Recently, I was given the opportunity to try Cape Cod Select Premium Frozen Cranberries and enter their Holiday Blogger Recipe Challenge and Contest, and I was delighted to participate! I created recipes for each category that are special enough for a romantic dinner for two, and a belated Anniversary dinner and gift from the heart to my husband! My first recipe, created for the Beverage Category, was my Frosty Chocolate Frappé, that was nothing short of fabulous, and now I’d like to share my entry for the Main Entrée, Cranberry Balsamic Onion Jam and Filet Mignon in Puff Pastry, (*also known as “Beef Wellington” and “Boeûf en Croute”), that was just as fantastic, and had such a beautiful and spectacular presentation to boot! It’s actually simple and easy to make, and is something that you can feel confident about serving for any holiday such as your Christmas or New Year’s Eve dinner, special gathering, or romantic “date night in”! So plan on making this incredible and memorable dish this holiday season, and see my easy, no-fail recipe below!

~About the Sponsor~

Cape Cod Select is a company located in the heart of cranberry country, southeastern Massachusetts, that provides a premium quality product choosing only the ripest, freshest berries to package, and was founded in 2009. They also take great care in protecting the environment by using the latest technologies, from flower to berry, to do their share to keep our planet healthy and thriving. They have four different frozen packaged products to choose from including Cranberries Plus Blueberry, Cranberries Plus Tropical Bend with Pineapple, Mango & Banana, Cranberries Plus Power Blend with Blueberries, Blackberries & Raspberries, and of course, all Cranberry! They also have fresh berries, as well as really cool gift box crates! (Want!!)

*A quick little, required, FYI disclaimer. Just so you know, I have been sent cranberries by this company to use, but any and all opinions I have, of course as always, will solely be my own. I am very happy to participate in this challenge, and I hope that I have created easy to moderate skill level recipes for you to enjoy! So let’s get started and have some fun!

Many months ago, our local grocery store, for whatever reason, had whole beef tenderloins on sale (plus a huge in-store coupon!), that made the price per pound LESS than hamburger! My hubby and I thought that it surely had to be a mistake, and asked the meat manager to make sure it was correct, and it was! While still shocked and stunned, and after much debate, we ended up buying two of them! When we got home, I sliced most of each tenderloin into thick-cut medallions, wrapped them individually, then placed them into the freezer for VERY special occasions only! (*I did leave one section whole, too, to roast or grill.) Well, as my luck would have it, due to my health taking a serious dive, on top of the “banner year” of bad luck we’ve had, we were not able to celebrate our wedding anniversary. Or anything else this past year. I always try and make us something nice, and as sad as it was for me, it just had to be put on hold this time. Which was just more salt in the wound as we’ve been going through massive hardships with everything else on top. But, finally, after everything we both have been through, and still fighting upstream, this was a much overdue treat! I kept the side dishes simple, (just baked potatoes with butter, salt and pepper, and some pretty amazing green beans with the leftover cranberry jam!), ensuring the main dish to be the star! And boy was it ever an Oscar winner! I was so happy and thankful to be able to surprise him with this amazing, show-stopping but simple, dish! Having everything already on hand, mostly from my freezer stash, made it a breeze! If you put your thinking cap on, you can get creative with what you have, make the very best out of it, and that’s exactly what I set out to do, and humbly think I accomplished! Who needs to dine out when you can make it much better at home, and at a fraction of the cost, too, right?!! Exactly! 🙂

Make my (easy!) “Cranberry Balsamic Onion Jam” first.
*Can be made the day before.

And the rest just basically goes like this!

Simply tie the steak filets, season, and top with butter…

…bake, chill, snip and remove string, top with my cranberry jam and cheese…

…wrap with puff pastry, prick top, chill, then baste, sprinkle with salt, and bake!

Remove from baking sheet to a cooling rack and let sit 5 minutes…

…then be prepared!! Practice your curtsey or bows,
because the roar of applause will be begin!!
(Speech optional! 😉 )

This was the first night, and it was pitch black outside. Sorry about the photo!
I’m a cook, not a photographer. 😉

*Though this slice didn’t have any marbling at all, it was equally as good! 
Both were melt-in-your-mouth tender and juicy, and perfectly rare/medium-rare!

Truly, high-end restaurant quality made EASILY right at home!

This impressive looking dish is not difficult to make at all, but does take a little time and planning. But it’s a no-brainer, no-fail entrée, so no worries! The Cranberry Balsamic Bacon Onion Jam can be made the day before if you’d like, and that jam was truly amazing all on it’s own!!! It’s extremely easy to make, and you could serve it over poultry, pork or beef roasts, or even as a sauce or condiment over grilled fish, baked brie, burgers, brats, sandwiches and paninis, or even stir it into a sauce! Stir in a little mayo, and turn it into a delicious spread! The possibilities of uses are endless! Plus, you can cook it down to super thick, which works best for this particular recipe (so the pastry won’t be wet), or stop simmering sooner to keep it juicier for other uses!

So, if you want to look like a rock star, and wow someone you love, too, you have just stumbled onto the right place!!!

One was all we needed, (as I can’t eat much right now). So this is the second one.
It reheated beautifully the next day in a 350ºF oven for about 22 minutes!
And just look at that beautiful bit of marbling in the second one! Incredibly delicious!

I so hope that you enjoy my recipe, Cranberry Balsamic Bacon Onion Jam and Filet Mignon in Puff Pastry! It truly was nothing short of spectacular, and I’d bet even Gordon Ramsay might like! My Cranberry Balsamic Jam was incredible!! Be sure to save and Pin this recipe to have on hand for the upcoming holidays and special occasions! And wish me luck in the contest! We could use a little sunshine around here!! I’m sure we all could about now.

*Please be sure to follow Cape Cod Select Premium Cranberries via Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram, and YouTube to keep in touch and see all of the recipes from the contest, plus many more! (Need help finding them? *Click here to find a store in your area that carries them!)

Yield: 2 - 4 servings

Cranberry Balsamic Onion Jam and Filet Mignon in Puff Pastry with Blue Cheese

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Ingredients

For Jam:

• 2 cups Cape Cod Select Premium Frozen Cranberries, unthawed
• 1/2 cup chopped shallots (or approx. half of a medium onion chopped small and a dash of garlic powder)
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 Tbl. sweet aged balsamic vinegar
• 6 Tbl. cranberry-pomegranate cocktail juice
• 1/4 tsp. dried Herbs de Provence, lightly crush between your fingers when adding
• a dash or two of fresh-cracked salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/4 Tbl. cold butter (slice off 1 Tbl. and cut in half, then slice 1 half in half = 1/4 Tbl. - one small cube)

Rest of Ingredients:

• 2 (2 inch thick) filet mignon steaks (or beef tenderloins) sprinkled with coarse ground black pepper to taste
• 2 Tbl. butter
• 2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed and rolled out just to smooth creases

blue cheese as desired, (

• 1 egg white beaten with 1/2 Tbl. cold water
• light sprinkling of kosher salt

Instructions

Make Jam First:

In medium saucepan, add all Jam ingredients except butter. Stir to mix, bring to a simmer, and simmer for 15 minutes or until very thick and no longer juicy, stirring occasionally but especially at end. *After 10 minutes, when berries are soft, chop up well using side of spoon. When done and thick, stir in butter. Set aside to cool. When cool, transfer to a bowl or jar, cover and chill.

Prepare Rest:

Trim any fat from the steaks, sprinkle with pepper, spread tops of each with 1 Tbl butter. (*Tie baking around each to hold them together if needed).

On small baking sheet, bake in pre-heated oven, buttered side up, at 425º for 10 minutes. Remove from baking sheet, place onto a plate. Place in fridge until cold again, uncovered. (15 minutes).

Roll out puff pastry sheets a little on a lightly floured surface. (*If you had to tie the steaks, remove string now). Top steaks with cranberry jam, top with cheese of choice. Place pastry squares over steaks, centering, tuck pastry under and turn over, and overlap edges to cover bottoms. *If you have extra pastry, trim, and use to decorate tops gluing on with egg wash. Place seam-side down onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Prick top with a fork, cover with plastic wrap, and re-chill for 1 hour.

Beat egg white with cold water, and brush pastry with it, coating tops and sides. Sprinkle lightly with a little kosher salt.

Bake in center of pre-heated 425º oven for 20 - 22 minutes for rare and 26 - 28 minutes for med-rare. I highly suggest that you don't cook this further than that. If you do, I cannot guarantee that it will be as tender and juicy. (*My times are based on steaks being at least 2 inches thick or more).

Let rest 5 minutes, serve hot. (*If you have any cranberry jam left, serve that, (warmed), on the side for dipping if you'd like). Or use the extras added into a side dish or on bruschetta with cream cheese or brie.

Notes

*If Blue isn't your cheese of choice, I suggest trying a shaved or grated sharp white cheddar, shaved parmesan or asiago, slices of brie, crumbled roquefort, gorgonzola, or feta, sliced havarti, or pinches of herbed goat cheese! Choose whatever you enjoy! Or, if you are lactose intolerant or just don't care for cheese in it, you can certainly just skip the cheese altogether.