RECIPE: TEN (YES, 10) THINGS TO DO WITH CELERY ROOT

Courtesy of http://sixburnersue.com

1. Slice celery root into thin matchsticks (or grate it coarsely) and toss it (raw) into a winter salad of endive, sliced pears, toasted walnuts, and blue cheese.

2. Make roasted celery root “chips.” Slice the root in half and then into quarters; then slice each quarter as thinly as possible. (A santoku knife is great for this). Toss the pieces in enough olive oil to coat, sprinkle with salt, spread on a heavy-duty sheet pan; and roast at 350°F until they are mostly a deep golden brown, with some white left. (I think the darker ones are crispier, but too dark and they’ll taste bitter.) Let them cool on the sheet pan to finish crisping up. Sprinkle with more salt and snack on the couch with your favorite DVD.

3.  Since celery root and potatoes are such a great match, use them together in a hearty winter soup. Sauté lots of sliced leeks in butter, add cubed celery root, potatoes, and chicken or vegetable broth, simmer until tender, puree, and enhance with a touch of cream, a little lemon zest, lots of chopped fresh parsley and crispy croutons.

4. Apples and celery root are also happy partners. Use them raw together in a salad, or try roasting them first and adding them to a warm escarole salad with crispy strips of ham and a warm Dijon vinaigrette.

5.  Make a celery root “galette” by lining a tart pan with a couple layers of thinly sliced circles of celery root and gruyere cheese. Bake at 400°F until browned and tender. (Cover for the first half of cooking.) Let cool and slice into wedges.

6. Try a “quick braise” of celery root. Brown diced celery root in a combination of butter and olive oil in a sauté pan, then add just enough liquid (a little broth spiked with apple cider), cover and reduce the liquid to finish cooking the vegetables. Uncover, toss with a little spiced butter, and serve warm.

7. Instead of chips, you can also dice celery root for roasting. Make a quick weeknight side dish of roasted celery root and Yukon Gold potatoes with honey and rosemary. Cut the vegetables into ½-inch dice, toss in olive oil and salt, and roast on a sheet pan at 425°F until browned and tender. Dress lightly with a combination of melted butter, honey, and chopped fresh rosemary.

8. Celery root  is also a good flavor match with seafood.  A bed of celery root puree for a sear-roasted fish filet is delicious. Cut the root (and a few small potatoes) into pieces and simmer them with a few small garlic cloves until tender. Puree the vegetables with a little of the cooking liquid, a bit of cream, and salt and pepper.

9. Instead of a puree, make a celery root “mash” by hand-mashing cooked celery root and potatoes together with butter and milk and a little sautéed garlic. Serve with pot roast.

10. For an elegant holiday side dish—or even a hearty weeknight main dish with a salad—make my recipe for a celery root and potato gratin I use a combination of heavy cream and chicken broth so it is rich but not too heavy; this is a good dish to introduce celery root to folks.

CELERIAC PUREE

CELERIAC PUREE

Total Time:
55 min
Prep:
30 min
Cook:
25 min

Yield:4 servings
Level:Easy 
Ingredients
3 heads celeriac, approximately 2 1/2 to 3 pounds
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
5 cups water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup heavy cream – I substituted Greek yogurt

Directions
Brush excess dirt off of the celeriac. Cut off the bottoms and tops, cut into quarters and peel. Rinse in cool water if there is any remaining dirt or debris. Cut into 1/2-inch thick dice.
Heat the olive oil in a 4-quart saucepan over low heat just until it shimmers. Add the celeriac, garlic, salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, just until it begins to soften, approximately 5 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the water. Bring to a boil and cook until the celeriac is tender and easily pierced with a fork, approximately 20 minutes. Drain the celeriac through a colander and return to the pot. Using a stick blender, puree until no lumps are present, approximately 1 minute. Place the butter and heavy cream into a microwave proof bowl and heat just until the butter is melted, approximately 45 seconds. Add the cream and butter and continue to puree with the stick blender for another minute. Serve warm.

RECIPE: Roasted Vegetable Salad with Sherry Dressing

Ingredients

For the vegetables:
2 TBSP vegetable oil
6 cloves garlic, quartered
1 small onion, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 small sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
2 small carrots, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 small celery root, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

For the salad and dressing:
1/2 lb. hardy greens (spinach, kale, or escarole), stemmed if necessary
1 tsp chopped fresh marjoram
1 tsp chopped fresh sage
1/4 cup sherry vinegar
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
About 1 oz. shaved or grated Parmesan cheese


Roast the vegetables:
Heat the oven to 425°F. In a large bowl, toss the oil, garlic, onion, carrots, potatoes, sweet potato, celery root, salt, and pepper to coat the vegetables well. Spread them out in one layer on rimmed baking sheets and roast, stirring frequently, until tender and brown, 25 to 30 min.

Make the salad and dressing:
When the vegetables are almost finished, put the greens in a large stainless steel mixing bowl; set aside. (If you don’t have a stainless bowl, see below.) In a small bowl, whisk the herbs, vinegar, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle half the dressing (reserve the rest) over the greens and set the bowl over a burner heated to medium. With tongs, toss the greens in the bowl over the heat just until the greens begin to wilt.

(If you don’t have a stainless bowl, heat half the dressing, reserving the rest, in a small saucepan and toss it with the greens in a mixing bowl off the heat.)

Add the hot cooked vegetables to the greens and toss well. Distribute the salad among four plates, top with the Parmesan, and drizzle on the remaining dressing or pass it at the table. Serve warm.

RECIPE: Roasted Root Vegetables with Maple Glaze

From Cooking Light, March 2008

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups (1/2-inch) slices carrot

1 ½ cups (1/2-inch) slices parsnip

1 ½ cups (1/2-inch) cubed peeled turnip

4 tsp. olive oil

½ tsp. kosher salt

¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Cooking spray

2 Tbsp. maple syrup

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 450o.

2. Combine first 6 ingredients in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray, tossing well to coat.

3. Bake for 10 minutes.

4. Stir in syrup. Bake an additional 20 minutes or until tender and golden, stirring after 10 minutes.

NOTE: Most root vegetables work well in this recipe; I’ve used celery

root, rutabaga, and sweet potatoes as well as those included here.

Submitted by Lisa Bretherick

RECIPE: Root Vegetables Anna

From Bon Appétit January 2009

Serves 6

Ingredients:
Nonstick vegetable oil spray

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter, melted, divided

1 1/4 pounds russet potatoes (about 2 medium), peeled, cut into scant 1/8-inch-thick rounds

1/2 3-inch-diameter celery root (celeriac), trimmed, peeled, halved, very thinly sliced (1 1/4 cups to 1 1/2 cups)

1 medium turnip, peeled, halved, very thinly sliced (1 1/4 cups to 1 1/2 cups)

1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary

Procedure:
1. Spray 9 1/2-inch-diameter nonstick oven-proof skillet with vegetable oil spray; add 2 tablespoons melted butter. Arrange half of potato rounds in skillet, overlapping in concentric circles. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Alternate celery root slices and turnip slices atop potatoes in overlapping concentric circles. Sprinkle with rosemary, then lightly with salt and pepper. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons melted butter. Top with remaining potato slices in overlapping concentric circles. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Press with spatula to compact.

2. Preheat oven to 400°F. Cook vegetables over medium heat 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook until bottom layer is golden, about 25 minutes. Uncover and drizzle with 2 tablespoons melted butter. Transfer skillet to oven; bake uncovered until vegetables are very tender and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.

3. Run small knife around vegetables to loosen from skillet. Place large platter atop skillet. Using pot holders, firmly hold skillet and platter together and invert vegetables onto platter. Cut into wedges and serve.

RECIPE: Baked Sweet Potato and Celery Root Fries

From foodnetwork.com
Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 large sweet potatoes

1 large celery root, peeled

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon Hungarian paprika

1/2 teaspoon Chinese 5-spice powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons olive oil

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Cut potatoes and celery root into 1/2-inch thick matchsticks.

2. In a small bowl, mix together cayenne, paprika, 5-spice powder, garlic powder, black pepper and salt.

3. Spread matchsticks evenly on 2 sheet trays and toss with oil and spice mixture. Roast until golden brown, about 40 minutes, shaking pan occasionally. Serve immediately

RECIPE: Celery root salad with apple and parsley

From Perfect Vegetables

Serves 4 to 6 as a side dish

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1½ tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon honey

½ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil

3 tablespoons sour cream

1 medium celery root, peeled and rinsed

½ medium apple, cored and peeled

2 medium scallions, sliced thin

2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley leaves

2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon, if available

Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

1. Whisk the lemon juice, mustard, honey, and salt together in a bowl. Whisk in the oil in a slow, steady stream. Add the sour cream and whisk to combine. Set the dressing aside.

2. Cut the celery root and apple into 1½ inch pieces and grate on the coarse holes of a box grater, or use the shredding disk of a food processor. You should have about 3 cups total. Immediately add the grated celery root and apple to the prepared dressing to avoid discoloration. Toss to coat. Stir in the scallions, parsley, and tarragon (if using). Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 30 minutes and up to several hours. Serve.