Vegan Mushroom Wellington

Mushroom Wellington is the ultimate main dish for your Christmas dinner! Made with hearty portobellos, spinach, and puff pastry, it will please everyone at your holiday table this year, no matter what their dietary preference. This recipe is easy to make and it’s vegan.

Mushroom Wellington

I have a confession to make: I don’t like working with dough. I don’t know why. When I do have to create a pie crust, which I’ve had to do for my cookbooks, it’s not bad at all. But I have some sort of mental block around mixing ingredients and then rolling them out.

So, for that reason, while I’ve always drooled over photos of vegan wellingtons on other blogs, I never actually made one. Until I was writing The Big Book of Vegan Cooking and I wanted to include a tasty holiday dish. The idea was daunting, but I was up to the challenge. I looked around at omnivore recipes and noticed that most of them use store-bought puff pastry. Why hadn’t I thought of that sooner?

What is a Wellington?

Yes, wellingtons are what the Brits call rain boots, but we’re not eating footwear here.

Beef wellington is an English dish that’s made out of steak, pâté, and finely chopped mushrooms wrapped in puff pastry. Not very vegan. Sometimes even more meat is wrapped around the steak to keep the pastry from getting soggy. Ick!

Rumor has it that it was named after Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, but no one knows for sure.

Wellingtons are super easy to veganize, using seitan, lentils, or veggies. Mushrooms work really great, which is what I’ve used here.

Puff Pastry

Not all puff pastry is vegan, so make sure you check the ingredients list on the back. The brands my local Whole Foods carries all contain butter, but I was able to find egg and dairy free puff pastry at ShopRite. I used Pepperidge Farm pastry for these photos.

Vegan Wine

You would think fermented grapes would be vegan, but not all are. Animal products are sometimes used in the filtration process. You can check Barnivore.com to see if your wine is vegan, or you can contact the manufacturer. I like to use L’Auratae, which says it’s vegan right on the label.

If you don’t want to use wine, you can use vegetable or mushroom stock.

How to Make Mushroom Wellington

Trust me when I tell you that this recipe is easier to make than you would think!

• First you preheat your oven to 400° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Then you cook the onion in a large pan over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes.
• When your onion begins to soften, you add the mushrooms and garlic and cook everything for about 5 more minutes, or until the mushrooms start to soften.
• Next you add the wine, vinegar, mustard, rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper to the pan, and cook, stirring occasionally, until all of the liquid has been absorbed, about 10 more minutes.
• Now you add the spinach and cook for another minute or two, until it wilts.
• Use a rolling pin to roll your puff pastry out until it’s about 9 x 13-inches. It’s okay if it’s not exact.
• Place the puff pastry sheet on your baking sheet and spoon the mushroom mixture down the center.
• Next you fold the ends of the pastry sheet over the mushrooms and seal the edges by pressing them together.
• You now carefully flip the pastry so that the seam is on the bottom and use a paring knife to gently score the top of the pastry in a crisscross pattern.
• Now you brush the top of the pastry with the a little oil
• Bake you Wellington for for 30 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Let your Wellington cool for a few minutes before slicing and serving.

The Big Book of Vegan Cooking

This recipe is from my cookbook The Big Book of Vegan Cooking, which is now available in hardcover – just in time for holiday gift giving!

The Big Book of Vegan Cooking came out earlier this year, and I’m excited that it’s now available in hardcover. It contains 175 — yes, 175! — recipes, so it seems fitting that it would be hardcover book.

I’ve included a few easy recipes for those new to plant-based cooking and a bunch of veganized omnivore favorites, as well as some fun dishes I created myself. With the exception of maybe miso and nutritional yeast, most of the ingredients I used are easy to find in most grocery stores.

You’ll find recipes such as Broccoli Bac’Un Pizza, Popcorn Tofu, Miso Glazed Eggplant, Penne à la Vodka, Ooey-Gooey Magic Cookie Bars, and so much more! I’ve even included DIY pantry basics, so you can make you’re on almond milk, ranch dressing, and seitan, if you feel so inclined.

Mushroom Wellington

Dianne

To those of us in the U.S., a pie is a sweet treat with fruit, chocolate, or cream baked into a flakey, cup-shaped crust. But in England, pies tend to be savory, usually made with meat that’s been wrapped in pastry. Beef Wellington is a U.K. favorite, and it’s super easy to veganize using hearty portobellos. I like to make this recipe for holidays and special occasions, and sometimes those special occasions include random Thursdays.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 55 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 6 servings

Calories 321 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 tablespoons neutral-flavored vegetable oil divided
• 1 yellow onion diced
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 6 large portobello mushrooms stems trimmed, cut into 1-inch thick slices (approx.)
• ¼ cup dry red wine
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 5 cups loosely packed baby spinach (about 5 ounces)
• 1 sheet puff pastry

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large pan, heat the oil until it shimmers. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, until it beings to soften. Add the garlic and mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms begin to soften, about 5 more minutes.
• Add the wine, vinegar, mustard, rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper to the pan, and cook, stirring occasionally, until all of the liquid has been absorbed, about 10 more minutes. Add the spinach and cook for another minute or two, until it wilts.
• Use a rolling pin to roll out the puff pastry so it’s about 9- x 13-inches. Place it on the prepared baking sheet. Spoon the mushroom mixture down the center third. Fold the ends over the mushrooms, and seal the edges by pressing them together. Carefully flip the pastry so that the seam is on the bottom. Use a paring knife to gently score the top of the pastry in a crisscross pattern. Brush the top of the pastry with the remaining oil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Notes

Tip: Most brands of puff pastry are vegan, but—as with every kind of packaged food—be sure to read the ingredient label when buying it. Follow the package instructions for thawing before making your Wellington.

Excerpts from The Big Book of Vegan Cooking, by Dianne Wenz, published by Rockridge Press. Copyright © 2021 by Callisto Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

Calories: 321kcal | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Fiber: 3g

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Serve your Mushroom Wellington with:

• Mushroom Gravy
• Creamed Pearl Onions and Kale
• Scalloped Potatoes
• Holiday Kale Salad
• Festive Garlicky Roasted Vegetables

Other Recipes from The Big Book of Vegan Cooking include:

• Spicy Tempeh and Green Bean Stir-Fry
• Escarole and White Bean Soup
• White Bean Shakshuka