Celery, celery, lots of celery...what to do?

[Richard Kilgore]

I have an abundance of celery in the fridge and would like to do something new and different with it. I am open to any and all suggestions, so what do you do with celery in your part of the world?

[Peter the eater]

Fill the groove with peanut butter -- my kids love it.

[Peter the eater]

Oooh, I have another idea:

Make stalk stock -- concentrated celery broth has amazing flavour when reduced to a green syrup.

[feedmec00kies]

Let me pipe up and add that suggestions for people who dislike celery (like me) are appreciated. I buy it because I need the texture in certain things (namely tuna salad) but I won't really eat it otherwise. Only so much ants-on-a-log (the celery with peanut butter, plus raisins) I can swallow.

[gfron1]

I recently made a celery ice to garnish a borscht.

Celery curd filled strawberry macarons

Celery mousse cake

Celery Italian Meringue

And my personal favorite: celery geleè wrapped white chocolate ganache filled with Moroccan olive powder HERE

[Magictofu]

Homemade cream of celery soup is delicious, unlike the canned version.

[Peter the eater]

Only so much ants-on-a-log (the celery with peanut butter, plus raisins) I can swallow.

I didn't know it had a name -- vivid, but not very appetizing. I guess that makes my suggestion simply a "log".

[slkinsey]

When I have leftover celery, I cut it into fine dice and freeze it. This can then be used in preparations where the celery would be fully cooked anyway (e.g., pasta sauces, soups, braises, crab cakes, etc.).

[heidih]

I am also interested to see what this topic produces. I come with extreme prejudice stemming from celery as diet food and the mindless munching thereof in lieu of "real food". That said, I have enjoyed Chinese celery which is thinner and very leafy, added near the end of soup preps or stir-fries. Our own hathor offered a lovely truffle dish in her blog recently that started with thin sliced celery softened in butter. Hopefully this is the link http://aromacucina.typepad.com/aroma_cucin...s-and-eggs.html

Edited November 17, 2008 by heidih (log)

[annachan]

I make a very simple chicken salad with celery. Chicken, sliced celery, sliced onion, seasoned rice vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.

I've made stuffed celery before and it turned out nicely. Cut celery into 3 inch sections. Stuff with ground meat (meat and seasoning of your choice, can add in some finely diced onion or celery), top with tomato/marinara sauce and bake. I imagine you can top with cheese if you like. Or, use a white sauce instead of tomato.

[snowangel]

What about some sort of Asian pickle?

[prasantrin]

You can stir-fry it. I'm not sure about the details, but one of my mother's friends made stir-fried celery for a dinner party once.

[azureus]

"German-style" potato salad is popular in my family. Lots of celery, onion, and bacon mixed with potatoes in a slightly sweet vinegar sauce. The "family" recipe is really from a fondue book published in 1969, but it's still good.

April

[Chufi]

celery and blue cheese soup.

edited to add: Jane Grigsons recipe is here

Edited November 18, 2008 by Chufi (log)

[Lilija]

I'm a big fan of a basic Waldorf type salad. Sliced celery, diced apples, walnuts and raisins or craisins, bound with a bit of mayo. I love all the different kinds crunchy, and the simple flavors go well together. I've been known to go through a bunch of celery in 3 days with this salad.

[JAZ]

Although I personally am not a fan of Waldorf salad, I do use thinly sliced or shaved celery in a couple of salads. One is celery, cucumber, radishes and shallots, all done on a mandoline, tossed with a mustard and dill vinaigrette. Another is sliced celery and tart apple on a bed of some kind of bitter green, topped with slivers of aged cheddar and toasted walnuts. I use a pretty basic vinaigrette for this (apple cider and sherry vinaigrette, walnut oil, a pinch of sugar and salt is about it).

[scottie]

Let me pipe up and add that suggestions for people who dislike celery (like me) are appreciated. I buy it because I need the texture in certain things (namely tuna salad) but I won't really eat it otherwise. Only so much ants-on-a-log (the celery with peanut butter, plus raisins) I can swallow.

←

I don't like celery either, but use it for stocks and soups. Always hated Bumps-on-a-Log.

Right now I have a bunch of VERY leafy and strong-flavored celery that I got at the farmer's market, and I'm wondering what the heck to do with it. Maybe a pesto? Would that be weird?

Think I'll probably make the cream-of-celery soup suggested by Magictofu above.

Edited November 18, 2008 by scottie (log)

[Jujubee]

Braised celery is pretty good and makes it easier to eat in quantity as a vegetable side dish, instead of as a stalk or two in another dish. Chop up an entire bunch into longish pieces, simmer in some water/wine/butter/s&p until tender and the liquid has evaporated into a glaze. You can dress it up a bit by sprinkling it with Parmesan and running it under the broiler.

[jgm]

One of my favorites is this Celery Bisque with Stilton Toasts, which is really good with or without the stilton toasts. The 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne looks a little strange, but don't omit it - it does really nice things for the flavor without making the soup spicy.

I saw an idea in (I believe) Gourmet back in the 80's, but I've lost the recipe. It consisted of a thick cheese spread, made with bleu cheese. After celery stalks were washed and dried, the cheese and celery were put together in such a way that the cheese held all of the celery stalks together in a log, with concave sides 'pointing' towards the center. I think about 6 to 8 stalks were used. After the log was formed, wrapped and refrigerated (to firm up the cheese), it was sliced (about 3/8 inch thick), and the slices formed lovely little rosettes that made great appetizers.

[Jamon.Iberico]

Celery kimchi!

2 bunches celery, finely diced

3 bunches scallions

500 grams red peppers

15 grams sambal oelek

25 grams garlic

75 grams ginger

40 grams fish sauce

15 grams sugar

10 grams salt

15 grams sesame oil

20 grams white vinegar

Blanch the celery and scallions in salted boiling water. Set aside. Purée the red peppers, sambal oelek, garlic, ginger, fish sauce, sugar, salt, sesame oil, and vinegar. Combine with the blanched celery, place in a covered non-reactive container, and store at room temperature for 3 days. Refrigerate for 4 weeks.

[djyee100]

Braised celery is pretty good and makes it easier to eat in quantity as a vegetable side dish, instead of as a stalk or two in another dish...simmer in some water/wine/butter/s&p until tender ...

Celery braised in beef stock is also very good. If I'm making a pot roast and a bunch of celery is languishing in the fridge, I toss in a bunch of pieces with the potatoes, carrots, etc. Braising tames some of that assertive taste of celery.

[Lindacakes]

Cut the prettier stalks and submerge them in a Bloody Mary made with horseradish vodka.

Dice the less attractive stalks and toss a handful in with your potatoes on the boil. When done, mash said potatoes with the celery. Tasty.

[Lonnie]

Right now I have a bunch of VERY leafy and strong-flavored celery that I got at the farmer's market, and I'm wondering what the heck to do with it. Maybe a pesto? Would that be weird?

Think I'll probably make the cream-of-celery soup suggested by Magictofu above.

←

Soup is a great way to use up celery. I joined a CSA and ended up with tons of weird vegetables. I started by slowly caramelizing a bunch of onions, adding some garlic and maybe fresh sausage to that. Let it get really dark. In the meantime, prep your vegetables and start heating stock. I cheat most the time and buy a quality chicken stock at the store. Start throwing your vegetables in the stock so that they cook for the correct amount of time. If you're using a long-cooking grain, throw some of that in early. Celery can be sauteed with the onions or thrown right in the hot stock. Keep those leaves, chop them up and throw them in toward the end. They're as good as any other deep green leafy veggie. Once the onion sofrito is dark and wonderful, quickly heat up whatever spices you want in it, deglaze with wine or stock and dump into the stock pot. Toss in your pasta if that's what you're using instead of a grain. Cook until done. One of these soups will easily absorb an entire head of very leafy celery. And one giant butternut squash, cubed (so cheap this time of year) will smooth out and gently sweeten your soup.

Lonnie

[Blue Heron]

Another idea for an abundance of celery is to make juice. I go through 1/2 bunch of organic celery (including leaves) every day using my juicer... I add it, along with a cucumber, a few large leaves of kale and/or broccoli stems, a lemon, a large apple and a pear if I have one (otherwise I use 2 apples)...you can also add a bit of carrot if you have it... this makes about 30 oz of addictively delicious and healthy juice.

[cakewalk]

Ages ago, when "Recipes for a Small Planet" was all the rage, one of my favorite recipes from that book was Roasted Wheat and Celery Au Gratin. What with various moves and shifting countries and whatnot, I lost the book a long time ago. But a couple of years ago I came across it in a second-hand book store and I bought it. I immediately made the celery recipe -- and I thought it was absolutely vile! I think it was because of all that milk -- I remember even when I was making it, the milk sort of made me gag. I've often thought that if I perhaps used vegetable stock instead of milk, I would enjoy it still, but I haven't yet tried it. In any case, the recipe is below, paraphrased somewhat; it uses quite a bit of celery. (I used to double the recipe, I liked it so much!)

Adapted from Recipes for a Small Planet by Ellen Buchman Ewald

Roasted Wheat and Celery Au Gratin (6 portions)

2 cups chopped celery

1/4 cup chopped green onions

1/2 tsp celery seed

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup bulgar wheat (uncooked)

1/4 cup oil

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 cups water

1 cup grated cheese of your choice

1 cup breadcrumbs

Saute celery, green onions, celery seed, salt & bulgar in the oil in a flameproof casserole dish. Saute until celery is soft.

Combine milk with the water, and add to celery mixture. Simmer partially covered 15 minutes, until most but not all liquid is absorbed.

Add 3/4 cup cheese and stir it in; spread the rest of the cheese on top. Sprinkle bread crumbs, dot with butter.

Bake at 325F for 15 minutes, until firm and sizzling a bit at the sides.