This gorgeous Vegan Wellington with Mushrooms and Lentils tastes just as good as it looks, with flaky, vegan puff pastry wrapped around meaty lentils, mushrooms and a mirepoix of onions, carrots and celery. The delicious flavors are all tied together with fresh herbs.
Who doesn't love puff pastry? You can use it to make nearly any dish more delicious, from a vegan pot pie to a vegan sausage roll. This time, we are wrapping it around a flavorful filling of lentils and mushrooms to make a scrumptious, flaky, golden-brown vegan wellington.
A wellington is an English-origin dish made by wrapping a loaf of meat, often beef, wrapped inside puff pastry. But making a delicious vegan version of this good-looking dish is probably not only easier, it also makes for a healthier option.
For my vegan wellington I created an aromatic and nutritious filling of lentils, celery, carrots, onions and mushrooms. Caramelize all the veggies with a dash of wine to build up the flavor, and finish off with a medley of herbs. Then wrap all this goodness in puff pastry and bake until golden, crispy and delicious.
I can't imagine a beef wellington would taste any better!
Table of Contents
Why you will love this recipe
- There's so much flavor and texture in this vegan mushroom wellington. The crunchy, flaky puff pastry is divine with the soft lentils and textured veggies.
- The recipe is quite foolproof. There are a few steps you will need to go through, including making the lentil filling. But it's quite easy and if you follow instructions you can't go wrong.
- Everyone will love it. You don't have to be plant-based to enjoy this amazing and easy vegan wellington. This is a very kid-friendly recipe as well, despite the mushrooms, which disappear into the savory lentil filling. And the adults? You'll have them eating out of your hand!
- The recipe makes two wellington loaves. So it's perfect for a gathering of six to eight people.
Ingredients
- Dried brown lentils. You can also use green lentils or French puy lentils. If using canned lentils, use two 15-oz cans and drain out all liquid.
- Puff pastry sheets. Use store-bought puff pastry sheets. Many brands sold in grocery stores, including Pepperidge Farm which I used, are accidentally vegan.
- Avocado oil. Or any vegetable oil, including olive oil.
- Aromatics: garlic, onion and dried herbs, including sage, rosemary and thyme.
- Vegetables: carrots, celery, and mushrooms (crimini or button mushrooms).
- Red wine. This will help build up the flavor, so try and use it. If you absolutely won't, skip it.
- Soy sauce or tamari. This will add a nice hit of umami. Leave out if soy-free. You can also substitute with a two teaspoons of vegan Worcestershire sauce or a tablespoon of tomato paste.
- Dijon mustard or wholegrain mustard
- Unbleached all purpose flour. This will help soak up the moisture from the filling so the puff pastry remains crispy.
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste.
Variations
- To make a healthier vegan wellington recipe use whole wheat puff pastry. My recipe is not just wholegrain, it has half the fat you'd find in store bought puff pastry.
- You can use whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour for the filling.
- You can make this a vegan "beef" wellington by replacing half the lentils with 14 oz of vegan beef.
- Use leeks instead of onions for even more flavor. You can also sub the mushrooms for a seasonal squash.
- Use fresh herbs instead of dried. You can use two tablespoons of fresh herbs.
- Use a mix of wild or dry mushrooms. Make sure you reconstitute them first, then cook with the rest of the filling.
How to make vegan wellington
1. Place the lentils in a saucepan, cover with an inch of water, bring to a boil, cover, and continue cooking 20-25 minutes or until lentils are tender but not mushy. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the finely chopped carrots, celery, onions and garlic along with a dash of salt and ground black pepper. Saute, stirring frequently, until the veggies start to caramelize.
3. Add the mushrooms, saute for a minute, then add the wine. Continue to cook, stirring often, until the wine has evaporated and the mushrooms are browned.
4. Add the herbs, soy sauce or tamari, dijon mustard, salt and ground black pepper to taste.
5. Add the lentils and continue cooking until there is no visible liquid in the skillet.
6. Add the flour and mix well until the flour is absorbed by the mixture. Turn off the heat
7. Place the filling in a spot where it can cool quickly. I put it in a bowl and place it in the fridge.
8. Roll out one of the puff pastry sheets to 11 X 13 inches on a lightly floured surface.
9. Divide the lentil mixture in two and form each into a loaf. Place one loaf in the center of the rolled out puff pastry sheet.
10. Fold the puff pastry over the loaf and press in the seam. Use a little water to moisten the edges, to help the seams stick.
11. With the seam side down tuck in the ends and seal them so you have a neat-looking, fully wrapped log. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry and the remaining lentil-veggie mixture.
12. Using a very sharp knife, score the top of the log in a decorative pattern-- I did a crosshatch. You can coat the top with an optional wash of a teaspoon of oil or melted vegan butter mixed with a teaspoon of non-dairy milk for better color.
13. Place the wellington loaves on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
14. Place the baking sheet in the preheated 425-degree oven and bake the wellington logs for 45 minutes or until golden-brown. Remove, let the wellingtons stand for about 10 minutes, then slice and serve.
Recipe FAQs
Creamy vegan mashed potatoes and mushroom gravy are perfect with the wellington. You can also serve with a side of garlicky green beans for the perfect vegan Christmas dinner.
You can make the filling up to two days in advance. Refrigerate until ready to use. Then roll out the puff pastry and stuff and bake the day you want to serve the vegan wellington.
You can also refrigerate the baked wellington for up to three days. Reheat in a preheated, 350-degree oven until warmed through and the puff pastry is crispy again.
Wrap the wellington tightly in freezer safe wrap and place in an airtight container. Freeze for up to three months. Thaw and reheat in preheated 350-degree oven until warmed through and crispy.
More yummy recipes with puff pastry
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Vegan Wellington
Equipment
- Saucepan
Ingredients
- ¾ cup dried brown lentils (or green lentils. If using canned lentils, use two 15-oz cans. Drain out all the liquid).
- 1 teaspoon avocado oil (or any vegetable oil)
- 4 cloves garlic (finely minced or crushed)
- 1 medium onion (finely chopped)
- 1 large carrot (finely chopped)
- 2 stalks celery (finely chopped)
- ½ cup red wine
- 12 oz crimini mushrooms (finely chopped)
- 2 teaspoons herbs (I used a mix of thyme, sage and rosemary. If using fresh herbs, use two tablespoons and mince them).
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce (or tamari)
- 2 tablespoon dijon mustard (or wholegrain mustard)
- ¼ cup unbleached all purpose flour
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
- 2 sheets puff pastry (thaw the frozen puff pastry sheets in refrigerator. It's easier to work with chilled puff pastry sheets rather than having them at room temperature).
For optional wash:
- 1 teaspoon nondairy milk
- 1 teaspoon avocado oil (or other vegetable oil)
Instructions
- Place the lentils in a saucepan, cover with an inch of water, bring to a boil, cover, and continue cooking 10-15 minutes or until lentils are tender but not mushy. Drain and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit/220 degree Celsius.
- Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the carrots, celery, onions and garlic along with a dash of salt and ground black pepper. Saute, stirring frequently, until the veggies start to caramelize.
- Add the mushrooms, saute for a minute, then add the wine. Continue to cook, stirring often, until the wine has evaporated and the mushrooms are browned.
- Add the herbs, soy sauce or tamari, dijon mustard and salt and ground black pepper to taste.
- Add the lentils and continue cooking until there is no visible liquid in the skillet.
- Place the filling in a spot where it can cool quickly. I put it in a bowl and place it in the fridge.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit/220 degrees Celsius.
- Roll out one of the puff pastry sheets to 11 X 13 inches on a lightly floured surface.
- Divide the lentil mixture in two and form each into a loaf. Place one loaf in the center of the rolled out puff pastry sheet.
- Fold the puff pastry over the loaf and press in the seam. Use a little water to moisten the edges, to help the seams stick.
- With the seam side down tuck in the ends and seal them so you have a neat-looking, fully wrapped log. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry and the remaining lentil-veggie mixture.
- Using a sharp knife, score the top of the log in a decorative pattern-- I did a crosshatch. You can coat the top with an optional wash of a teaspoon of oil mixed with a teaspoon of non-dairy milk for better color.
- Place the wellington loaves on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake the wellington logs for 45 minutes. Remove, let the wellingtons stand for about 10 minutes, then slice and serve.
Recipe notes
- To make a healthier wellington use whole wheat puff pastry.
- You can use whole wheat flour instead of all purpose flour for the filling.
- Use leeks instead of onions for even more flavor. You can also sub the mushrooms for a seasonal squash.
- Use fresh herbs instead of dried. You can use two tablespoons of fresh herbs.
- Use a mix of wild or dry mushrooms. Make sure you reconstitute them first, then cook with the rest of the filling.
- Serve the vegan wellington with creamy vegan mashed potatoes and mushroom gravy. You can also add a side of garlicky green beans.
- You can make the filling up to two days in advance. Refrigerate until ready to use. Then roll out the puff pastry and stuff and bake the day you want to serve the vegan wellington. You can also refrigerate the baked wellington for up to three days. Reheat in a preheated, 350-degree oven until warmed through and the puff pastry is crispy again.
- To freeze the vegan wellington, wrap tightly in freezer safe wrap and place in an airtight container. Freeze for up to three months. Thaw and reheat in preheated 350-degree oven until warmed through and crispy.
Cyvarn
Yummy!! I made this for our dinner tonight and it was delicious!! My husband wasn't looking forward to it because he is a big meat eater but he enjoyed it and was keen to take some left overs for lunch Thank you for such a yummy recipe!!
Vaishali
So happy you and your husband loved the wellington!
Sarah
Looks great! Can I cook from frozen? If so, what temperature in the oven and for how long? Thanks
Vaishali
Same temp, you might need to add up to 10-15 minutes more.
Lindsey
This is delicious, I am making it for the second time, this time to freeze for Christmas. Should I bake it before freezing, or bake first then re-heat on the day?
Vaishali
Hi Lindsey, I'd say freeze first and bake before serving, for the crispiest puff pastry.
Shona Papillon
Easy to make and delicious. We all loved it this Christmas.
Vanessa
Made them last night. They came out delicious. Thank you for the recipe.
Vaishali
So happy you loved it Vanessa! 💕
Emily
Can one log be frozen and cooked at a later date?
Vaishali
Yes!
Charity
I made this recently as a special birthday dinner for myself. The filling for this recipe is absolutely delicious! Unfortunately, I had a little trouble with the pastry. I used store-bought, and I suspect it's just that I'm a complete baking novice, but I had a lot of leftover pastry crust on the ends that I had to trim off. Also, I found that the wellingtons got very dark on top after only 20-25 minutes of the baking time. Next time, should I not roll out the pastry so thin? Should I cover with foil for the first half of the baking time to prevent too much browning? I used olive oil instead of avocado oil, in case that matters. Thanks for any troubleshooting help - we really want to try this again!
Vaishali
Hi Charity, you can cover the logs with foil if they start to brown too fast. And no need to trim excess pastry--just wrap it around because all that extra pastry equals lots of deliciousness! 🙂
Lora
This is so good! It was the perfect meal for.my first vegetarian Christmas! My daughter and I both loved it and she said it looked so good she thought I bought it.
Vaishali
So happy to hear! These wellingtons do look stunning, I totally agree.
Julie
I made this for my Christmas Eve dinner and it was wonderful! Definitely a new tradition! Thank you! I took your recommendation above and added some reconstituted dried porcini mushrooms to the filling. It gave it a depth of flavor that my family loved. Again, thank you!
Vaishali
Awesome, so happy you tried it with the dried mushrooms!
Jessica
Could this be made 1-2 days ahead of time, then baked before serving?
Vaishali
You can make the filling in advance, but wrap it in the puff pastry before baking.
Elena
Could I leave/ substitute the wine without making it taste too different?
Vaishali
Leave it out, that's fine!
Christie
Wow. This was incredible. Thank you for a great recipe we will make over and over.
Vaishali
Thanks for letting me know, Christie-- so happy you tried! Happy Thanksgiving.
Ida Moser
Absolutely phenomenal!! Early Thanksgiving dinner for me and carnivore husband was incredibly excited over flavor and presentation. I have no changes nor substitutions to suggest. I will definitely prepare again. Off the grid:)
Vaishali
Ida, so happy you tried and loved it! Thanks for letting me know. A very happy Thanksgiving to you.