Mrs. Burgerdogboy taught me to appreciate soup more than I had in this lifetime. She made some pretty good ones, but turned out, I am better at it than her. She’s happy with a bowl of ramen or a can of Progresso, adorned with a couple of tablespoons of Tabasco; I go more for complicated flavor layers made from scratch.
Today’s brilliant concoction was a cream soup made from celery root and other vegetables.
Ingredients:
- 1 Celery root, peeled and diced
- 2 C celery stalk, washed and diced
- 1/2 Leek, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, diced
- (Optional) ham bone for smokey flavor
- 2 T butter
- 1/4 C white wine
- 1 qt chicken stock
- 8 oz cream or half/half
- Salt / pepper to taste
- Celery leaves for garnish
Method:
Place the vegetables (and optional pig part, I used a piece of hog neck) in a large pot with the butter and wine, simmer until soft, approximately two hours. Remove the vegetables from the pan and puree in a blender or food processor in batches, and return to pot, adding chicken stock and simmering for another thirty minutes.
Minutes before serving, turn down the heat, and lightly stir in the cream. Season to taste. Serve in deep bowls with celery leaves for garnish.
Makes 8 large servings.