Jungle Red Writers: celeriac

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Perfectly in line with yesterday's spirited discussion of Thanksgiving plans, here's our own Celia Wakefield with a deliciously unique side dish for the holiday meal. It has all my favorite attributes: it's easy, it looks fancy, and you can make it the day before. I know the name sounds funny, but you'll be very happy to be introduced to Broccoli-Celeriac Mess.

Good morning JRW Community, and thank you Julia for giving me space and encouragement to share my food hacks with everyone. I really love coming to talk with you all. I have decided this time as the holiday season approaches, probably much faster than we are ready to receive it, that I would do my one and only original Thanksgiving side, which can be made ahead and shared throughout the year. Julia also said that I must tell you a Thanksgiving tale.

My first Thanksgiving was not on the shores of Massachusetts, but in a plane flying to St. Vincent for a delayed honeymoon. To set the stage Victor and I were married on Friday, May 23rd, 1969 at Caxton Hall in the Borough of Westminster (Google where the Beatles were married). He returned to NYC and IBM two weeks later while I languished in my small Pimlico house probably driving my room mates batty, as I awaiting the call from the American Embassy for my green card interview.

I flew to the USA and landed at JFK on July 31st, 1969, to a husband that I really had not seen for any length of time over the previous 3 years. But in November 1969 we set off for a lovely time in the Caribbean. I knew it was Thanksgiving as Victor had a holiday, and had read about the Pilgrims, but I was really quite ignorant beyond that fact. We were served a Thanksgiving lunch on the flight down, and arriving at the Sugar Mill Inn on St. Vincent, we were served a Thanksgiving dinner. So lots of Thanksgiving food and that is what I associated with Thanksgiving - large meals.

Two years later Victor was now working for IBM in the USA, we had immigrated. Now we had a house in the ‘burbs, a daughter fast approaching preschool, and a US Thanksgiving on the horizon, which we spent quietly at home. However the following year Olivia was in preschool, her classroom filled with cutouts of turkeys, Pilgrim hats, pies, all carefully colored in. I realized that if we were to make our life and future in the USA, we needed to do as the natives did and embrace this rather singular holiday.

Thinking back brings up many memories of friends and interesting doings. Olivia’s first grade teacher, Ms Mantell, decided that the kids would make a Thanksgiving feast for the parents with some adult volunteer help. Somehow I got landed with the pies. Picture me in the classroom with 25 or so first graders having them mix graham cracker crumbs with a little oil to make pie crust. If I find the photo in time I will add it in.

Another year arriving in Maine for Thanksgiving with dear friends who had just bought a real (rundown with no heat) Maine Camp on Estes Lake.The parents had gone up earlier to open up while we waited for the school day to end to drive their daughter and Olivia up the night before Thanksgiving. We arrived to find the pipes had burst. Bob with Victor, his untrained assistant, had appointed himself plumber, and a weekend with no water other than that which we scooped from the lake. - washing, flushing the loo etc - and water from a local spring which was fine for drinking. I remember having to boil water for everything including enough to give the girls hair a wash as they were most upset over no showers. But dinner was cooked, was delicious and consumed making just another adventure.

In 1976 amid all the Bicentennial celebrations another friend invited us to her parents home and a huge family celebration in a very large house with at least two long tables for the adults and another for all the children. It was my first extended family celebration and I was a little confused as to whether or not I was doing the correct thing several times but it all went well.

One year I bought a celeriac, I think I must have found a recipe for celeriac roumoulade, but between the acidulated water needed and difficulty in peeling the rough outer skin I didn’t get very far. But in the same way as authors have flashes of ideas, I had an idea. I microwaved the celeriac till the knife went in, steamed some broccoli and threw it all in my Cuisinart with some butter, sour cream and S&P. A beautiful pale green puree emerged with which Olivia fell in love. So there it was, my special Thanksgiving dish, no sugar required.

DIRECTIONS:

To make my Broccoli /Celeriac Mess (apologies to Eton College) you will need some sort of Food Processor. It could be made in one of the small ones but it might mean cutting down the size of the dish or several turns to get all the ingredients mixed. With a very strong arm it might be possible with a potato masher which while that might be fun is hard work. The other tool though one can do the recipe without it, would be an ice cream scoop but not the sort with the metal bar.

INGREDIENTS: This will depend on how many you are serving.

2 medium heads of Broccoli with or without stalk

1 large or 2 medium Celeriac

8 Roasted Garlic cloves, or a shallot sautéed in butter. (The shallot can be sautéed in some of the butter needed for the puree, just let it cool before adding to the other ingredients).

2 Tblsp soft butter (not melted)

1/2 -1 Cup of Creme fraiche, sour cream, or mixed goats or cream cheese (the real stuff not Philly, it would give the wrong mouth feel)

A splash of heavy cream if needed

Generous grating of Nutmeg to taste

Salt and Pepper to taste

PROCESS:

Cook the celeriac in the microwave for 6-12 minutes, testing with a thin knife after the first 6 minutes. Remove when soft and allow to cool.

Trim the broccoli into florets

Peel as much of the outer skin from the stem as possible, and chop the stem fairly finely

Steam broccoli till just done, check the stems. Keep the bright green color by draining and running under cold water to stop the cooking.

Cut the celeriac in half and using the scoop, or a spoon scrape the flesh from the skin, then using sharp knife held parallel to the skin, cut the remaining flesh from the skin.

Put the broccoli, celeriac, butter, garlic cloves* or shallot plus cooking butter, creme fraiche into the Food Processor.

Give a good grating of nutmeg, and add the salt and pepper

Pulse several times until the ingredients are mixed well

Taste for seasonings and add what may be necessary

Now add heavy cream if the mix appears too stiff

Pulse again, then scrap out into a bowl. I like to use a clear glass bowl to show off the color

Store, covered, in the fridge, and reheat in the microwave

* I keep roasted garlic on hand. I usually roast 4 garlic bulbs wrapped in foil and sprinkled with Olive Oil, at a time in a 350 degree oven for approximately an hour. Save in the fridge for all sorts of uses.