CREAM OF CELERY SOUP

Celery soup was one of the first I attempted to make when Robert and I were first married. It was long before the days of pumpkin soup and the like. We were still making Scotch Broth, Pea and Ham or Mulligatawny for the most part.

Therefore this soup seemed rather adventurous. I found the recipe on the inside of the label of a can of evaporated milk, for those were the days when a can of something went into almost everything.

I should have learned my lesson early, but being an enthusiastic experimental cook, albeit a not very practised one, I always liked to try something new when visitors were coming for dinner. I still remember preparing this recipe fastidiously, then adding the can of evaporated milk as instructed, and the whole potful curdled.

I left the idea of celery soup alone for a good while after that, but eventually revisited it as celery is something that I seem to be able to grow in abundance in my vegetable garden. So here it is in its finished form, and it certainly won’t curdle.

Serves 4

         1 tablespoon oil

         2 teaspoons butter

         2 onions, diced

         125g turnip or swede, peeled and cut into 1cm pieces

         125g parsnip, cut into 1cm pieces

         800g celery sticks, washed, trimmed and cut into 1cm slices

         ¼ small apple, peeled and diced

         500ml chicken or vegetable stock

         750ml water

         1 teaspoon salt

         1 tablespoon cornflour mixed to a paste with ¼ cup cold water

         ⅓ cup cream

         ½ cup grated tasty cheese

Heat the oil and butter together in a saucepan over medium heat, then add the vegetables and apple and stir to coat. Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, until the celery is almost tender. Stir in the stock, water and salt.

Bring to the boil, then simmer until the vegetables are very tender. Sieve or pass through a food mill. (You could purée the soup in a food processor or with a stick blender, but sieving gives a much better result by way of a lovely, smooth, non-fibrous texture.)

Bring back to the boil, thicken with the cornflour paste, stirring, and then stir in the cream and cheese. Season with salt and pepper to taste.