Growing up, root vegetables were not in my mother's dinner repertoire. Well, carrots were available, but certainly not the ubiquitous so-called "baby carrots" of today—which are actually chopped, shaved down, shaped chunks of bigger carrots that weren't pretty enough to sell whole, and which are often rinsed in a weak bleach solution before bagging. (Ew.)

Back then, parsnips, rutabagas, beets, turnips and celery root either weren't available in the local Piggly Wiggly supermarket, or were passed over in favor of potatoes. Locally grown spuds were available in abundance in Central Oregon at the time, and the annual Potato Festival was a much-anticipated summer celebration in our small town, featuring a Potato Parade and, of course, potato sack races. (Read more about it here.)

These days I'm starting to love my roots, especially celery root (or celeriac), those intimidating-looking, softball-sized vegetables that look like alien spawn in a science fiction movie. But don't be afraid…once you slice off the outside rooty bits, the inside is not dissimilar from a potato and cooks up similarly.

I think they're smashing in soups like the one below, as well as stews, or mashed with potatoes, but my friends Anthony and Carol Boutard, formerly of Ayers Creek Farm in Gaston (but now happily ensconced in the Finger Lakes in upstate New York), prefer them raw, as Anthony wrote several years ago:

"So crisp and sweet, it is a shame to cook them. Prepare as a salad or celeriac remoulade. First, grate or julienne the raw roots.

"For a salad, dress with lemon juice and olive oil. We mince the greens into the mix, or add chopped celery when available.

"For a celeriac remoulade, sprinkle the grated roots with lemon juice and then dress with a remoulade sauce. The sauce is mayonnaise seasoned with mustard and a sprinkle of cayenne. We follow James Beard's suggestion of mixing a sharp Dijon with sweeter German mustard and the pungent English mustard. A nice balance. The salad is especially good the next day. On occasion, we sprinkle some caraway seed into the remoulade, a Nordic gesture."

I'll leave the final word to Josh Alsberg of Rubinette Produce, who shared this story:

"Right before Thanksgiving about 3 years ago, a customer approached me and asked if I had any suggestions to, in her words, 'jazz up her boring potato dish.' I told her one of my favorite vegetables was celeriac. 'Celeri-what?' she responded.

"I mentioned that it’s from the same family as celery and she said, 'This looks like a brain and I generally don’t eat anything I can’t pronounce. But you're saying this will help my potatoes taste better?' I said absolutely and told her how to prep and prepare it. She seemed a little unsure, but put it in her cart anyway.

'A few weeks later, she came back, grabbed my arm and started raving about what an amazing ingredient it is and how happy she was to discover something new. She's been a regular customer ever since.'

So when you're ready to jazz up a tired old recipe, go grab an alien brain…I mean…some celeriac, and let me know what you think!

Cream of Celery Root Soup

3 Tbsp. butter
2 large leeks, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/2" slices (including the green tops)
3 Tbsp. flour
3 c. water
3 c. chicken stock
2 large or 3 smaller celery roots (celeriac), peeled and chopped in 1/2" dice*
2 tsp. salt
1 c. sour cream
3 Tbsp. chives, minced (optional)

Melt butter in soup pot or large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add chopped leeks and cook slowly for 5 min. Remove from heat, add flour and stir. Return pot to heat and cook, stirring constantly and without browning for a minute. Add water and stock, stirring well. Add diced celery root and salt. Bring to boil and lower heat to simmer for 50 minutes. Remove from heat and purée with immersion blender (or cool and purée in a food processor or blender in batches). Return to heat and warm to a simmer, then add the sour cream and stir to combine (don't let it boil or the sour cream may separate). Adjust salt and add more water or stock if it seems too thick. Serve garnished with chives.

* To peel the celeriac, Edward Schneider of the New York Times wrote, "Ruthlessly peel a celery root. In other words, forget about your Ecko peeler: Take a knife and cut away all the dirty parts, right down to the flesh; my 20-ouncer lost a quarter of its weight in the process. Rinse, cut into chunks and put into a pan."

Just about exactly a month ago I posted about an event called the Fill Your Pantry and Winter Vegetable Sagra, a gathering of farmers, ranchers, plant breeders and folks who care about where their food comes from and how it’s grown. It offers the community a chance to order in bulk from local producers and pick up those orders at the event, but since most of the producers bring some extra meat, produce and bulk items along, it becomes a giant community farmers' market.

Portland chefs known for their support of local producers—Chef Timothy Wastell  Katherine Deumling of Cook With What You Have; Jaret Foster and Mona Johnson of Tournant; Jim Dixon of Real Good Food; and Lola Milholland of Umi Organic Noodles, among others—cook up samples of dishes like radicchio Caesar salad, yakisoba with vegetables, bean and cabbage stew and creamy celeriac soup (recipe below).

This year the event was literally packed cheek by jowl with people shopping, eating, talking and, in some cases, even singing the praises of our local bounty. I can't tell you how uplifting and inspiring it is to see your community come together to enjoy and celebrate the goodness that is produced here. The atmosphere was absolutely electric!

Thanks to Friends of Family Farmers, the Culinary Breeding Network and Oregon State University Small Farms Program for sponsoring this outstanding gathering.

All in the [Apiaceae] Family Celeriac Soup

By Mona Johnson and Jaret Foster of Tournant

This creamy, comforting celeriac soup is served with a supporting cast of characters from the same Apiaceae family to which it belongs. Celery, parsley, fennel and caraway all play a role in complementing celeriac's mild, earthy flavor. If time is short, feel free to top with only the ghee or gremolata, or skip both and just swirl in a dollop of creme fraiche or a drizzle of brown butter.

For the celeriac soup:
3 Tbsp. butter
2 medium leeks (white and light green parts only), halved lengthwise, sliced into thin half moons, rinsed and drained
2 medium fennel bulbs, halved lengthwise, thinly sliced
2 medium celery roots (about 1 1/2 lbs.), trimmed, peeled and chopped in 1/2" dice
1 c. dry white wine
1 Tbsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs fresh thyme
6 c. water
1/2 c. heavy cream

For the smoky caraway ghee:
4 Tbsp. ghee
1 tsp. caraway seeds
1 tsp. smoked paprika

For the celery gremolata:
1/4 c. finely chopped Italian parsley
2 cloves minced garlic
2 Tbsp. finely diced celery
Grated zest of 1 lemon

To make the soup, melt butter in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add leeks and cook until beginning to soften, about 2-3 minutes. Add fennel and cook until softened, stirring occasionally, about 8-10 minutes. Add the celery root to the pot along with salt, bay leaves and thyme, stirring to combine. Add wine and simmer until mostly evaporated. Add water and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and continue simmering until all vegetables are soft enough to purée, about 10-12 minutes.

Purée soup with an immersion blender (or in batches in a blender) until very smooth. Heat purée over medium low heat, then stir in heavy cream. Taste for seasoning and consistency, adding more salt, cream or water if needed for desired taste and texture.

To make the ghee, melt ghee in a small saucepan over low heat. Add caraway seeds and smoked paprika and cook, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes, being careful not to scorch spices. Remove from heat, let cool, then strain through a fine mesh strainer, discarding solids.

For the gremolata, add all ingredients to a small bowl, mixing to combine.

To serve, ladle soup into shallow bowls, swirl with infused ghee and sprinkle with gremolata.