Have you ever had a dream about soup? Not the one where you're in the soup, we've all had that one! No, the one where you are watching the clock until it's time to get out the soup once again and then the clock stops and you begin to panic just a little and you hear the Soup Nazi say no soup for you and you jump out of bed and head to the kitchen just to make sure there is still soup left and realize it's never too early or late for soup! Hmmm? No? Okay then, so just me, but when I tell you about this soup, remember my dream because you, too, will be dreaming about this soup over and over and over.
It's been a while since I've winched about the mister, so let me tell you about his newest annoying habit...he stays up late singing to music videos on his computer. Bad Karaoke at it's finest. He sings out loud...as in I have to close the door to his office and the bedroom door and turn up the TV to Richter Scale levels just to drown out the noise...and I do mean noise. There's nothing I can do about it either - I've tried asking him to tone it down and he says he will but then I'll hear him belting out R*E*S*P*EEEEEEEEEE*C*T ! The walls will rattle as he "drums" his hands on his desk and taps his feet while swiveling in his chair and I have to rewind the movie once again just so I can hear Cher say, "Snap out of it!" Good times.
Celery root is not pretty to look at but if you like mashed potatoes, then celery root is going to be your kind of thing. Celery root is a bit sweeter than a potato and is very mild in taste - it makes a great base for any kind of soup. In this recipe celery root, or celeriac, it's official name, is cooked with leeks in chicken stock until it's mashable or in this case, puree-able.
Immersion blenders are the way to go but if you don't have one you can puree in your blender, just do it in small batches so you don 't burn yourself. Bleu cheese and cream are added to the blended soup...then the magic happens. I think of this as a grown-up soup, as I don't know any kids who actually like the taste of bleu cheese...it's sophisticated, which is why The Ritz has had it on it's menu for years and years! We love this special soup - serve it to those who will appreciate the complexity of this very flavorful, warm, absolutely intoxicating soup!
New Year's Eve Soup - Adapted from The London Ritz Book of Christmas by Jennie Reekie
(If you are a collector of Christmas cookbooks, you might want to add this one to your shelves, if you can find it. It's a darling little book full of great recipes and stories about Christmas at The Ritz in London. Charming, sweet and sure to make you drool. The recipe in the book is called Celeriac and Stilton Soup, but we've had it on New Year's Eve for several years so we call it New Year's Eve Soup...you can call it what you want, just as long as you call it delicious, because it is!)
1/4 cup butter
2 medium leeks, trimmed, washed and roughly chopped
juice of 1 large lemon
2 lb. celery root (available at most grocery stores, Safeway carries it)
5 cups chicken stock
2 teaspoons rubbed fresh sage or 1 teaspoon dried
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
8 oz. (by weight) Bleu cheese crumbles
1 1/4 cups cream
Melt the butter in a large saucepan, add the leeks and fry very gently for 10 minutes until softened. Meanwhile, fill a bowl with cold water and add the lemon juice to acidulate it. Peel the celeriac thickly with a sharp knife. Cut into 1-inch chunks and drop them into the bowl of acidulated water. Drain the celeriac, then add to the pan of leeks. Fry gently for an additional 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the stock and bring to the boil, stirring, then add the sage and salt and pepper to taste. Lower the heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the celeriac is very soft. Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until it is smooth. If you don't have an immersion blender, put soup in blender and blend in small batches. Once soup is blended and smooth, stir in Bleu cheese crumbles and cream. Heat soup until hot, but not boiling. Taste for seasoning and add more if needed. Serves 8 to 10.
