Celeriac Apple Potato Soup

I enjoyed a lovely meal at the Monday Club in Harvard Square this weekend. One of the soups they have on their fall menu right now is celeriac apple soup.  Because I had just picked up celeriac and apples at the Farmer's Market on Monday, I decided to try the soup myself.

If you don't know what celeriac is, check out the ugly, sort of hairy knobby root on the left (see picture above).  Celeriac, also known as celery root, is a type of celery grown for its roots. Unlike most root vegetables, celeriac is low in starch and high in water and fiber.  It is a good source of dietary fiber, Vitamin B6, Magnesium, Potassium and Manganese, and an excellent source of Vitamin C and Phosphorus. It tastes quite similar to celery, and can be prepared like other root vegetables such as rutabagas, parsnips, and carrots.

This soup recipe is quite flexible, and as long as you have the basic ingredients (some sort of aromatic + root vegetable + stock), you can make some version of this soup.  For a printable version of the recipe, please click here.

Ingredients
1 celeriac root (peeled and chopped)
2 medium sized Idaho potatoes (peeled and chopped)
1 large apple (peeled and chopped)
1/2 onion, diced (leftover from my chicken pho the other day)
1 Qt chicken broth
1 T butter
1 T oil
1/2 tsp dried Thyme
salt and pepper to taste

Saute onions in butter and oil under medium heat for a few minutes until browned and translucent. Add the celeriac and potatoes.  Saute for about 8-10 minutes until they are cooked.  Add broth and apples.  Bring to a boil and then simmer for 30 minutes. Blend with an immersion blender or, if using a blender, blend in batches in the blender.  Garnish with toppings of your choice and serve!

Garnishes
You can cook some bacon, pancetta, or proscuitto in a pan and crumble a small amount on top of the soup.

Another variation by Gordon Ramsey adds a splash of lemon for tartness and crumbled stilton.

You can also consider chopped chives, croutons, or blue cheese.  

There's really a lot of room for creativity here.  You can easily make this soup vegan by omitting the butter and the bacon.  You can also thicken it up by adding a bit of heavy cream to the soup.

Experiment, and enjoy!