Recipe: Celeriac and apple soup

CELERIAC MAY NOT be the most attractive looking vegetable on the shelf but it has plenty of inner beauty - believe me.  As the name suggests, it's from the celery family, but it's milder and sweeter than celery and bang in season right now.

This massively underused root vegetable can be boiled, roasted, mashed, steamed or eaten raw.  Probably most famously used in a remoulade, this knobbly wonder is brought alive by just a couple of other ingredients.  Here I'm using apple to produce a rich, velvety winter warming soup that it really simple to make.

Ingredients (serves 4):

1x celeriac
1x Granny Smith apple
2x small onions (or one large), finely diced
1x garlic clove, grated
1x celery stick, finely diced
250mls organic milk
2x organic vegetable stock cubes
Knob of organic butter
Few chives, finely chopped
Sea salt
Pepper

Method:

1) With a sharp knife, top and tail the celeriac.  Slice around the natural shape to remove the outer skin.  Rinse under a cold tap to remove any remaining dirt. Dice into rough chunks.

2) In a deep saucepan, melt the butter.  Gently sweat the onion and celery for 4-5 mins until softened.  Add the garlic for a further minute.

3) Meanwhile, remove the apple core and peel the apple.  Cut into chunks.

4) Add the celeriac and apple to the pot.  Season.  Add the milk and stock cubes and top up with boiling water to cover.

5) Simmer gently for 15-20 mins until the celeriac is tender.  Blitz with a hand blender.  Check seasoning and adjust accordingly.