The first budding snow drops of spring are upon us and what a relief! Store cupboards are nearly exhausted; fields fallow and the squirrels have almost eaten all their nuts. As long as you haven’t eaten them all already, now is a good time to use up all those stored nuts and what better accompaniment  than something you may not have tried before, despite its somewhat rough round the edges charm. Celeriac is still in good form at the moment, but don’t expect to get some hunky looking vegetable looking back at you from the green grocers shelf. Never has the phrase “don’t judge a book by its cover” been so aptly applied than to the Celeriac. Nutty, earthy, crunchy, smooth, creamy, svelte and wholesome are all plaudits that could be heaped on this wonderful vegetable depending on how it is treated.

Below is a recipe for a celeriac and walnut “slaw” which is a slightly wintery salad perfect for that transition period into spring.

 Ingredients;

1 celeriac

A handful of walnuts (broken ones are fine)

2 carrots

A handful of chopped parsley (if its survived the winter!)

1 tsp toasted fennel seeds

1 lemon

2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Using a cooks knife and taking great care, trim the skin from the celeriac (it can be quite thick in places so you may need to take a fair bit off) to expose the milky white flesh. Grate the celeriac and carrots into a large bowl, add in the rest and mix together. Season to taste. Simple yet incredibly tasty.