Celery Soup & Celery Leaves Pesto

What to do with a humble head of celery?  Well, they get chopped up a lot to go with salads and dips, and fried up frequently with onions and carrots in stews.  Until I became a volunteer working at a local farm, I never knew the bunch of celery we buy from the shops looks quite different from celery in its natural form growing organically from the ground.  Most noticeably, all the top green leaves are missing from the shop variety, and it doesn't have that deep green colour of the farm fresh produce, nor its strong flavour.  All parts of the plant are good to eat.  I've got two recipes here - a delicate celery soup using the stalks and the heart and a vibrant celery pesto using the leaves.

Celery Soup

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 300g / 10½oz celery stalks, chopped
• 100g / 3½oz celery heart, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, peeled & crushed
• 200g / 7oz potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 500ml / 17 fl oz chicken or vegetable stock
• 150ml / 5 fl oz milk
• salt & freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat.  Add the chopped celery stalks, garlic and potatoes and stir fry for 3 minutes in the oil.  Add a good pinch of salt.
2. Tip in the stock.  Cover and bring it to the boil, then reduce the heat down to low and simmer for about 10 minutes until the celery and potatoes have softened.
3. Remove the pan from heat, and puree the ingredients using a hand-held food processor until smooth.
4. Add the milk, and blitz again to combine.  Return the pan to low heat for a minute or so to cook through the soup.  Season with salt and pepper.
5. Stir in the finely chopped celery heart just before serving to give the soup a little crunch.

Celery Leaves Pesto

INGREDIENTS

• 80g / 2¾oz celery leaves, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic, peeled
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup toasted almond flakes
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• zest of 1 lemon
• ½ cup olive oil
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

1. In a food processor, add celery leaves, garlic, Parmesan cheese, almond flakes, lemon juice and lemon zest and a good pinch of salt.  Process until smooth.
2. Add olive oil and blitz for a few more seconds to combine.
3. Season with more salt and pepper to taste.

*Toasted cashew or macadamia nuts can be used instead of almonds.  Quantity of various ingredients used in making the pesto can vary according to taste.  Keep the pesto in a lidded jar in the refrigerator up to a few days.  There are so many ways to use this lovely green paste - as a dip, spread it on crusty bread, stir it into a pasta dish (pictured below), spoon it on top of eggs,  potatoes, chicken and meat dishes to add flavour and interest.