celeriac (Celery Root) Soup

Have you worked with celeriac before? This ugly, hairy, gnarly looking bulb is the root of a celery plant—but not the kind of celery that we're used to. This one is grown only for its root, and while its flavor is similar to that of celery, they behave very differently in recipes and are not interchangeable.

The best way to deal with this thing is to cut it up into manageable pieces before peeling it with a vegetable peeler. Then rinse the chunks and cut them into smaller pieces. If you do this in advance, keep them submerged in cold water until you're ready to use them. They oxidize quickly. Sounds like a big deal? It's worth it; this vegetable is like none other.

All of my puréed vegetable soups start out the same way. It's a formula, and you can use it as a springboard for creating an endless number of fabulous soups.

We sauté onion in fat—olive oil, nut oil, butter, coconut oil...

We add the cut up vegetable(s) of our choice.

We add any flavors we want to have in our soup—minced ginger, garlic, herbs, spices...

We add stock and simmer until the vegetable(s) are tender.

We purée the soup, using an immersion blender or a food processor.

Adding a touch of cream at the end is optional.

We can garnish the soup once it's in the bowls. Snipped fresh herbs, some of the vegetable that was used to make the soup (a few asparagus tips, for example), croutons, popcorn...

Happy soup-ing!

Ingredients:

1 small onion, diced

2 tablespoons butter or oil

1 medium celeriac bulb, peeled and cut into small chunks

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 quart stock—chicken, no-chicken, or vegetable

the leaves from 2 sprigs of thyme (or change the herb for a different flavor profile)

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, preferably freshly grated

Optional: a splash of heavy cream

Method:

Warm the butter or oil in a pot and sauté the onion until it's soft and translucent.

Add the garlic and celeriac and sauté for a minute or so to coat everything with the oil.

Add the stock and simmer for 30 minutes. Use a fork to test the celeriac. If it's not soft, simmer the soup for a little longer.

Once it's tender, use an immersion blender, or transfer the soup to a food processor, and process until very smooth.

Stir in the nutmeg.

Add some cream if you'd like, to make it extra creamy

Taste for salt, add some pepper, adjust, and ladle into bowls.

Add any garnishes you'd like to use and serve hot.