What a day it was.

On Nov. 15, an audience of 50 or so people gathered at the Buffalo Inn, South Park, to watch Chef Jeffrey Ward, the Dean of Patisserie and Baking, Le Cordon Bleu Institute of Culinary Arts, Downtown, magically prepare a holiday dinner beginning with Brie En Croute and ending with a scrumptious pumpkin roll. And as if that wasn't enough, he also prepared a melt-in-your-mouth Spinach and Feta Stuffed Beef Tenderloin with Red Wine Sauce, Maple Glazed Acorn Squash Crescents and Whipped Potatoes!

As Chef Jeff guided us through this fantastic holiday meal, he provided useful tips along the way. He used terms such as barding, which means to tie fat or bacon around meat to keep it moist during cooking.

The tip I will always remember is about caramelizing. "If the ingredients begin to stick to the pan, don't scrape the pan or you'll loose all the flavor. The pan will release the food back to you when it's ready," he said.

While Chef Jeff cooked, we watched, we learned and we feasted on a holiday meal I'll never forget.

You, too, can enjoy Chef Jeff's outstanding holiday meal. Each recipe will serve 6 to 8 people.

The proceeds of the holiday demonstration (tickets were $20 each) went to Allegheny County Parks.

BRIE EN CROUTE

PG tested

• 8 ounce wheel imported Brie
• 1 egg
• 1 sheet puff pastry
• 1 ounce chopped pecans or dried fruit of choice

Cut puff pastry sheet in a circle 1 inch larger than wheel of brie.

Cut another circle the same size as the brie and place the brie on that circle. Place nuts or fruit on top of brie. Cover with the large puff pastry circle. Pinch the two pastry circles together on the bottom to seal.

Egg wash and bake at 350 degrees approximately 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and let cool slightly before serving.

-- Chef Jeffrey Ward

SPINACH AND FETA STUFFED BEEF TENDERLOIN

PG tested

• 10-ounce bag spinach
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 6 ounces feta cheese
• 1 whole beef tenderloin (about 5 pounds)
• 10 strips bacon

Saute spinach in a little olive oil with garlic and salt and pepper until spinach is wilted. Place in refrigerator to cool, about 20 minutes. Remove from refrigerator, add feta and mix. Set aside. With a sharp knife trim the silver skin from tenderloin. Remove tail (the tapered end) and extra lobe (the wider end). Slice tenderloin lengthwise 3/4 of the way through. Spread tenderloin out. Turn tenderloin over so the inside of the tenderloin is on the board face down. Gently pound the edges of the tenderloin so they are thin enough together to equal the thickness of the rest of the loin. Turn the tenderloin over (cut side up); spread filling in the center of the loin. Roll tenderloin.

Lay bacon side by side on counter or cutting board overlapping slightly.

Place tenderloin on top of bacon. Wrap bacon around tenderloin and place in refrigerator for 25 minutes. Remove tenderloin; place in a hot pan. Sear seam side, turning the tenderloin until bacon is crisp on both sides.

Place tenderloin in a roasting pan and roast at 325 degrees until center reads 140 degrees.

Let rest 10 minutes before slicing. While tenderloin is roasting make the Red Wine Sauce.

RED WINE SAUCE

PG tested

• 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
• 1/4 cup onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup carrot, chopped
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 cup red wine
• 12-ounce jar Heinz Bistro Au Jus

In the pan that the tenderloin was seared, add garlic, onion, and carrot. Saute until onions are translucent. Add tomato paste and cook until dark.

Add some water (about 1 to 2 tablespoons) to deglaze the pan and get the paste off the bottom of the pan. Repeat process of caramelizing the tomato paste until the liquid is brown. Add the wine and reduce by half. Add the au jus, bring to a simmer. Strain through fine mesh strainer.

Adjust seasoning if needed.

Serve with tenderloin.

-- Chef Jeffrey Ward

MAPLE GLAZED ACORN SQUASH CRESCENTS

PG tested

• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 4 ounces ( 1/2 stick) butter
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 acorn squash, about 2 pounds each

Melt maple syrup, butter and brown sugar in a small saucepan.

Cut acorn squash into crescents and peel.

Place crescents on a sheet tray brushed with butter then place in a 350-degree oven and roast until tender (about 20 to 25 minutes), brushing with the glaze every 10 to 15 minutes.

-- Chef Jeffrey Ward

WHIPPED POTATOES

PG tested

It's the cream and the butter and the food mill that make these potatoes so good. I didn't have a food mill but I ran out and bought one to make these potatoes.

-- Arlene Burnett

• 5 pounds Idaho potatoes, peeled and each potato cut into 12 pieces
• 2 ounces butter
• 2 ounces heavy cream
• Salt and pepper to taste

Place potatoes in a pot with cold water and salt. Bring to a boil and cook until tender.

Drain water from pot. Place pot back on the heat for 30 seconds. Place potatoes in food mill and mill back into hot pot. Add butter, heavy cream and salt and pepper.

-- Chef Jeffrey Ward

PUMPKIN ROLL

PG tested

Chef Jeff uses a scale to measure flour and sugar. I used my scale also. For the readers who don't have a scale, I weighed the flour and sugar and placed each in measuring cups.

-- Arlene Burnett

• 4 eggs
• 10 ounces sugar (about 1 1/3 cups)
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/8 teaspoon cinnamon
• 4 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 cup plus 1
• tablespoon)
• Chopped pecans, optional

Line a 151/2-by-101/2-inch jelly roll pan with parchment paper, set aside. Whip the eggs and sugar to a ribbon, about 10 minutes (when the beater or whisk is lifted, the batter will fall slowly back into the bowl, forming a ribbon-like pattern). Fold pumpkin into egg mixture. Sift dry ingredients and fold into pumpkin-egg mixture.

Spread batter over the baking sheet. Sprinkle top with chopped pecans, if using.

Bake at 350 degrees about 12-15 minutes or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Sprinkle confectioners' sugar over hot cake then invert cake onto a kitchen towel. Peel away the parchment paper. Fold the end of the towel over the long end of the cake and roll. Cool. Unroll the cake and spread about half the icing over cake and roll. Use remaining icing to decorate the pumpkin roll.

CREAM CHEESE ICING

PG tested

Chef Jeff uses an Italian butter cream recipe but he told me that any butter cream icing can be used. I used the following recipe but you can use your favorite recipe or buy readymade.

-- Arlene Burnett

• 2 pounds cream cheese. softened
• 4 ounces confectioners' sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 12 ounces butter cream icing (recipe follows)

Cream together cream cheese and confectioners' sugar.

Add vanilla, then add butter cream.

-- Chef Jeffrey Ward

BUTTER CREAM ICING

PG tested

• 4 tablespoons ( 1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Beat butter at medium speed until creamy. Reduce speed to low and gradually add 1 cup confectioners' sugar and 1 tablespoon of the cream, blending well. Add remaining confectioners' sugar, cream and vanilla. Beat until blended.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

First Published: December 23, 2010, 5:00 a.m.