Celery Soup Recipe with Fennel

By the time you read this new soup recipe, we'll be well on our way to Southern California. It will Monday, you see (it is Monday, right?). It will be bright and early. And we'll be waving our coffee fueled good-byes to piney Flagstaff, Arizona, the infamous gateway to the Grand Canyon (inspiration for Steve's movie) where we stayed overnight. We'll be up with the chickens, Honda packed with gluten-free treats, hitting Route 40 West for the second leg of the trip.

This feels a bit like time travel- I'm writing this post ahead of time to stay connected, to keep you in the loop. Imagining the highway. Singing Tom Waits in my head.

I love ya, Pretty Baby, but I always take the long way home.

The next post will be from Redondo Beach- where we're hanging with Alex and Jess for a couple of days before we slide on in to our cozy summer sublet. And meet up with Colin (who's new album as Slighter is on Amazon, and iTunes by the way). So stay tuned. There's also a major birthday looming. And I've got a lot to say on that subject.

It's all happening. You can't tell I'm stoked, can you?

Celery Soup Recipe with Fennel- Topped with Garlicky "Rye" Croutons

This creamy light soup is pure comfort food year round. Make it easy on yourself and toss it into a slow cooker. I love using my slow cooker in the summer. It keeps the kitchen cool and uses very little energy.

Olive oil
1 leek, trimmed, white and light green section only, diced
1-2 cloves garlic, chopped
5 large organic celery stalks, trimmed, chopped
1 cup fresh fennel (aka anise), chopped
1 potato, peeled, diced
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Water or light broth, as needed
Plain hemp or other non-dairy milk, as needed

To serve:
Croutons from my Gluten-Free Ryeless Rye recipe- pan toasted in olive oil and garlic

For slow cooker-

Drizzle a scant amount of olive oil into the crock. Add the leek and garlic and stir to coat. Toss in the celery, fennel and potato. Season with sea salt and pepper, to taste. Cover with just enough fresh water or light broth to cover the top of the vegetables. Cover and cook on High for about 4 hours or until the vegetables are fork tender.

For stove-top-

Drizzle a bit of olive oil into a soup pot and heat over medium heat. Add the leek, stir for a minute; add in the garlic and stir for another minute. Add the celery, fennel and potato; stir briefly; toss in a little salt and pepper. Pour in enough fresh water or light broth to cover the tops of the veggies. Cover and bring to a simmer. When soup is simmering, lower heat and continue to simmer until all the veggies are tender- roughly 40 to 45 minutes.

When the vegetables are fall apart tender:

Blend the soup with an immersion blender till smooth. (Or puree in batches in a blender or Vita-Mix- be careful to cover tightly!) Stir in enough hemp milk to make it creamy and return it to the stove, gently heating and stirring. Taste test for seasoning adjustments.

We made pan toasted croutons with my Gluten-Free Ryeless Rye Bread recipe, but you could also serve this delicate soup with a pinch of chopped dill or parsley on top, if you prefer.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Printer-friendly recipe