In case you have not already noticed form my previous soup recipes, Celery is one of my favourite vegetables, especially in soup. My big gripe these days is that mass production of celery has now led to an inferior product. Celery when growing should be earthed up to provide fine white stalks, which are also more tender, than the horrible green ones we get in the supermarkets these days. I know it would be more labour intensive and therefore cost more to produce but it would be far better for eating. A stick of celery, pile of slat for dipping and a lump of cheese . . . heaven!

Anyway back to the soup! This recipe is just made with celery and no other vegetables except some garlic and parsley for flavouring. This soup is light enough to be served even in the warmer months and the use of the celery leaves from the inner stalks add great texture as well as giving more flavour. So set aside the leaves and the very centre of the heart to add at the end of making your soup. Leave out any dark green leaves as they tend towards being bitter.

Apart from making a great soup Celery is also reckoned to be beneficial to your health:

• It is one of the lowest calorie foods you can eat
• Helps you feel fuller for longer
• Keeps bloating at bay
• Reduces blood pressure
• Helps maintain a healthy digestive system
• Helps slow progression of dementia
• Can help protect against cancer
• Aids a good night’s sleep

Ingredients

3 heads of Celery
4 Vegetable stock cubes
4 or 5 garlic cloves, chopped
Salt to taste
Bunch of fresh Parsley
Ground black pepper
Water

Method

• Head of Celery

• To make the soup I use an 8 pint pan.
  
  
• Remove the leaves from the celery hearts and reserve.
  
  
• Clean your celery stalks and chop into pieces and add to your pan.
  
  
• Add water to your pan to bring the level to one inch from the top. Bring to the boil and then leave to simmer for about 30 minutes.
  
  
• Add three of vegetable stock cubes (I prefer Knorr). Once dissolved decide whether to add the fourth stock cube.
  
  
• Taste and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
  
  
• Finely chop your Parsley (plenty of it) and add to pan. Continue to simmer for a further two or three minutes and then remove from the heat. Remove half the celery.
  
  
• Liquidise your soup either in a liquidiser (will need to do in batches) or with a hand-held liquidiser so that a smooth consistency is achieved.
  
  
• Finely chop your celery leaves and heart and add to pan. Simmer for another five minutes.
  
  
• Serve immediately or leave to cool and store in the fridge and reheat as required. If not using all at once only reheat the amount you need each time and not the whole pan of soup.

Serves 8

Making anything like this does not require you to use precise amounts so do not worry too much about weighing or the size of the ingredients.

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