So make up the filling one day, wrap in the pastry just before you head to bed the night before and it’ll be ready to pop in the oven when you’re ready for it on the day – all very relaxed.
Let me know how you get on with your big night!
- Makes: Serves 6-8
Ingredients
For the Beetroot Roast:
- 1 Small Carrot, chopped
- 1 Onion, chopped
- 1/2 Celery stick, chopped
- 2 Garlic Cloves, minced
- 1/2 tsp Rosemary
- 1/2 tsp Thyme
- 30ml Vegetable Stock
- 1/2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
- 30g Walnuts
- 240g Cooked Beetroot*
- 1 tsp Paprika
- 1/2 tsp Ground White Pepper
- 1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast
- 1 1/2 Tbsp Tapioca Starch
- 35g Gluten Free Breadcrumbs**
- 1/2 tsp Yeast Extract
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 125g Kidney Beans, cooked
- 1/2 Tbsp Tahini
- 1 Tbsp Dried Cranberries
- 1/2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
- 15g Ground Almonds
- 1/2 Tbsp Vegan Worcester Sauce
- 45g Chickpea Flour
- Salt & Pepper to taste
For the Chard & Chestnut Duxelle:
- 180g Chestnuts, cooked
- 1 Red Onion, finely diced
- 70g Mushrooms
- 10g Dried Shitake Mushrooms, soaked
- 200g Chard
- 1 Tbsp Rosemary
- 1 Tbsp Thyme
- 1/4 tsp Chilli Flakes
- 250ml Vegetable Stock
- Salt & Pepper to taste
For the Wellington:
- 500g Gluten Free Puff Pastry***
- Plant Based Milk (for brushing)
- Poppy Seeds, to garnish
For the Creamy Peppercorn Sauce:
- 150g Cashews, Soaked
- 375ml Vegetable Stock
- 1 Tbsp Black Peppercorns
- 2 small red onions, finely diced
- 1 Garlic Clove, minced
- 15g Vegan Butter
- 1 1/2 tsp Vegan Worcester Sauce
- Salt to taste
Directions
To prepare the Beetroot Roast; Start of by sauteing the carrot, onion and celery on a medium heat until softened and just starting to brown. Add the minced garlic, rosemary, and thyme and continue to cook until fragrant and lightly browned throughout. Deglaze the pan with a touch of stock before adding the rest of the stock and balsamic vinegar. Simmer until reduced by half and put to one side.
Place the beetroot and nuts into a food processor and blend until chunky. Put the flours and breadcrumbs to one side before adding the rest of the beetroot roast ingredients to the food processor. Blend until mostly smooth, some small chunks are fine and add interest to the texture. Season to taste before stirring in the flours and breadcrumbs. Place in the fridge to chill.
Preheat the oven to 180° C (170 Fan/ 355° F) and line a baking tray with a piece of baking paper. Shape your beetroot mix into a evenly shaped log on the tray before spritzng lightly with oil and roasting for 30 – 45 minutes, the roast should be crisp around the edges and cooked though. Place into the fridge to chill thoroughly before using the roast.
To prepare the duxelle: Finely dice the chestnuts and mushrooms. Strip the stalks from the chard and dice before roughly chopping the leaves, put the leaves to one side. Heat a wide bottomed pan on a medium to high heat with a touch of oil. When the pan is hot add in the chestnuts, mushrooms, onion, and chard stalks. Saute until the onions have softened and the chard begins to brown. Add the herbs and just enough stock to barely cover. Simmer uncovered, for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the chard is cooked and the stock has reduced to a thick sauce at the bottom at the pan. Turn the heat up and stir through the chard leaves, stirring constantly until wilted. Season to taste and set aside in the fridge to chill.
Assembly: Make sure both the beetroot roast and duxelle are completely chilled before assembling. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees (200 fan/ 425 F). Shape a quarter of the duxelle into a rectangle similar in shape to your roast in the centre of the puff pastry. Place the beetroot roast on top. Now coat the roast with the duxelle mix in an even layer, pressing lightly with your hands. Now cover with a slightly larger square of pastry, sealing with a brush of water. Crimp the edges with a fork and make sure to add a hole in the top to allow the steam to escape. If you have leftover scraps of pastry, now is the time to use these as decoration. Brush with milk and sprinkle with poppy seeds before placing onto a tray. Place into the oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
For the peppercorn sauce: Blend the cashews with 250ml of the stock until smooth and similar to single cream. Crush the peppercorns, either using a pestle and mortar or pop them in a zip lock bag and crush with the base of a frying pan. Melt the butter over medium heat, if you’re using the same pan that you cooked the duxelle in then deglaze the pan with just a touch of stock. Fry the onions until fragrant and translucent. Add in the garlic and peppercorns and fry for a minute or so until the garlic just starts to brown. Pour in the worcester sauce along with the rest of the stock, then turn the heat down low and stir in the cashew cream and season to taste. The cashew cream will thicken the longer it’s exposed to the heat so remove from the heat as soon as it’s warmed through. It’ll thicken slightly as it cools but should have a texture similar to single cream.
Serve your wellington with the peppercorn sauce on the side.
Notes
* If you’ve picked up raw beetroot then scrub, trim off the ends, season generously, and toss in a little oil before wrapping in foil. Bake in an oven at 200 degrees (190 Fan/400 F) for about an hour depending on the size of your beetroot. When cooked, a knife should slip easy into the beetroot.
** I make my own breadcrumbs from old bits of Gluten Free bread – just blend a few old bits of bread in a food processor or blender. Breadcrumbs can be easily frozen until needed.
***Most shop bought pastry is vegan unless it states otherwise – but don’t forget to check your packaging to make sure!
Allergy Notes; This dish is vegan, gluten free and soy free.
