Try A New Vegetable: Celeriac

We were invited to dinner at a friend's house a few weeks ago, and when we arrived, our host held up a celeriac and asked what he should do to cook it.

I didn't have a clue. He muddled through and the celeriac turned out to be the hit of the dinner.

I looked up all kinds of recipes, but in the end decided to cook it just the way my friend did and it was really wonderful. Celeriac is also known as celery root.

When you cut into it, you really get the aroma of celery, but the taste is quite delicate. It seems that this vegetable is pretty versatile.

You can serve it raw in coleslaw-style recipes or cook it with potatoes and I think that, like the Jerusalem artichokes I tried last week, it would make a great soup.

When I prepared it for dinner, I took the basic, easy way out. I sautéed an onion, and then I grated the celeriac and added it to the onion, and cooked it for about ten minutes, stirring it occasionally.

When it was soft and golden brown, I stirred in a tablespoon of seeded mustard. That was all there was to it. It was also really good cold the next day.

If you've never tried this before don't by shy, go out and get one and cook yourself a little mid-winter treat

Difficulty level: Easy