Celeriac, potato and smoked salmon gratin

Adapted from a recipe I found somewhere on the internet

Aah celeriac, the Ood of the vegetable world.

This is a new discovery of mine, and I am really excited about it. It is seasonal, rich, creamy and really easy. The recipe is a bit like a cross between a gratin dauphinois and a posh Janssons Temptation - one of the best named dishes of all time ever. Who doesn’t love a bit of temptation? I guess this one could be a Dauphin’s Temptation or something. Whatever it is, its really tasty.

I have tinkered with the recipe quite a bit. When I made this the first time there was enough potato, celeriac, onion and salmon for one and a half gratins, but not enough cream. I guess most people don’t really mind if there is a bit of smoked salmon left over either. I have reduced some of the quantities to what I think would make a decent bake for 6 people, in one dish, but there still will probably be a little bit of celeriac left over – it is hard to reduce the amount of celeriac as they a are all pretty huge.

The original recipe used dill, but I actually really dislike dill, and made it instead with a bit of thyme and lemon thyme from my parents’ garden. It gave it a really interesting flavour, much less dominant than dill.

Serves 6

1 pack smoked salmon (120 – 150g, pack-sizes don’t seem to be uniform across most stores, so you might have some leftover)

1 large or 2 medium baking potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

1 celeriac (not too enormous) peeled, quartered and thinly sliced. (Put the sliced in a bowl of water with some lemon juice in to stop them discolouring)

300ml double cream

About half an onion, diced

Few sprigs of lemon thyme, or a mixture of lemon thyme and regular thyme

Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 180 c (with fan).

This dish is all about the layers. You will need a large ovenproof dish.

Layer 1: overlapping slices of potato and celeriac.

Layer 2: smoked salmon – just a few slices, it doesn’t need to covering the whole layer

Layer 3: sprinkle with diced onion and a little lemon thyme, season with salt and pepper, and pour over a little cream

Repeat layers 1 to 3.

Layer 7: Cover with a final layer of potato and celeriac, and pour the rest of the cream over the top.

Add a final decorative sprinkling of thyme and a bit of salt and pepper. Cover with foil and bake in the oven for 45 minutes, remove the foil and bake for another 30-40 minutes until golden and bubbling.

Serve with a big green salad, with dark green and bitter leaves.

Unfortunately I only have a photo of the gratin unbaked, because I was too distracted by eating it when it came out of the oven

Celeriac soup with smoked garlic

I don’t think I had ever even tried celeriac until I first made the Celeriac Sofrito at Rumi’s Kitchen, but now I am a little bit obsessed. I think that maybe it is because I feel a little like a Masterchef contestant every time I use it. This recipe is much more Masterchef-y than the sofrito, I suppose you could make it thicker and turn it into a puree – once you managed to get the hang of those artful little spoon-swipes they seem so fond of. It makes me wonder – do the contestants on Masterchef, especially Masterchef: Professionals, realise that everyone is making celeriac puree and spoon-swiping it? If I ever competed on Masterchef, I think that a tactic to winning might be to make something different to what everyone else was making. But that’s just me, and I love being contrary.

Don’t be put off by the smoked garlic – it isn’t difficult to get hold of. I found it in an Asda superstore in Bournemouth, two massive cloves in a box for £1.50. I’m keeping them in a ziplock bag for the time being, as the smoke smells incredibly intense. Their taste is much more subtle then the smell, and I really love it.

This soup is rich, thick and creamy, perfect for miserable weather days. I have been taking it into work for the past few days and it has definitely hit the spot.

Serves 4-6

1 celeriac, peeled and chopped into smallish chunks

1 large potato, peeled and chopped

1 large onion, diced

Cooking oil

1-2 cloves smoked garlic, smashed with the side of a heavy knife and chopped finely

1 vegetable stock cube, dissolved in a mug of hot water

2 bay leaves

½ tsp. paprika

2 tbsp. crème fraiche (optional)

½ tsp. dried tarragon (optional)

Salt and pepper

Boil the kettle.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and sauté the onion or a low-ish heat for 5-10 minutes, or until translucent and softened. Add the garlic and paprika and continue to fry for another few minutes, stir regularly to ensure that the garlic doesn’t burn and become acrid.

Once the onion and garlic are softened and smelling delicious, add the potato and celeriac to the pot, along with the mug of stock and bay leaves. With the water from the kettle, top the pot up so that the veggies are mostly covered (make sure that you have some decent ‘islands’ of celeriac poking through the top – you can always thin the soup down later). Add a pinch of salt and bring the whole thing to a boil. Once boiling, allow to simmer on a low heat with the lid on for 25-30 minutes, or until the veggies are soft.

Remove the bay leaves and blend the soup until smooth. Add more water at this point if the soup is too thick. Stir in the crème fraiche and tarragon if using, and season to taste with a little more salt if needed, and white or black pepper.

For an extra smoked garlic kick, serve the soup with the following bready things:

Smoked garlic croutons or

Make garlic bread by mashing a smoked garlic clove into butter, or

Roast a few cloves of smoked garlic whole (drizzle with olive oil) and squash them into some crostini.

With thanks to Kerstin Rodgers and Xanthe Clay for suggesting these ideas over Twitter.

Celeriac Sofrito

I first tasted this dish a few weeks ago when I volunteered, together with Moishe House and Brondesbury Park Synagogue at Rumi’s Kitchen, in Cricklewood Mosque. About once a month, a group of people come together and cook for the homeless. What’s wonderful about it, is that it isn’t so much about the food, but about creating a sense of community. Much love to Becky for introducing them to me. See below* for details about Rumi’s Cave.

I had never worked in an industrial-sized kitchen before, and absolutely loved it. The pot I was stirring was so big that it went over four rings on the hob, and the heat was so intense that two of us were stirring together to keep the celeriac from sticking. The original recipe was chosen by someone from the synagogue, it is an Ottolenghi dish, served with oniony meatballs. This recipe here is my adaptation.

In Jerusalem, Ottolenghi/ Tamimi explain that a sofrtio has its origins in Sephardic Jewish cooking, and refers a cooking method. Originating from the Spanish verb sofreir (to fry lightly). It involves slowly cooking meat in a pot on the stovetop with only oil and very little liquid. The result is a very tender texture and rich, comforting flavour. Turmeric, garlic and lemon are traditional flavours for this. Although traditionally associated with meat, it works incredibly well here with just veggies.

Celeriac is a pretty new ingredient for me. I have never been the biggest fan of root vegetables, but celeriac is brilliant. Every day on Masterchef Professionals someone seems to be making celeriac puree, so it can’t just be me. I have made this recipe a few times now, and I really love it. It’s sunshine-yellow and lemony, and the spices add an incredible warmth. I’ve added a few potatoes for a little variety in texture – the celeriac becomes really soft and almost creamy.

Makes enough for 4-6 as a side dish.

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil


1 celeriac, peeled and cut into approx 5cm x 1.5cm batons. I intentionally cut some a little small and some a little big, for different textures.

About 8 small waxy potatoes (I use charlottes) cut into quarters

2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed


1 tsp ground turmeric

½ tsp each cumin and coriander


1 tsp fennel seeds, lightly crushed


¾ tsp smoked paprika


1 mug-full of chicken or vegetable stock (1 cube) – you may need a little extra liquid


Juice from half a lemon – more of less depending on your preferences


Salt and freshly ground black pepper

The potatoes take a little longer to cook, so start them off cooking before you peel and chop the celeriac. Heat the oil in a large saucepan/or deep frying pan and add the potatoes, stirring quite frequently on a medium heat. Add the celeriac when it is ready, along with the turmeric, fennel seeds and other spices. Fry these all together for 5-10 minutes, until the spices start smelling fragrant and the veggies look cooked at the edges. Add the garlic and fry for another 5 minutes, stirring all the time to prevent it from burning. Then add the mug of stock, and simmer for at least 20 minutes. As there isn’t that much liquid, you will need to stir quite regularly to prevent it from sticking to the bottom (you may need to add a little more liquid, but don’t add too much).  When the potato quarters have cooked through and the smaller wedges of celeriac have started to disintegrate and thicken the sauce, season with the lemon, salt and pepper. Goes very well with thick Greek yogurt or Labneh.

8 celeriacs cooking in the giant pot at Rumi's Kitchen

Another volunteer and I stirring the giant pot. I love my apron 

my normal-sized version - slightly too orange as my hand slipped with the paprika - tasted nice though

Served with herby labneh and pomegranate seeds

*Rumi’s Cave is a community space located in the heart of Kilburn in London. It is run by charity, Ulfa Aid as a way of engaging and reaching out to the community. At Rumi’s Cave, we aim to create an environment of spirituality, creativity and learning for everyone, despite race or religion. Their mission is: Spirituality, Creativity, Education, Community, Charity.

http://rumiscaveblog.wordpress.com/2012/09/28/162/