Poor Man's Gourmet Kitchen

Beef Wellington

Beef Wellington… Let’s Talk “Turkey”!

The Beef Wellington is a dish that is dressed to impress any mouth watering steak lover. If you’ve got the time and/or the patience to knock out one of these grass fed puff pastry’s, then I have a fairly inexpensive recipe you can use! Using the Filet for the filling is ideal if you don’t mind shelling out $20+ per pound with your local butcher, but for $7 per pound I think we can settle for the Tenderloin. Already that dumps 2/3 off the regular price of this recipe and that’s what Poor Man’s Gourmet Kitchen is all about!

If you haven’t ever had a Beef Wellington and you don’t really know what it consists of, it breaks down like this. The Beef is first seasoned with salt and pepper, then seared on all sides. Afterwords it is smeared with an English Mustard and Horse Raddish to give it more flavor and heat. Then it’s wrapped in Prosciutto, coated with a Mushroom Duxelles then layered and wrapped with a Puff Pastry and baked to a golden brown. Your internal temperature will depend on how rare you like your beef; at 425 degrees, you should reach an internal temp of 125 degrees within 35 to 40 minutes. This temperature is considered to be Medium Rare so adjust the time accordingly.

So if you’re looking for one of those “knock your socks off” types of recipes for a special occasion, I’d say this is the one for you. The Beef Wellington!

Beef Wellington Ingredients:

Beef Tenderloin
Prosciutto
Mushrooms
Scallions
Parsley
Bell Pepper
Mint Jelly
Mustard/Horseradish
Puff Pastry
Egg Wash
Salt and Pepper

Deep Fried Chimichanga

Fried Chimichanga, Thanks to Hollywood!

When ever I here the word Chimichanga, I think of Dustin Hoffman in “Meet the Fockers”. Now I don’t know How you like your Fried Chimichanga, but I like mine tender yet crispy all at the same time. Now that may sound like a crazy combo, and you may be asking yourself, “How in the world do I do that?” Because you and I both know you can’t get that combination wrapped in plastic in the frozen section. So you’ll have to trust me when I say, It’s all in the tortilla baby!

Regular grocery stores have tortillas falling off the shelves these days because they have so many different kinds. The problem is, it doesn’t matter how many different versions or brands they have because 9 times out of 10, they’re still not selling fresh tortilla’s. Unless you are making them yourself, the only way you’re going to get them fresh is if you get them uncooked from the refrigerated section or straight from the Tortilleria. Personally I prefer the Tortilleria. Why? Because they are light and slightly doughy which leaves more room for cooking. Any thing that comes out of my kitchen when I’m using these tortillas is fresher and tastes like it just came out of a restaurant kitchen. This includes but not limited to, Burritos, Quesadillas and of course a Fried Chimichanga! So now that you understand the importance of starting with a good tortilla, you are well on your way to making an excellent Fried Chimichanga.

Fried Chimichanga Ingredients:

2 part Chopped Beef Chuck
1 part Chorizo
1/4 Bell Pepper
1 Jalapeno
2 Green Onions chopped (Scallions)
1 Pinch Cilantro
2 Garlic Cloves Chopped
1/2 Lime (squeezed)

1 tsp Chili Powder
1 tsp Cumin
Garlic Salt (Goya all purpose seasoning) to taste

Combine all ingredients in a hot skillet in the order they are listed. Brown the meat then add the Chorizo and thoroughly cook. Add the vegies, then the seasonings. Roll the Chimichanga in large a flour tortilla stuffed with the Beef/Chorizo mix, Spanish Rice and Pepper Jack Cheese, then fry at 375 degrees till golden brown. Top the Fried Chimichanga with Green Chili Sauce and Sour Cream and serve.

The Ultimate Omelette

What’s for Breakfast… Omelette?

Do you know what’s in your refrigerator? Well if it’s anything like mine, it’s either plum full or it’s getting pretty bare. Either way, I always make sure we never go without milk or eggs. Any real cook knows what I’m talking about and anyone who doesn’t, knows what I’m sayin’! Staying the weekends at my house provides two things; sleeping in and big breakfasts, or brunch depending on how long I take to get out of bed. Sometimes the best morning meal can consist of last nights leftovers; especially if there’s any meat, onion, or bell peppers. Any kind of pepper will do in this case. So reach into that refrigerator and grab your favorite cheese and head over to the stove with some butter and eggs, because we’re making Omelettes today.

Omelette Ingredients:

2 to 3 eggs
1/2 cup cheese (your favorite, I use mild cheddar and pepper jack)
1 Tbs for ea. of the following
Tomato
Bell Pepper/Jalapeno
Scallions
Bacon
Basil
Mushroom

Add butter to a medium hot 6 inch non stick pan.
Scramble and add the eggs, then cover with a lid for 1 min.
Uncover and add all of the remaining ingredients to one half of the Omelette, topping everything off with cheese.
With a spatula, very carefully fold the omelette in half starting from the opposite side of the ingredients, then top with more cheese.