Cream of Celery Soup

I had a really hearty meal out with my father, his friend and my sister last evening and so today I wanted to keep things really simple. I had some celery languishing in my veggie bin. Usually I end up throwing away half of my celery because I just can't seem to use it up quick enough.
Today I decided to use some of it to make myself a delicious soup. The recipe is one that I adapted from America's Test Kitchen, The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook. This is one of the books I decided to replace when I moved back to Canada.
Cream of Celery Soup

As a single person, I knew I would only ever very rarely be cooking for more than just myself. I do like to eat however and sometimes you just don't want to go to the bother of having to figure out how to downsize everything!! Yes, I do get lazy sometimes!
This book has paid for itself many times over. It is a valuable asset in my small family kitchen. I refer to it quite often. It is a great source of inspiration to me!
Cream of Celery Soup

My mother never used a recipe when she was making her soups, and, generally speaking, neither do I. They are just something I can put together without much trouble. Every time we had a roast dinner or a holiday meal, we could count on mom making us a huge pot of soup. What we didn't eat on the day, would then be frozen for a later date.
One of the things we three children always looked forward to when we came home to visit was a pot of mom's homemade soup and a feed of her home baked beans. Mom always made the best soups and homemade beans!
She never made celery soup or tomato soup from scratch though. They always came from a can. Mushroom too. If you have never made these soups from scratch, its time to change that. Homemade, from scratch celery (tomato and mushroom) soups are fabulous!

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CREAM OF CELERY SOUP
Just a few simple ingredients.

1 TBS butter
4 stalks of celery, trimmed and chopped
1 small baking potato, peeled and finely chopped
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 TBS sugar
1/2 tsp dried sage
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups (360ml) chicken broth
3 TBS cream (can use half and half or undiluted evaporated milk)

When I trim my celery, I lop off both ends and wash it really well. If the strings are really tough (this all depends on how old the celery is) I remove them as well. This is very easily done.
Just grab the end of one string between your knife and your thumb and pull. It usually comes away very easily. Repeat for all strings, discarding them.
By baking potato I mean a potato that is kind of floury. They are also good for mashing. In North America, a russet or a Yukon gold does the job. In the UK, I would use a King Edward or a Maris Peer.

HOW TO MAKE CREAM OF CELERY SOUP
Nothing could be simpler. If you are looking for a delicious, simple, quick and easy supper/lunch or first course, this is it!

Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium low heat. Add all of the vegetables, plus the sugar, sage and a pinch of salt. (Don't let your butter color or burn.)Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the celery and onion have softened, about 15 minutes. (Again, take care not to let them color or burn.)Add the chicken stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and continue to cook, uncovered, for a further 10 to 15 minutes, or until all of the vegetables, including the potatoes are tender.Blend until smooth in either a stand blender or using a stick blender, for about 2 minutes. (At this point, if you are wanting a really smooth soup you can push it through a sieve to remove any solids. I did not bother to do so.)Return to a clean pan. Stir in the cream and heat through. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (I used fresh ground black pepper.)

This was a really delicious bowl of soup. I quite enjoyed it! I was surprised recently to learn that a lot of people don't like celery. It is just something I have always loved.
A few other cream soups that you might enjoy making from scratch are:

CREAMY TOMATO SOUP - This is an old favorite. Rich and creamy with a lovely tomato flavor. Of course you know it goes great with a grilled cheese sandwich on the side!

CAULIFLOWER CHEESE SOUP - This is another old favorite. If you love Cauliflower Cheese then you best be prepared to fall in love with this rich and creamy soup. Deliciously cheesy!
Yield: 2Author: Marie Rayner

Cream of Celery Soup for Two

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 35 MinTotal time: 45 MinRich and creamy and a delicious way to use up any celery languishing in the veggie bin!

Ingredients

1 TBS butter
4 stalks of celery, trimmed and chopped
1 small baking potato, peeled and finely chopped
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 TBS sugar
1/2 tsp dried sage
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups (360ml) chicken broth
3 TBS cream (can use half and half or undiluted evaporated milk)

Instructions

Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium low heat. Add all of the vegetables, plus the sugar, sage and a pinch of salt.
Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the celery and onion have softened, about 15 minutes.
Add the chicken stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and continue to cook, uncovered, for a further 10 to 15 minutes, or until all of the vegetables, including the potatoes are tender.
Blend until smooth in either a stand blender or using a stick blender, for about 2 minutes.
Return to a clean pan. Stir in the cream and heat through. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

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Parmesan and Pine Kernel Muffins

I decided to bake myself a savory muffin to enjoy along with my soup. I small batched my recipe for Parmesan & Pine Kernel Muffins.
Soup always begs to be enjoyed along with a crusty roll, some crackers or some bread. Savory muffins also go very well!

These Parmesan and Pine Kernel Muffins are really delicious. They are not just good for serving with soups either. You can also enjoy them with stews, salads, etc. They are even great for breakfast with eggs!
They are loaded with loads of cheese and crunchy toasty pine nuts. Oh, I do so love Pine Nuts! They add a lovely touch of moreishness to these tasty muffins!
Parmesan and Pine Kernel Muffins

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE PARMESAN & PINE KERNEL MUFFINS
Very simple store cupboard ingredients.

melted butter for greasing the pan, or paper muffin cases
1 generous cup (142g) plain flour
1/2 TBS baking powder
pinch salt
1/4 cup (42g) freshly grated parmesan cheese
2 heaped TBS of pine-nut kernels
1 large free range egg
1/2 cup (120ml) of buttermilk
3 TBS sunflower oil
black pepper to taste

Topping:

1 TBS freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
2 tsp pine nuts

Don't worry if you haven't got any buttermilk. It is very easy to make a substitute for this ingredient. You can do it in one of two ways.

1. Place 1/2 TBS of vinegar or lemon juice in the bottom of your measuring cup. Add whole milk to the full measure. Stir and leave to clabber for at least five minutes.

2. Whisk together equal parts of full fat plain Greek yogurt and full fat milk. For this recipe you would need 1/4 cup of each. (60ml of each.)

These are really delicious. I hope you will be inspired to give them a go!

Yield: 6 - 7Author: Marie Rayner