This puff pastry-wrapped and pâté-packed dish is de rigueur for any character in a book, movie, or television show who is trying to impress someone with an über-elegant meal. The classic is rich beyond measure and fussy as hell. I’ve minimized its artery-clogging character—by about 77 grams of fat and 777 calories—and the fuss factor, too. It remains über-elegant.

　　

Ingredients

serves 4

　　One 1 1/4-pound piece lean filet mignon, trimmed of all visible fat

　　Salt and freshly ground black pepper

　　Nonstick cooking spray

　　1 pound button mushrooms, sliced

　　2 large shallots, chopped very fine (about 1/3 cup)

　　3 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped

　　1 ounce dry sherry

　　1 ounce duck liver pâté

　　4 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed

　　

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and set it aside. Place a wire baking rack on a sheet pan and set aside.

　　

Step 2

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat. Season the meat with salt and pepper to taste. When the pan is hot, add the cooking spray. Add the meat. Sear, turning it occasionally, until the meat is a deep golden brown all over, about 4 minutes total.

　　

Step 3

While the meat is searing, pulse the mushrooms, in two batches, in a food processor until they are very finely chopped.

　　

Step 4

Remove the skillet from the heat, and transfer the meat to the wire baking rack set over the sheet pan. Spray the skillet with cooking spray and place it over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and about half of the thyme. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots start to become tender and fragrant, about 2 minutes.

　　

Step 5

Raise the heat to high. Add the mushrooms to the skillet. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have released their liquid and the liquid has mostly evaporated, about 10 minutes. Add the sherry and cook for another minute. Add the pâté and stir until it is fully incorporated into the mushrooms. Season the mixture with salt and pepper to taste. Let it cool slightly.

　　

Step 6

On a work surface, lay down 1 sheet of phyllo. Spray the phyllo lightly and evenly with cooking spray. Sprinkle it with one quarter of the remaining thyme. Repeat the process with the remaining 3 sheets of phyllo, stacking the sheets as you go.

　　

Step 7

Working with the shorter side of the phyllo toward you, spread the mushroom mixture over the lower half half of the phyllo, leaving a 1-inch border on the sides. Place the beef on top of the mushroom mixture. Fold up the sides of the phyllo on the right and left of the beef to encase it. Roll up the beef in the phyllo.

　　

Step 8

Place the beef-phyllo package, seam side down, on the prepared baking sheet. Spray the package lightly with cooking spray. Season it with salt and pepper.

　　

Step 9

Roast until the meat is medium-rare, about 20 minutes. Let the Beef Wellington rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

　　

healthy tips

Step 10

Phyllo dough is low in fat and contains no saturated fat or trans fats, and no cholesterol. It’s light and flaky, and as long as you use butter-flavored cooking spray and/or olive oil cooking spray between layers rather than real melted butter or olive oil it’s a perfect low-fat/low-calorie swap for most recipes that call for dough of any kind.

　　

nutrition information

Step 11

Fat: 91.3g (before), 11.7g (after)

　　

Step 12

Calories: 1,156 (before), 335 (after)

　　

Step 13

Protein: 38g

　　

Step 14

Carbohydrates: 17g

　　

Step 15

Cholesterol: 123mg

　　

Step 16

Fiber: 2g

　　

Step 17

Sodium: 352mg

　　Now Eat This by Rocco DiSpirito. Copyright © 2010 by Rocco DiSpirito. Published by Random House Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved.Hailed as the "Leading Chef of his Generation" by Gourmet magazine, Rocco DiSpirito received the James Beard Award for his first cookbook, Flavor. He went on to author Rocco's Italian-American (2004), Rocco's Five Minute Flavor (2005), Rocco's Real-Life Recipes (2007), and Rocco Gets Real (2009). DiSpirito also starred in the Food Network series Melting Pot, the NBC hit reality series The Restaurant, and the A&E series Rocco Gets Real.