Kat’s Two-Celery Soup

We are experiencing veggie overload over here – when you open the fridge, no matter what direction you look, you see veggies. We’ve been eating all the lettuce and sprouts we can get our hands on, but I have been so busy lately that I haven’t had any time to do anything with those veggies that take more time – the celeriac, for starters.

Celeriac is a root I love to cook with. It’s a great addition to mixed roasted veggies, sliced thin in veggie gratin, or in a garlic-y potato mash (like on t-day). I even threw it into a yummy Root Vegetable Soup once, along with that elusive parsley root.

I had seen this recipe for celery soup on Food52 a little while back, and filed it away mentally for a rainy day activity – well, they announced yesterday that today would be a snow day (in preparation for the impending doom of Snow Storm Vulcan — see us? We are in that lovely portion of purple where the snow can’t get any deeper). So I decided that last night would be the perfect time for a little culinary therapy.

And man, did I cook…. I made vegetable gratin, mixed root vegetable puree, and the most delicious two celery soup. I didn’t follow the recipe (surprise, surprise), but used it as sort of a jumping-off point to get me thinking about celery and soup as one idea. My soup came out better than I could have dreamed – it was savory, complex and with the perfectly silken texture we soup-makers dream of. I made just enough for me to have two bowls last night and two bowls today. My husband isn’t a soup person, so there’s no need to apologize for not sharing here. I suppose that if there had been other soup-lovers around, it could have served 4 people, but alas, I was all alone in soup heaven.

Here’s how to make it:

Kat’s Two-Celery Soup (makes 4 servings)

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium shallot, roughly chopped
3 ribs celery, roughly chopped
1/2 large bulb celeriac, roughly chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 tsp salt (I used pink Himalayan, but anything would be ok here)
4 cups chicken stock (or 4 cups of water & 1 stock cube/packet)
1 Tbsp butter or margarine
2 Tbsp cream (heavy or light – your choice)

In a medium sauce pan, heat olive oil on medium heat.
Toss in shallot, celery, and celery root. Stir to coat in olive oil.
After 3-4 minutes, sprinkle the salt over the veggies and stir to coat.
Let it go about 8-10 minutes, stirring every minute or so, until there are little bits of caramelized brown goodness.
Add the chicken stock – I know it sounds like a lot but its going to get more concentrated as it cooks.
Bring it up to a bubble and turn the heat down to low.
Let it bubble away gently until everything is tender and you can’t stand how good your kitchen smells – about an hour.
Take it off the heat, and whiz it all together with your stick blender.
Gently swirl in the butter and the cream.
Ladle it into a bowl and enjoy – this type of soup just begs for a little toast. You can top it with a swirl of extra cream if you’re feeling particularly artistic.