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Hello, foodies…

National Snack Food Month begins on In the Kitchen with David! This Wednesday marks the first day we celebrate all those wonderful munchies and we're not making any ordinary fare. Wednesday's recipe is a bite-sized entrée for your sweetheart. Valentine's Day is next Thursday…you need to start thinking about your romantic dinner at home!

Filet Wellington Bites

This recipe is prepared with the Technique® Nonstick Lightweight Cast Iron Dutch Oven (K36660).

Go to David's Recipe Item Page for the full list of items that David has used in his recipes.

Ingredients:

8 (2-oz) pieces beef tenderloin filet

1/2 lb white mushrooms, sliced

1/2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 shallot, diced

4 Tbsp oil

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp kosher salt

4 prosciutto slices, halved

10 4" x 4" puff pastry squares

1 egg, beaten with 2 tsp water

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425°F.

Pour 2 tablespoons of the oil in a skillet set over medium heat. Sauté the mushrooms with the shallots and thyme until all the moisture has evaporated and the mushrooms and shallots are cooked through, about 8–10 minutes. Set the pan aside to cool.

In the meantime, in another skillet, heat the remaining oil. Season the beef pieces with 1/2 a teaspoon of salt and pepper. Place the beef in the heated skillet and sear on each side about 2–3 minutes, or until brown. Remove the beef from the skillet and set it aside.

When the mushrooms have cooled, place them into a bowl of a food processor and add the Parmesan cheese as well as the remaining salt and pepper. Process until the ingredients are combined and very finely chopped, but not pureed.

Divide the mixture and place it in the middle of eight of the puff pastry squares. Wrap a slice of prosciutto around the seared beef and place it on top of the mushroom mixture. Repeat with the remaining beef. Wrap the puff pastry around each piece of beef and pinch the seams together. Place each wellington, seam-side-down, onto an ungreased cookie baking sheet.

With the two remaining squares of puff pastry, use a small heart-shaped cookie cutter to make eight heart garnishes. Brush the surface of each pastry with the beaten egg and place a heart garnish on top. Brush the hearts with the beaten egg and refrigerate the wellingtons for 10 minutes.

Bake until the pastries become puffy and golden brown, about 10 minutes to achieve a medium-rare doneness. (Add 5 minutes to the baking time to achieve a medium doneness; 10 minutes for medium-well.) Let each wellington rest for 5 minutes before serving.

It's worth it to make those adorable heart garnishes, foodies. They look so darn impressive! Just make sure the cookie cutter is small enough, because your bites won't be much bigger than 3".

So Valentine's Day is next Thursday, but Mardi Gras comes first! Why not celebrate with a Creole Bloody Mary? It's a Fat Tuesday favorite in New Orleans!

Your blog question today is about the upcoming holidays. Which "meal" are you most looking forward to…dinner at home with your sweetheart or a Fat Tuesday feast? Or, are both February holidays a big deal in your house? If that's the case, I'm comin' to visit! I'll see you Wednesday, foodies…remember we're starting at 8pm ET.

Keep it flavorful!

—David