Green City Market Celeriac, Apple & Thyme Soup
Celeriac, the Jabba the hutt of the vegetable display at the market.
“Pare off its warty exterior and you’ll uncover the royal vegetable within. A perfect ivory fleshed winter alternative to potatoes and other starches.” by Jack Strauss
With its nutty perfume and lighter taste, celeriac is as delicious prepared raw in a celeriac remoulade as it is boiled and pureed or mashed with light cream or butter. I’m enticed by the unusual produce at the market and prefer to source just a few key quality ingredients which can shine in the prepared finished dish.
At Green City Market I looked no further for my first recipe this month than the two produce vendors 
Nichols Farm & Orchard, fruit and vegetable CSA and Genesis Growers.
I picked out three small gnarly celeriac, a handful of shallots, a small bulb of fresh garlic and two crisp apples. That would be my soup for this week, savory & earthy with a touch of apple sweetness.
Once cooked the soup really benefits from stirring in some cream to give it extra depth and texture. This keeps in the fridge so you can enjoy a hot bowl of soup later in the week.
- 1 cup /4 shallots, roughly chopped
- 1lb celeriac, peeled & chopped
- 1/3 cup / 1 celery stick, roughly chopped
- 3 tsp / 6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 2 apples, cored, peeled & chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme / 1 1/2 tsp dried
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup half & half / light cream / sour cream
- toasted hazelnuts to garnish
- add the shallots, celeriac, celery, garlic, apples, thyme, broth and water to the slow cooker
- stir, cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 3
- use an immersion blender to puree and blend in the cream
“Let the fresh fruits and vegetables be your guide, and make something that will keep for the whole week.”
