Beef Wellington

1. Pulse the mushrooms with some seasoning in a food processor to a rough paste, then cook in a pan over high heat for about 10 minutes, tossing often, to drive off the moisture. Spread out on a plate to cool.
2. Heat a frying pan with a little olive oil, season the beef and sear for 30 seconds on each side, just to colour it rather than cook it. Remove and leave to cool, then brush all over with the mustard.
3. Lay a sheet of cling film on the work surface and arrange the Parma ham in slightly overlapping rows. Spread the mushroom paste over the ham with a palette knife, then set the seared fillet in the middle. Holding the cling film tight, roll the ham and mushrooms around the beef into a firm barrel, twisting the ends to secure, and chill for 15 to 20 minutes to set the shape.
4. Roll out the puff pastry on a floured surface into a large rectangle about the thickness of a one-pound coin. Unwrap the beef and lay it in the centre, brush the surrounding pastry with egg yolk, fold the ends over and wrap the pastry around the beef, trimming any excess. Turn it seam side down onto a baking sheet, brush all over with egg and chill for about 15 minutes.
5. Heat the oven to 200C/400F/gas 6. Lightly score the pastry at 1cm intervals, glaze again with egg yolk and bake for 20 minutes, then lower to 180C/350F/gas 4 and cook for a further 15 minutes.
6. Rest for 10 to 15 minutes before slicing and serving. The beef should still be pink in the centre.

Tips from the ZestyPlate Kitchen

• Cook the mushroom duxelles until it is completely dry; any leftover moisture will turn the pastry soggy.
• Sear the beef hard and fast purely to colour it. It finishes cooking inside the pastry.
• Rolling the coated fillet tightly in cling film and chilling it sets the shape so it holds together once wrapped.
• Rest it for 10 to 15 minutes after baking so the juices settle before you cut in.