Fillet of beef en croute

Step 1

First of all, make the pastry:
- Pour 500 grams of flour on a work plan and dig a well.
- Drop into the well a large pinch of salt, 100 grams of soft butter and ¼ litre of water.
- Knead the ingredients well, the dough should be firm but flexible. Place for 20 minutes in the fridge.
- After this time, using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into a rectangle. Place on top the remaining 300g of butter and fold the four corners of the dough in towards the middle like an envelope.
Tap the dough with the rolling pin to spread the butter evenly between the layers of dough.
- Roll out the dough again into a rectangle, fold into thirds and repeat this operation again, turning the pastry each time, so by this stage you will have turnd it twice.
- Leave to rest again for a half hour in the fridge and repeat the previous operation. -You will have turned the pastry 4 times now, so you should have the side of the rectangle in front of you that you started with.
- Roll out the dough as big as you need to cover your piece of beef.

Step 2

Slice the mushrooms and cook them in a pan, at the end of cooking, pour in a little brandy and stop cooking when all the liquid has evaporated.
Brown the beef on all sides and then cook it for 10 minutes in the oven at gas mark 7.
- When 10 minutes has passed, remove it from the oven.
- Place the mushrooms in the middle of the pastry dough, place the roast on top, add salt and pepper.
- Cut 4 squares out of the 4 corners of the dough and cover the roast with the pastry. (Coat the edges with beaten egg so that both pieces of pastry stick well to each other).
- Place it on a baking tray covered with baking paper, turning it over (the thicker side face down) and decorate the top with the leftover strips of pastry dough: criss-crosses, leaves or any other patterns according to your imagination!
- Place it in the fridge for 30 minutes and then bake it, gas mark 7 (200°) for about 20 minutes.

Step 3