Celery Root and Potato Soup

In this freezing cold weather, there's nothing like a big hot bowl of soup to warm you up. I find myself turning to my soup recipes quite frequently as of late- they're quick, they're easy, and freeze pretty well for future enjoyment. With that said, I also find myself getting a little tired of the tried and true. Chicken noodle soup and veggie chili just don't hold the same appeal after a few dozen bowls. So when I came across an entry on David Lebovitz's website for celery root soup, my interest was piqued. I love celery root. Ugly and nobby on the outside, but the inside smooth and full of flavor, celery root is great for recipes. I love to add it to chicken pot pie and I've even been known to munch on it raw.

Although David Lebovitz's recipe sounded beyond great, I didn't have leeks or smoked salt on hand. One of my New Year's resolutions was to do a better job working with the ingredients I actually have in my kitchen rather than run to the store every time a recipe calls for a little something not in my pantry. This is a bad habit I've fallen into, especially as I've found my pantry filling up with partially used bottles and jars. I had the celery root and some onions, I had bacon that needed to be used, I had a few extra potatoes. I resisted the lure of the grocery store and the spice shop, and these things all went in the soup instead. I also added some smoked paprika to complement the bacon and some celery salt and white pepper to season. I was pretty pleased with how it turned out and will be enjoying a hot bowl for dinner tonight while wrapped up in a great big blanket. Brrr!

Ingredients:
4 slices bacon
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry sherry
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 bay leaf
1 large celery root (about 2 pounds), peeled and diced
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled and diced
6 cups chicken broth
Minced parsley

Directions:
-In a large pot or dutch oven, cook bacon slices slowly, rendering out the fat.
-Remove bacon from the pan and set on a plate prepared with paper towels. Crumble when cool to top the soup.
-Add onions and garlic to the fat and cook over medium heat, until onions are softened and translucent.
-Add celery salt, paprika, and white pepper and cook for a minute more.
-Pour the sherry over the onions. Turning up the heat slightly, use a spatula to bring up brown bits from the bottom of the pan.
-Cook until sherry is reduced by half.
-Add the chicken broth, bay leaf, and diced vegetables to the pot.
-Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer. Stir occasionally, simmering until vegetables are very soft.
-Remove the bay leaf.
-Using an immersion blender, a blender, or food processor, puree the soup until very smooth.
-Return to low heat.
-Heat the soup through and season to taste with salt and pepper.
-Serve with parsley, a little crumbled bacon, and a sprinkle of paprika.