One beautiful part of being home together is enjoying our favorite activities. My husband and I have always been foodies, and now our children are too. Dining together more often pre-pandemic could have felt like a chore to prepare and clean up after, but now that the world has slowed down, there is joy in moments like these.

When I prepared these Beef Wellington bites, I thought of my children’s favorite ingredients, steak and mushrooms. As the food cooked, it brought back the memory of the show-stopping Beef Wellington that was served at my wedding. Since we had a small group of guests at a destination in Florida, most of our budget went towards the fantastic menu with seemingly unending appetizers to greet guests and a second entree of Beef Wellington.

Although my children enjoy elevated dishes prepared with fine ingredients, they have a few rules for the food I prepare, as most children do. No cheese and no gravy makes this a bit dryer than I would have preferred. You could create a gravy with a roux with the beef, or you could enjoy this with your favorite dip of choice.

Beef Wellington sounds elegant, but meal planning made this dish an affordable lunch for my children and a satisfying after-work snack for my husband. When I plan out my family’s meals each week, I check sales, and I try to make a package of meat work for a lunch and a dinner.

Cooking an ingredient that you can use more than once reduces waste and saves money. For this dish, I used 1/4 of a 2 lb package of stew meat, and I used the remainder towards a delicious beef and vegetable stew for dinner. Although Beef Wellington is traditionally made with filet mignon, this cut of beef was surprisingly delicious.

Ingredients

1/4 lb of stew meat or your preferred cut of beef
1 small sweet onion
1/2 package of mushrooms
2 packages of frozen puff pastry Phyllo shells
Fresh parsley
2 tablespoons of beef stock
Salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven according to the directions on your frozen package of Phyllo shells, which is usually around 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a pan on the stovetop. Add the beef to the pan, and season with salt and pepper. Let the beef cook until it has a crisp exterior and a cooked interior. Remove the beef from the pan, and place it in a small bowl to the side.

Add one chopped onion to the pan, and let it cook until it becomes translucent. Remove the onion, and add it to the bowl with the beef.

Chop the mushrooms, and add them to the pan. Let them cook until they are soft.

Add back into the pan the beef and onions. Let all the ingredients simmer together in the beef stock to increase the flavor. If you’re in a rush to get your children food during their break from virtual school, you can skip this step, and it still tastes delicious. For a thicker sauce, you can create a roux with flour and the beef stock.

Divide the ingredients among the Phyllo shells. Let them cook in the oven for around 5 minutes. Let them cool. Serve with a dash of fresh parsley on top, and enjoy!