This Mushroom Wellington is so stunning, it’s worthy to crown your holiday table. Savoury mushroom filling is flavoured with roasted garlic, thyme and Parmesan cheese, then baked in flaky puff pastry, it was created for vegetarians but is also loved by carnivores!
Serve it with our Port Cranberry Sauce and Herb and Garlic Mashed Potatoes.
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Vegetarian Thanksgiving Recipes
I often hear from my vegetarian friends that despite turkey being the main attraction of the Thanksgiving and Christmas table, they love the holiday food! And I get it.
When else do we get to enjoy such an array of magnificent side dishes. Homemade and made entirely from scratch Green Bean Casserole and Herb and Garlic Mashed Potatoes are just a few of my personal favourites!
What my friends are saying is that they skip the turkey and enjoy the vegetarian sides. I am not sure about you but it doesn’t seem fair to me. So I set out to create a show stopping vegetarian main dish to delight my veggie readers and friends.
Mushroom en Croûte
I am very excited and quite proud to introduce this fabulous vegetarian dish. Made from three types of mushrooms, green lentils, roasted chestnuts, mixed nuts and Parmesan cheese, this Wellington is truly glorious.
Our mushroom loving family and our next door neighbours enjoyed it on several occasions. Yes, I tested this recipe a few times to get to this perfection!
Although I called this recipe ‘Mushroom Wellington’, ‘Mushroom en Croûte’ will work as well, adding a little French sophistication along the way. Both terms refer to a dish that has been wrapped in pastry and then baked in an oven.
The process is one that can be learned easily enough, although it definitely gets easier to do the wrapping with a little practice. The challenge is that it is difficult to know whether the ingredients inside the pastry has been cooked all the way through, which is why a trustworthy recipe is invaluable.
I am no stranger to cooking in this way. My Ground Beef Wellington is a well loved recipe in our house, much easier than classic Beef Wellington and highly favoured by our readers. And Vegetarian Lentil and Butternut Squash Wellington has plenty of fans!
Our Salmon Wellington aka Salmon en Croute is an elegant dish that will make any dinner feel special. Making a vegetarian version seemed like the right way to go.
How to Make It
The filling for this dish is no different from a mushroom loaf. The only difference is you wrap it in prepared puff pastry and bake. This way a humble looking loaf transforms into a stunning main dish, which is fit for your festive table.
What makes it a great holiday dish is the preparation method requires chilling before baking. You can make the filling the night before, then wrap it in puff pastry and bake on the day of the celebration. Stress free cooking indeed!
To make the savoury filling I combined the chestnut aka cremini, portobello and porcini mushrooms for maximum flavour. I roasted the first two with a head of garlic and thyme leaves. Then I reconstituted dried porcini mushrooms and added them to the mix as well.
Other ingredients, that went into the filling, had two purposes
- Enhance the Flavour and Texture (thyme, roasted garlic, red wine, Parmesan, roasted chestnuts, mixed nuts)
- Bind the Loaf (lentils, breadcrumbs)
Recipe tips and notes
- For the best combination of flakiness and good taste, always choose all butter puff pastry.
- You can make puff pastry if you are feeling ambitious, but store-bought puff pastry makes this a far easier recipe. And be sure to brush with egg wash. Egg-washed puff pastry is the only way to get that lovely golden colour!
- While the scoring of the puff pastry does make the finished dish far more attractive, it is important for other reasons as well. The slits allow moisture to escape and prevent the Wellington from bursting as it bakes. The traditional method is to use diagonal slits forming a crisscross pattern. Choose a very sharp This is an affiliate link.knife to make this a far neater, easier job.
- You’ll get best results with the pastry if it is allowed to warm up slightly before use. You want it to warm up enough that it is pliable but not all the way to room temperature. Don’t let it warm up too much though as it will prevent flaky layers from developing. Place the puff pastry sheet on parchment paper to make it easier to work with.
- This recipe was created with vegetarians in mind, but it can also be tweaked for vegans. For Vegan Mushroom Wellington, use aquafaba or another substitute for egg wash, as well as vegan butter and vegan puff pastry to ensure that dairy isn’t part of the dish. Both should be available in most large grocery stores. Also leave out the Parmesan cheese.
- If you making this for only one or two people, it may make more sense to make individual sized portions. It’s likely that you will have a couple portions leftover, so store them unbaked wrapped in plastic wrap and use within a couple of days. Or freeze them for up to three months.
- For more complex flavour, choose a mixture of mushrooms for your mixture. I used a mixture of cremini/chestnut mushrooms, porcini and portobello mushrooms, but there are plenty of other varieties to choose from. Shiitake and chanterelle are both fantastic types of mushroom with plenty of flavour.
- If you are using a This is an affiliate link.food processor, be careful not to chop the mushrooms too finely. You want to have some texture left, so don’t let it turn into a paste.
- Mixed nuts can be used for the stuffing, but choosing a single nut variety is a good way to subtly change the flavour. Walnuts are wonderfully seasonal if you are making this for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
- A great way to limit the work on the day you plan to serve this mushroom wellington is to make the mushroom mixture the day before. You will need to let it cool anyway, so may as well happen while you sleep!
Serving suggestions
We highly recommend serving this vegetarian Wellington with our Port Cranberry Sauce. The sweet and tart taste of the sauce bring a perfect balance to the deep and earthy flavour of the mushrooms. They are a match made in heaven!
You can also half this recipe and make this Mushroom Wellington into small individual bakes if you have only a couple of vegetarians at the table.
Or make the full version and serve slices of this delicious Wellington as a side dish to your meat loving friends and family. We are sure there won’t be any leftovers!
Storage and leftovers
This Wellington will last for a short while when stored in a refrigerator in an airtight container or under plastic wrap. But the pastry will start to get soggy so it should be eaten within a day or two.
It can be reheated in an oven that has been pre-heated to 180 degrees for 15 minutes, or until it is hot throughout.
But an air fryer will work even better than an oven, which are ideal for making the pastry crisp again. I cut mine into pieces and reheated it at 180 degrees for 10 minutes.
More Vegetarian Holiday Dishes
- Sweet Potato and Swede (Rutabaga) Mash
- Roasted Carrots with Garlic Lemon Tahini Sauce
- Balsamic Glazed Beets with Goat Cheese and Mint
- Festive Red Cabbage Slaw
Mushroom Wellington Recipe (Vegetarian)
Equipment
- This is an affiliate link.Food processor
- This is an affiliate link.Knife
Ingredients
- 500g/16oz mushrooms chestnut/cremini and portobello mix
- 3 tbsp This is an affiliate link.olive oil divided
- 6-8 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 head garlic small
- 1 onion chopped
- 135g/1 cup canned or cooked green lentils
- 20g/1/4 cup dried porcini mushrooms
- 125ml/1/2 cup dry red wine
- 4 tbsp mushroom liquid from reconstituted dried porcini
- 50g/1/3 cup cooked chestnuts store bought
- 50g/2/3 cup mixed nuts chopped
- 50g/ ½ cup dried breadcrumbs
- 50g/ ½ cup This is an affiliate link.Parmesan cheese grated
- 350g/ 13 oz puff pastry one package
- 1 egg for brushing
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. In a small bowl soak the dried porcini mushrooms in 125ml/1/2 cup of boiling water for 15-20 minutes. In a roasting pan combine the fresh mushrooms with the olive oil, thyme and salt. Cut the top of a small head of garlic to expose the cloves, wrap the garlic in aluminum foil and place in the same pan as the mushrooms. Roast in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, then take the mushrooms out but leave the head of garlic for 10 minutes longer or until the garlic is soft. Let the mushrooms and the roasted garlic cool slightly until needed.
- While the mushrooms are roasting, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan and sauté the chopped onion over low heat with 2-3 sprigs of thyme or ¼ tsp of dried thyme. Add the drained lentils, drained and chopped reconstituted porcini mushrooms, chopped nuts, a pinch of salt, red wine and the liquid from the dried mushrooms. Bring to a boil and let it simmer over low-medium until most of the liquid has evaporated for 5-7 minutes.
- Add the roasted mushrooms and peeled garlic cloves to a food processor and pulse until the mixture is minced and but still has some texture. Alternatively, you can mince the mushrooms and the roasted garlic by hand if you don't have a food processor.
- To the same pan add the breadcrumbs, grated Parmesan cheese, mixed nuts and the minced roasted garlic and mushrooms mixture. Mix to combine, then add salt and pepper to taste. The mixture should be moist but not wet. (Watch the video for the texture guidance.) Remove to a bowl and cool completely. (This could be done overnight)
- On a floured surface roll out the puff pastry into a rectangle of ¼ inch thickness or use already rolled puff pastry. Add the mushroom mixture to the centre of the rectangle and form into a log, leaving 1 inch border on the shorter sides to seal. Brush all 4 sides with a beaten egg. Pick up the long sides of the puff pastry sheet and wrap them around the mushroom log making sure the edges overlap, then seal by pressing on the edge with a fork dipped into a beaten egg.
- Carefully transfer the Wellington on a parchment paper lined baking pan placing it seam down. Then brush with the egg wash all over. Score with a sharp knife to form an attractive pattern. (Crisscross is a classic pattern used for Wellingtons or you can decorate as you wish.) Bake in the preheated 200C/400F oven for 40-45 minutes until golden. Cool for 10 minutes before slicing.
Video
Notes
- For the best combination of flakiness and good taste, always choose all butter puff pastry.
- Store-bought puff pastry makes this a far easier recipe. And be sure to brush with egg wash. Egg-washed puff pastry is the only way to get that lovely golden colour!
- While the scoring of the puff pastry does make the finished dish far more attractive, the slits also allow moisture to escape and prevent the Wellington from bursting as it bakes. Choose a very sharp knife to make this a far neater, easier job.
- You’ll get best results with the pastry if it is allowed to warm up slightly before use. You want it to warm up enough that it is pliable but not all the way to room temperature. Don’t let it warm up too much though as it will prevent flaky layers from developing. Place the puff pastry sheet on parchment paper to make it easier to work with.
- This recipe was created with vegetarians in mind, but it can also be tweaked for vegans. Use aquafaba or another substitute for egg wash, as well as vegan butter and vegan puff pastry to ensure that dairy isn’t part of the dish. Also leave out the Parmesan cheese.
- For more complex flavour, choose a mixture of mushrooms for your mixture. I used a mixture of chestnut/cremini and portobello mushrooms, but there are plenty of other varieties to choose from.
- If you are using a food processor, be careful not to chop the mushrooms too finely. You want to have some texture left, so don’t let it turn into a paste.
- A great way to limit the work on the day you plan to serve this Wellington is to make the mushroom mixture the day before.
